Charlie Musselwhite
Musselwhite was born in the rural hill country of Mississippi. He has said … Read Full Bio ↴Musselwhite was born in the rural hill country of Mississippi. He has said that he is of Choctaw descent, and he was born in a region originally inhabited by the Choctaw. However, in a 2005 interview[citation needed], he said his mother had told him he was actually Cherokee.
His family considered it normal to play music, with his father playing guitar and harmonica, his mother playing piano, and a relative who was a one-man band. At the age of three, Musselwhite moved to Memphis, Tennessee. When he was a teenager, Memphis experienced the period when rockabilly, western swing, electric blues, and some forms of African American music were combining to give birth to rock and roll. The period featured legendary figures such as Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash, as well as minor legends such as Gus Cannon, Furry Lewis, Will Shade, Royal Bell, Memphis Willie B., Johnny Burnette, Red Roby, Abe McNeal, and Slim Rhodes. Musselwhite supported himself by digging ditches, laying concrete and running moonshine in a 1950 Lincoln. This environment was Musselwhite's school for music as well as life, and he acquired the nickname "Memphis Charlie."[citation needed]
In true bluesman fashion, Musselwhite then took off in search of the rumored "big-paying factory jobs" up the "Hillbilly Highway", legendary Highway 61 to Chicago, where he continued his education on the South Side, making the acquaintance of even more legends including Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, Sonny Boy Williamson, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Big Walter Horton. Musselwhite immersed himself completely in the musical life, living in the basement of, and occasionally working at Jazz Record Mart (the record store operated by Delmark Records founder Bob Koester) with Big Joe Williams and working as a driver for an exterminator, which allowed him to observe what was happening around the city's clubs and bars. He spent his time hanging out at the Jazz Record Mart at the corner of State and Grand and the nearby bar, Mr. Joe's, with the city's blues musicians, and sitting in with Big Joe Williams and others in the clubs, playing for tips. There he forged a lifelong friendship with John Lee Hooker; though Hooker lived in Detroit, Michigan, the two often visiting each other, and Hooker serving as best man at Musselwhite's wedding. Gradually Musselwhite became well known around town.
In time, Musselwhite led his own blues band, and, after Elektra Records' success with Paul Butterfield, he released the classic[citation needed] Stand Back! album in 1966 on Vanguard Records (as "Charley Musselwhite"), to immediate and great success. He took advantage of the clout this album gave him to move to San Francisco, where, instead of being one of many competing blues acts, he held court as the king of the blues in the exploding countercultural music scene, an exotic and gritty figure to the flower children. Musselwhite even convinced Hooker to move out to California.
Since then, Musselwhite has released over 20 albums, as well as guesting on albums by many other musicians, such as Bonnie Raitt's Longing in Their Hearts and The Blind Boys of Alabama's Spirit of the Century, both winners of Grammy awards. He also appeared on Tom Waits' Mule Variations and INXS' Suicide Blonde. He himself has won 14 W. C. Handy awards and six Grammy nominations, as well as Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Monterey Blues Festival and the San Javier Jazz Festival in San Javier, Spain, and the Mississippi Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts.
In 1979, Musselwhite recorded The Harmonica According to Charlie Musselwhite in London for Kicking Mule Records, intended to go with an instructional book; the album itself became so popular that it has been released on CD.
Unfortunately, Musselwhite, as with many of his peers, fell victim to alcoholism; by his own admission[citation needed], he had never been on stage sober until after he stopped drinking entirely in 1987.
In 1990 Musselwhite signed with Alligator Records, a step led to a resurgence of his career.
Over the years, Musselwhite has branched out in style. His 1999 recording, Continental Drifter, is accompanied by Quarteto Patria, from Cuba's Santiago region, the Cuban music analog of the Mississippi Delta. Because of the political differences between Cuba and the United States, the album was recorded in Bergen, Norway, with Musselwhite's wife ironing out all the details.
Musselwhite believes the key to his musical success was finding a style where he could express himself. He has said, "I only know one tune, and I play it faster or slower, or I change the key, but it’s just the one tune I’ve ever played in my life. It’s all I know."[1]
His past two albums, Sanctuary and Delta Hardware have both been released on Real World Records.
His family considered it normal to play music, with his father playing guitar and harmonica, his mother playing piano, and a relative who was a one-man band. At the age of three, Musselwhite moved to Memphis, Tennessee. When he was a teenager, Memphis experienced the period when rockabilly, western swing, electric blues, and some forms of African American music were combining to give birth to rock and roll. The period featured legendary figures such as Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash, as well as minor legends such as Gus Cannon, Furry Lewis, Will Shade, Royal Bell, Memphis Willie B., Johnny Burnette, Red Roby, Abe McNeal, and Slim Rhodes. Musselwhite supported himself by digging ditches, laying concrete and running moonshine in a 1950 Lincoln. This environment was Musselwhite's school for music as well as life, and he acquired the nickname "Memphis Charlie."[citation needed]
In true bluesman fashion, Musselwhite then took off in search of the rumored "big-paying factory jobs" up the "Hillbilly Highway", legendary Highway 61 to Chicago, where he continued his education on the South Side, making the acquaintance of even more legends including Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, Sonny Boy Williamson, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Big Walter Horton. Musselwhite immersed himself completely in the musical life, living in the basement of, and occasionally working at Jazz Record Mart (the record store operated by Delmark Records founder Bob Koester) with Big Joe Williams and working as a driver for an exterminator, which allowed him to observe what was happening around the city's clubs and bars. He spent his time hanging out at the Jazz Record Mart at the corner of State and Grand and the nearby bar, Mr. Joe's, with the city's blues musicians, and sitting in with Big Joe Williams and others in the clubs, playing for tips. There he forged a lifelong friendship with John Lee Hooker; though Hooker lived in Detroit, Michigan, the two often visiting each other, and Hooker serving as best man at Musselwhite's wedding. Gradually Musselwhite became well known around town.
In time, Musselwhite led his own blues band, and, after Elektra Records' success with Paul Butterfield, he released the classic[citation needed] Stand Back! album in 1966 on Vanguard Records (as "Charley Musselwhite"), to immediate and great success. He took advantage of the clout this album gave him to move to San Francisco, where, instead of being one of many competing blues acts, he held court as the king of the blues in the exploding countercultural music scene, an exotic and gritty figure to the flower children. Musselwhite even convinced Hooker to move out to California.
Since then, Musselwhite has released over 20 albums, as well as guesting on albums by many other musicians, such as Bonnie Raitt's Longing in Their Hearts and The Blind Boys of Alabama's Spirit of the Century, both winners of Grammy awards. He also appeared on Tom Waits' Mule Variations and INXS' Suicide Blonde. He himself has won 14 W. C. Handy awards and six Grammy nominations, as well as Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Monterey Blues Festival and the San Javier Jazz Festival in San Javier, Spain, and the Mississippi Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts.
In 1979, Musselwhite recorded The Harmonica According to Charlie Musselwhite in London for Kicking Mule Records, intended to go with an instructional book; the album itself became so popular that it has been released on CD.
Unfortunately, Musselwhite, as with many of his peers, fell victim to alcoholism; by his own admission[citation needed], he had never been on stage sober until after he stopped drinking entirely in 1987.
In 1990 Musselwhite signed with Alligator Records, a step led to a resurgence of his career.
Over the years, Musselwhite has branched out in style. His 1999 recording, Continental Drifter, is accompanied by Quarteto Patria, from Cuba's Santiago region, the Cuban music analog of the Mississippi Delta. Because of the political differences between Cuba and the United States, the album was recorded in Bergen, Norway, with Musselwhite's wife ironing out all the details.
Musselwhite believes the key to his musical success was finding a style where he could express himself. He has said, "I only know one tune, and I play it faster or slower, or I change the key, but it’s just the one tune I’ve ever played in my life. It’s all I know."[1]
His past two albums, Sanctuary and Delta Hardware have both been released on Real World Records.
More Genres
No Artists Found
More Artists
Load All
No Albums Found
More Albums
Load All
No Tracks Found
Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Search results not found
Song not found
Charlie Musselwhite Lyrics
.38 Special You don't have to worry, Mama you don't have to hide, I'll…
Ain't It Time How long has it been since you've been home How long…
All That Matters Now It's been a long hard day And a long hard night Been…
Baby Will You Please Help Me This time another year, baby I wonder where will I…
Big River Now I taught the weeping willow how to cry And I…
Blood Side Out Got a wine soaked heart And whiskey soaked lips Don't know h…
Blues Gave Me A Ride I was walkin' down the road When blues gave me a…
Blues Overtook Me The Blues overtook me When I was a little child: I You…
Blues Up the River Blues up the river, blues up the river, rolling down…
Both Sides of the Fence Got your home and family, I heard you had a…
Burn Down The Cornfield Let's burn down the cornfield Let's burn down the cornfiel…
Cadillac Women Cadillac Women performed by Charlie Musselwhite From the alb…
Can There's a man on the corner Begging for help There's a man…
Chan Chan De Alto Cedro voy para Marcané Llego a Cueto, voy para…
Church Is Out Born in Mississippi, raised up in Tennessee. Never wanna cro…
Clarksdale Boogie Meet me where, where they play good blues Meet me where,…
Crawling King Snake You know I'm a crawlin' King Snake You know I run…
Crazy for My Baby I'm crazy for my baby I'm crazy for my baby I'm crazy…
Cry for Me Baby Well I've cried so much for you Baby, there's nothing…
Darkest Hour In your lonely room in your darkest hour Come to me…
Don't Look Twice In the days of love and honor I was a fool…
Done Somebody Wrong The bell just toned, my baby done caught that train…
Drifting From Town To Town Did you ever walk down one ol' lonesome road Did you…
Early in the Morning Girl reach the age of 18, she begin to think she's…
Everything's Gonna Be Allright Hey, baby, you're lookin' good again tonight Hey, baby, you'…
Fell on My Knees Well I fell on my knees I and fell down…
Finger Lickin' Good Finger lickin' good…
Going Away Baby I'm going away just worry you off my mind I'm…
Gone Too Long Now here you come again With your big wide grin You wanna…
Good Times Used to party all over town In on every scene We used…
Help Me You gotta help me, baby I can't do it by…
Hey Baby Hey, hey hey baby! I want to know if you'll be…
Hobo Blues When I first started hoboin', hoboin' I took a highway to…
Homeless Child Nowhere here To call my home No one near To call my own All…
I Don't want no high rise tombstone Gonna gather up my things …
I Don I see your mouth moving But there's a circus coming out Alwa…
I Ride At Dawn Like my father And his father And his father before Watched …
I'll Get a Break Someday Now you ran 'round baby, Lord, in your V8 Ford I was…
I'm a Stranger Some people ask me, what does a stranger, stranger do? Well,…
If I Should Have Bad Luck If I should have bad luck, honey, long, long way…
In Your Darkest Hour In your lonely room In your darkest hour Think of me darling…
Invisible Ones Jarigüey, Jarigüey, Jarigüey, Jarigüey, Jarigüey, Jarigüey, …
It Ain't Right You know it ain't right to treat me like you…
Just a Feeling Just a feelin' Feelin' I had on my mind Just a feeling Feeli…
Key to the Highway I've got the key, to the highway Billed out my Reno…
Leaving Your Town When we first got together, you were nice to me Your…
My Baby's Sweeter (Little Walter) Your baby ain't sweet like mine She do t…
My Buddy Buddy Friends Got lots of money Got lots of phony friends I got lots…
My Road Lies In Darkness My road lies in darkness, just as far as I…
My Time Someday She′s a long, lean, lanky mama She's a long, lean, lanky…
Natural Born Lover I've been on the prowl in my Clipper Deluxe Drinking cold…
No What would be the first thing You'd say to the Lord? And…
No More Lonely Nights I'm not going to spend another lonely night by myself I'm…
Please Remember Me Will you please remember me If we never, never meet again? W…
Rank Strangers I wondered alone from my home by the river Where in…
River Hip Mama She's long and tall she weeps like a willow tree She's…
Seemed Like the Whole World Was Crying I'll never forget this sad phone call When my friend called…
She Got Kick She got kick From her toe up to her crown The girl…
She May Be Your Woman She may be your woman, but your woman comes to see…
Shootin Waitin' there by the side of the River Waitin' there but…
Stingaree My baby, she is a honey bee My baby, she is…
Strange Land Nobody knows me nobody knows me, nobody know who I…
Sundown All that sundown, sundown hit me here All that sundown, sund…
Tennessee Woman Got a pretty woman, lives way down in Tennessee Well, I've…
The Big Boat My little woman, my little woman My little woman, she don't…
The Blues Overtook Me The Blues overtook me When I was a little child: I You…
The Dark In the dark you can sometimes hear your own heartbeat Or…
Town To Town Did you ever walk down one ol' lonesome road Did you…
Trouble No More Don't care how long you gone I don't care how long…
Voodoo Garden In my voodoo garden there′s a one eyed cat There's a…
When It Rains It Pours When It Rains, It Really Pours You know what it takes, You…
Where Hwy 61 Runs Well you know blues overtook me when I was a…
Yesterdays Yesterdays, yesterdays Days I knew as happy sweet sequestere…