McKinley Morganfield
APRIL 4, 1915 - APRIL 30, 1983
Born In Rolling Fork, Mississippi.
A childhood love for a local muddy creek earned him the "Muddy Waters" title. The name served him well, as it became synonymous with the Blues.
Muddy played slide guitar. Using a piece of metal pipe or a glass pill bottle on his left hand, he would "slide" up and down the strings producing a unique sound. Since many tones sung by Blues vocalists are in-between the exact scale tones, the slide guitar can reproduce those tones and capture the intonation and emotion of a singer.
Muddy essentially had two careers. His original recordings in the '40s and 50's became juke box favorites and were embraced by the african-american music fan. As soul and funky music captured the fancy of his fans, his career fizzled. The 1960's brought an American folk music revival, and Muddy's music was appreciated once again. He toured regularly until his passing.
