Reed was born in Dunleith, Mississippi in 1925, learning the
harmonica and guitar from Eddie Taylor, a close friend. After spending several
years busking and performing in the area, Reed moved to Chicago, Illinois in
1943 before being drafted into the
United States Navy during World War II. In
1945, Reed was discharged and moved back to Mississippi for a brief period,
marrying his girlfriend, Mary "Mama" Reed, before moving to Gary,
Indiana to work at an Armour & Co. meat packing plant.
By the 1950s, Reed had established himself as a popular
musician and joined the "Gary Kings" with John Brim, as well as
playing on the street with Willie Joe Duncan. Reed failed to gain a recording
contract with Chess Records, but then signed with Vee-Jay Records through Brim's
drummer, Albert King. At Vee-Jay, Reed began playing again with Eddie Taylor
and soon released "You Don't Have To Go", his first hit record. This
was followed by a long string of hits. Reed maintained his reputation, in spite
of rampant alcoholism. Sometimes, his wife had to help him remember the lyrics
to his songs while performing.
In about 1957, Reed was diagnosed as having epilepsy.
Seizures were rare at first, but as the years went by, the attacks became more
frequent. This, however, did not stop him from touring. In 1963, he made his
first tour to England and appeared on the pop music show, "Ready, Steady,
Go" on BBC-TV.
In spite of his numerous hits, Reed's personal problems
prevented him from achieving the same level of fame as other popular blues
artists of the time, though he had more hit songs than many others. Reed's recording career with Vee Jay Records
ended in 1964. While with Vee Jay, he recorded 14 albums and had many hit
singles,
mostly on the Race Music and R&B charts. In 1964, he recorded an
album on Vidid, and it was released in 1965. He recorded an album on
ABC Bluesway in 1966. He returned to England in 1968 and toured Europe as part
of the American Folk Blues Festival. After that, he became quite ill and his
performances were almost non-existent for a couple of years.
Reed resumed
playing and recording in 1970. He went on tour with Clifton Chenier and made a
record on the Roker label in Chicago. He recorded for the Blues On Blues label
in 1971, for the Magic label out of Chicago in 1972, and again on ABC Bluesway
in 1973. Reed made several recordings on ABC Bluesway during the next year. He
continued to tour, but slowed way down during the next couple of years. On
August 29, 1976 in Oakland, California, while on tour, Jimmy suffered an
epileptic seizure. He died in his sleep of respiratory failure. Jimmy was
buried at the Lincoln Cemetery in Blue Island, Illinois.
Reed's music will
live on. His style and songs are a major influence on many of today's Blues
musicians. He was a great singer / songwriter / guitarist / harp player, and he
will be remembered among the Blues greats! (info various, mainly Wikipedia)
Blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player Jimmy Reed performs on a low budget local TV program in Houston, Texas on December 4, 1975.
Blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player Jimmy Reed performs on a low budget local TV program in Houston, Texas on December 4, 1975.
1 comment:
F or The Very Best of Jimmy Reed go here
http://turbobit.net/1dw8fgc2pskd.html
01. High and Lonesome
02. You Don't Have to Go
03. Ain't That Lovin' You Baby
04. I Ain't Got You
05. You Got Me Dizzy
06. Little Rain
07. Honest I Do
08. Odds and Ends
09. Ends and Odds
10. Going to New York
11. Take Out Some Insurance
12. Baby, What You Want Me to Do
13. Hush Hush
14. Big Boss Man
15. Bright Lights, Big City
16. Oh John
17. Shame, Shame, Shame
Jimmy Reed (vocal, guitar, harmonica)
Mama Reed (vocals)
Henry Gray (piano)
Milton Rector, Willie Dixon, Jimmy Reed Jr. (bass)
Albert King, Morris Wilkerson, Vernell Fournier, Earl Phillips, Al Duncan (drums)
John Brim, Eddie Taylor, John Littlejohn, W.C. Dalton, Remo Biondi, Lefty Bates, Phil Upchurch, Lonnie "Lee Baker" Brooks (guitar)
Recorded between 1953 & 1963. Includes liner notes by Cub Koda, Steve Woolard.
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