HAPPY BIRTHDAY Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy Episode A July 25

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy Episode A July 25   

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 Welcome to a new feature addition to Brown Shoes Blues. I am going to begin a blues artist Happy Birthday show that will recognize two blues artists who have birthdays each month. The shows will be shorter than the regular episodes that discuss one artist in depth.

 This episode is a Happy Birthday Shout Out to Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy.

 The titles of my releases the songs are taken from in this episode include Running with the Wolf, Essential Collection, and Swing Land on my label Big Guitar Music.

 The musicians featured in the tracks on this episode are Derek O’Brien, Gary Primich, Nick Connolly, Paul Jr., Ronnie James, Steve Kilmer, and Wes Starr.  I am on vocals and guitar.

 Thank you to Ed and Simone Van Zijl from Provogue Records for the use of “Spoonful” in this broadcast. 

 Visit my website for more info  www.omarandthehowlers.com

 Thank you to Matthew Garza (Upwork.com) for his work mastering this podcast.

Transcript

HBD Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy Episode A July 25   

Omar Dykes: Welcome to the new feature addition to Brown Shoes Blues. I am going to begin a blues artist Happy Birthday show that will recognize two blues artists who have birthdays each month. The shows will be shorter than the regular episodes that discuss one artist in depth. This month I want to say Happy Birthday to Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy.

Willie Dixon's birthday was on July the first, 1915. He was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, one of 14 children. He was introduced to the Blues while serving time on prison farms in Mississippi as a young teenager. He sang in a gospel quartet before moving to Chicago in 1936. Willie was six feet, six inches tall, and the following year he won the Illinois Golden Glove Amateur Heavyweight Boxing Championship. He began playing the double bass in 1939 and was a key figure in shaping the post-World War II Chicago blues sound.

He was a founding member of the Five Breezes Band that blended blues, jazz, and vocal harmonies. After the war, he formed a group named The Four Jumps of Jive, and later formed the Big Three Trio, which went on to record for Columbia Records.

Dixon was an influential American blues musician, songwriter, and producer as the right-hand man of Chess Records. He was highly involved with many artists at Chess, especially Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Bo Diddley, and Little Walter. From late 1956 to early 1959, he worked in a similar capacity for Cobra Records for which he produced early singles for Otis Rush, Magic Sam, Buddy Guy, and Ike Turner and the Kings of Rhythm.

In 1977, unhappy with the small royalties paid by Chess's Publishing Company, Arc Music, Dixon and Muddy Waters sued Arc, and later Dixon founded his own publishing company, Hoochie Coochie Music.

That was an original by Willie Dixon called "Spoonful" inspired by Charlie Patton's 1929 recording of the Delta standard "A Spoonful Blues". The song was a hit by Howlin' Wolf and recorded by me on my tribute to Chester Burnett called Running with the Wolf on Mascot Provogue Records.

In 1987, Dixon reached an out of court settlement with the Rock band Led Zeppelin after suing for plagiarism in the band's use of his music in "Bringing It On Home" and lyrics from his composition, "You Need Love" in the band's recording of "Whole Lotta Love".

Beyond his musical contributions, Dixon was a charitable person founding the Blues Heaven Foundation to support blues musicians with copyright issues. In 2007, Dixon was honored with a marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail in Vicksburg, Mississippi. In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked him as the 12th greatest bass player and mentioned him as the history's most influential blues man. Rolling Stone also placed him at number 51 on the list, 'The Hundred Greatest Songwriters of All Time'.

I met Willie Dixon at Antone's Blues Club in Austin, Texas, and he was a gentleman. I had a blast talking to him. He is credited with writing over 500 songs that include "Hoochie Coochie Man," "My Babe," "Three Hundred Pounds of Joy," "Spoonful," "Can't Judge a Book," "Wang Dang Doodle," "Little Red Rooster," and the following song, "Built for Comfort" from my release, The Essential Collection.

Buddy Guy was born on July the 30th, 1936 in Lettsworth, Louisiana. He learned to play the guitar by playing a two-string diddley bow that he made. A diddleybow was a homemade instrument that simulated a guitar. It was basically the start of what became the slide guitar. Guy is a legendary blues guitarist known for his energetic performances and innovative playing style. Magic Sam took Buddy Guy over to Cobra Records where Guy recorded some noteworthy music for the next two years. In the late sixties, upon the death of Cobra's owner, Eli Toscano, Buddy Guy followed Otis Rush to the Chess label. At Chess he was to record his own material and as a side band for Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Little Walter, and Koko Taylor.

It was his time at Chess Records that Buddy Guy began a friendship and musical partnership with harmonica player Junior Wells. He has influenced generations of musicians, including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Eric Clapton has been quoted saying that Buddy Guy is without a doubt the best guitar player alive. Because of my affiliation with the American Famous Talent Booking Agency in Chicago, I was able to play shows with Buddy Guy, and it was always a treat. Another gentleman of the Blues.

Buddy was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1985 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005. In addition, Guy was honored in 2003 with a National Medal of Arts. In 2012, he was named a Kennedy Center honoree, and in 2015 he received a Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Buddy Guy lives outside of Chicago, Illinois and continues to be an influential figure in the blues scene, particularly through his Chicago venue, Buddy Guy's Legends. Before he ran Legends, he established and ran the Checkerboard Lounge. It offered the premier Blues artists of Chicago that included the Rolling Stones dropping by to jam with Muddy Waters one night, which was a very famous and iconic night in the blues world.

Three days after moving to Austin in 1976, I went to the original Antone's Blues Club on 6th Street to see the Buddy Guy and Junior Wells Revue. The band featured A. C. Reed on saxophone, Pinetop Perkins on piano, and Buddy Guy's younger brother Phil, also on guitar. Junior Wells played the first set and then Buddy Guy did his own set. Finally, both artists played together with the incredible band. I was blown away by the superb quality of the Chicago blues sound after living in Mississippi and hearing alcohol-driven ragtag blues. I knew I had found a home.

The power of Buddy Guy is unmistakable. Omar and the Howlers opened up for him at the House of Blues in New Orleans. We played a great show, but the audience was a little slow in coming around to respond to us. They finally did by the end of our set. I was feeling pretty good about the show, and then Buddy Guy hit the stage. He came out, and the first song he played was "Sweet Home Chicago". Within 90 seconds of his appearance, the crowd absolutely went nuts. They rose to their feet and started singing the song with him, shouting and clapping their hands. I left thinking 'You can't win them all'. It was totally all right to witness the true power of such a great artist.

This song is from my release Swing Land and is called "One Room Country Shack." Buddy Guy recorded this song with Junior Wells, and it was a big hit for him.

A very Happy Birthday to Willie Dixon and Buddy Guy from Brown Shoes Blues, and thank you for your incredible contribution and dedication to the Blues legacy of music.

Thank you, Ed and Simone Van Zijl at Mascot Label Group for the use of "Spoonful."

Check out Antone's Record Shop for vintage, hard to find, and current music in all formats. They'll take good care of you. Visit them in person or online at antone's record shop.com.

Be sure to tune in for the next episode of Brown Shoes Blues. I appreciate your support very much.