 Artist of the Month, January 1996
John Lee Hooker
H.E.A.R. is proud to honor the great bluesman John
Lee Hooker as our December Artist of the Month. 1995 has been a big
year for Hooker. He celebrated his 75th birthday and has released CHILL
OUT. Recorded in the San Francisco Bay Area, CHILL OUT showcases Hooker's
hypnotic singing and inimitable guitar playing. The recording also featured
guest appearances by Carlos Santana, Van Morrison, and the famed R &
B pianist Charles Brown.
John Lee Hooker was born in Mississippi 1920 to a sharecropper
family and he's one of a handful of artists who took the blues music from
the Mississippi Delta and shared it with the world. Without the music
of the blues there would never have been rock and roll, and Hooker's stature
as one of the musical giants was cemented forever when he was inducted
into the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.
In the early 1940's John Lee Hooker left the Delta for Detroit
and in 1948 he released Boogie Chillen. The song became a number one jukebox
hit and a million seller. Hooker followed this success with an even bigger
hit, I'm in the Mood. In the 50's and 60's Hooker released more than 100
songs on Vee Jay Records and when he was discovered by such English musicians
as John Mayall, The Animals, and The Yardbirds the impact of his blues
playing spread even further. In 1970 Hooker moved to California and worked
closely with Van Morrison and Canned Heat, the blues band that modeled
their music on Hooker's sound.
John Lee is not touring anymore, though he did make a recent
appearance at the San Francisco Blues Festival where he was the Honored
Guest. But staying around his San Francisco Bay Area home has not slowed
him down. He lends his considerable presence and reputation to help many
organizations working to help people less fortunate. He has worked for
Bread and Roses, Project Open Hand, Neil Young's Bridge School Benefit,
Blues Against Blindness, and Magic Johnson's Aid's Foundation. He's also
helping us at H.E.A.R. to continue our work educating people on the importance
of hearing health.
John Lee Hooker is truly a musical treasure. In a day when
laudatory terms are cast about much too easily, it's not at all a stretch
to call John Lee Hooker a Living Legend. H.E.A.R. is proud to have John
Lee Hooker as our Artist of the Month for December and we encourage you
to listen to CHILL OUT and all of Hooker's extraordinary music.
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