Willie Murphy & The Angel Headed Hipsters | Lyrics, Song Meanings & Music Videos

Willie Murphy - Vocals, keyboards and guitar
Marbue Williams - Bass
M… Read Full Bio ↴Willie Murphy - Vocals, keyboards and guitar
Marbue Williams - Bass
Michael Velasquez - Drums

Willie Murphy is not just a bluesman. He is a soul,R&B, blues and rock legend who once challenged the Rolling Stones to a pool tournament. In Willie’s words, “The Stones chickened out.” As a charter member of the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame along with Bob Dylan and Prince,Willie is a musical force to reckoned with.

His life plays out like a history of modern music, born out of roaming, rebellion, drugs and a boundless energy to create.

He’s performed with everyone from Jefferson Airplane, James Taylor and Joan Baez to Muddy Waters, Carl Perkins and Son House. Willie is a songwriter and producer, but most of all, he is a performer whose music is larger than life.

Born in Minneapolis, Willie started playing the piano at age four and in 5th grade, became a charter member of the Little Richard Fan Club. His formative years coincided with the beatnik era of the 1950’s and 60’s and found him cruising the streets of South Minneapolis in hot cars, learning how to play guitar, pick up girls and jam with R&B and jazz groups. An avid reader, he was also busy writing poems and crafting his own songs. As the beatnik scene progressed to the counter-culture movement, he grew his hair, partook in alcohol and drug experimentation and frequented wild parties.

While becoming an integral part of the Minneapolis West Bank music scene (that churned out such musical legends as Bob Dylan and Koerner, Ray & Glover), Willie met “Spider” John Koerner, and the two began to write together and tour the country. What came from this musical partnership was a wild month-long party in the Sierra Nevada Mountains that resulted in the iconic 1967 release Running, Jumping, Standing Still (re-issued on Red House in 1994), which to this day, is considered one of Elektra Records’ best releases. The duo toured the US club and festival circuit, playing with the biggest names in music, enjoying a spectacular slot at the 1969 Newport Folk Festival, where Willie met Muddy Waters and hung out with Don Everly and Carl Perkins.

Jac Holzman, head of Elektra, was Willie’s biggest fan and wanted a second album from Koerner and Murphy. He also offered Murphy a house producer job if he would relocate to LA or New York. Although he had enjoyed playing the folk clubs with Koerner, Willie was eager to return to his R&B roots. Excited by his new band The Bumble Bees, he turned down both of Jac Holzman's offers so he could tour with them. He kept Minneapolis as his home base, thriving in the vibrant Midwest music scene.

It was in Minnesota in 1971 that he produced Bonnie Raitt’s first recording on Warner Bros. Recorded in "Snaker" Dave Ray's studio, the album featured Willie and the Bees as her backing band. Following that, Willie's band toured with Bonnie and went on to share the bill with such luminaries as James Brown, Dr. John and B.B. King. Willie and the Bees went on to enjoy much success, reeling in a who's who of musicians to see their live shows, including Steve Miller and fellow Minneapolis native Prince.

After burning out on drugs and drinking, Willie quit both. He continued to tour, making folks across the country "dance their brains out" with the wild, soulful sounds of the Bees. Then, after 14 years of making music together, the Bees played their last gig together on New Year's of 1984. Willie then started playing solo blues and rock piano, making the same Irreverent Political Funk as always, messed in with a lot of gritty-ass blues.

He continued to write more songs and eventually started his own label, Atomic Theory, producing mostly local Minneapolis musicians like Becky Thompson, Boiled in Lead, The New International Trio, and Phil Heywood.
The Long, Funky Story of "One of the 10 funkiest white men on the Planet" (MPLS Star) Starts out playing with legendary R&B acts: The Valdons - Dave Brady & The Stars - The Big Ms.

Got tired of folkyness and returned to his 1st love : Kickin' Groovin', Movin' R&B With the mighty WILLIE & THE BEES (after turning down a fat house producer gig with WEA). The BEES Stomped all over the country playing bars, parties, festivals, & free-for-alls everywhere from Spillville, Iowa to NYC. Also the occasional gig doing his childhood kick :Solo Blues Piano (with of course that trademark intimidating soul vocal).

Every once in a great while you’ll hear a creative genius who likes to do his own thing and have a great time while doing it. Willie Murphy is one of these characters, and on "Hustlin’ Man Blues" we are invited to join the party that he and his band, "The Angel Headed Hipsters" whip up. Comprised of Michael Velasquez on the drums, Marbue Williams on bass, Max Ray on tenor bass, "The Angel Headed Hipsters" are joined by Frank Stribling on guitar for "Built for Comfort," and additional horns played by Sam Gamire and Umé Sporteu. Willie handles the vocals, keyboards and guitar, joins Todd Gallagher as recording engineer and produces the recording.

"Hustlin’ Man Blues" takes a ride through a variety of bluesy styles. Willie Murphy and the Angel Headed Hipsters provide us with fresh, new arrangements that completely renovate some old classics. They jump and swing on "Reelin & Rockin" and "Hustlin’ Man Blues," get down and dirty for "My Mama Said" and ""My Own Fault," and slide into smooth R&B for "Cry To Me." Their version of "Spoonful" even modulates into a jazzy wayside for a spell. I swear, before Willie Murphy’s characteristic, unmistakably individualistic, and remarkably well delivered vocalization starts in on the rearrangement of the Willie Dixon penned, Howlin’ Wolf classic "Built for Comfort," (one of three Dixon/Wolf songs), I thought I had mistakenly put on a Professor Longhair CD of New Orleans piano. Talk about a rollicking version!!

Willie has continued to tour with his new band the Angel Headed Hipsters performing for large audiences in Europe and around the Midwest. The shows nowadays are much the same as always: A big horn driven band relentlessly pushin' at you to get off your ass and MOVE - But now, Willie slows down a little in the middle to give his solo piano fans a taste of that so-personal idiom - But the end of the show is always the same : Everybody on their feet movin' and hollerin' out for MORE ...and Willie continues to ROAR.