BUDDY GUY  (Young  Photo)

Buddy Guy, along with Otis Rush and Magic Sam, have helped move the blues guitar into its postmodern era. With a style some believe built similar to B.B. King, Guy was both a popular session player and a successful solo artist. Jimi Hendrix is said to have admitted to being profoundly influenced by Guy, while Eric Clapton has called him the greatest blues guitarist ever. In fact, few blues musicians today can match Guy's ability to make a guitar solo the ultimate blues statement.

Guy was born and raised in Louisiana and began playing professionally in and around Baton Rouge in the early 1950s. It wasn't until he relocated to Chicago in 1957 that his career began to take shape. Guy worked himself into the city's blues scene. In 1958 he beat both Magic Sam and Otis Rush in a club-sponsored "Battle of the Blues" contest, which led Sam to recommend him to Eli Toscano, owner of the Artistic and Cobra labels. Guy recorded two singles for Artistic, "Sit And Cry" (117 k, 10 sec.) and "This Is the End," before the company went bankrupt.

Guy signed with Chess Records in 1960 and became an in-demand session guitarist there, backing such noted artists as Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson(Rice Miller), and Koko Taylor. In 1962 his own record, "Stone Crazy," went to number 12 on the R&B charts. Guy left Chess in 1967 and moved to the Vanguard label, where he cut such albums as A Man and the Blues, This Is Buddy Guy, and Hold That Plane! He also formed a professional relationship with harp player Junior Wells. The duo proved especially popular with white blues fans of the late '60s and early '70s.

Buddy can mimic Howlin' Wolf and Guitar Slim in one set and in the next, settle into a study of soul-blues that was far removed from the onstage frenzy for which he was known.

Guy continued to play blues clubs in the U.S. and at blues fests in Europe, with little attention from the rock crowd that had adopted him in the late '60s. That changed in 1989 when Guy opened his now-famous blues club, Legends, in Chicago. The club has become a stop-off point for visiting bluesmen and blues-influenced rockers.

In 1991 Eric Clapton invited Guy to perform with him at the Royal Albert Hall in London. His stunning performances with Clapton led to a recording contract with the Silvertone label and the release of Damn Right, I've Got the Blues, an acclaimed comeback album that included cameo appearances by Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Mark Knopfler. A follow-up album, Feels Like Rain, came out in 1993. Guy continues to perform and record. He is the owner of   the "Legends" Blues Nightclub in Chicago.  

A personal note:  If you are in Chicago be sure to drop by Buddy's  "Legends"  Club.   It is a Blues Museum, as well as a great Club!

The food is excellent !  (I recommend the Large catfish Dinner !)

Of course there is the best blues in town, and you may very well get to meet the owner - we did; as he frequents his club when in town. Buddy Guy is down to earth, friendly, and a true Gentleman.

Here's the  link to Buddy's Website  --Enjoy !!

                                                               Vince