Johnny Winter, along with his brother Edgar Winter, were nurtured at an early age by their parents in musical pursuits. Both he and his brother, who were born with albinism, began performing at an early age. When he was ten-years old, Winter appeared on a local children's show, playing ukelele and singing Everly Brothers songs with his brother.
His recording career began at the age of fifteen, when his band Johnny and the Jammers released "School Day Blues" on a Houston record label. During this same period, he was able to see performances by classic blues artists such as Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and Bobby Bland. In the early days Winter would sometimes sit in with Roy Head and The Traits when they performed in the Beaumont, Texas area, and in 1967, Winter recorded a single with The Traits: "Tramp" backed with "Parchman Farm" (Universal Records 30496). In 1968, he released his first album The Progressive Blues Experiment, on Austin's Sonobeat Records.
Winter caught his biggest break in December 1968, when Mike Bloomfield, whom he met and jammed with in Chicago, invited him to sing and play a song during a Bloomfield and Al Kooper concert at the Fillmore East in New York. As it happened, representatives of Columbia Records (which had released the Top Ten Bloomfield/Kooper Super Session album) were at the concert. Winter played and sang B.B. King's "It's My Own Fault" to loud applause and, within a few days, was signed to reportedly what was then the largest advance in the history of the recording industry–$600,000.
Winter's first Columbia album, Johnny Winter was recorded and released in 1969. It featured the same backing musicians with whom he recorded The Progressive Blues Experiment, bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Uncle John Turner, plus Edgar Winter on keyboards and saxophone, and (for his "Mean Mistreater") blues legends Willie Dixon on upright bass and Big Walter Horton on harmonica. The album featured a few selections that became Winter signature songs, including his composition "Dallas" (an acoustic blues, on which Winter played a steel-bodied, resonator guitar), John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson's "Good Morning Little School Girl", and B.B. King's "Be Careful With A Fool".
The album's success coincided with Imperial Records picking up The Progressive Blues Experiment for wider release. The same year, the Winter trio toured and performed at several rock festivals, including Woodstock. With brother Edgar added as a full member of the group, Winter also recorded his second album, Second Winter in Nashville in 1969. The two-record album, which only had three recorded sides (the fourth was blank), introduced a couple more staples of Winter's concerts, including Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" and Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited".
In 1984, Winter began recording for several labels, including Alligator Records and Point Blank Records, where he has focused on blues-oriented material. He continues to perform live, including festivals throughout North America and Europe. Winter has headlined such prestigious events as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Chicago Blues Festival, Swedish Rock Fest, Warren Haynes X-mas jam, and Europe’s Rockpalast. He also performed with the Allman Brothers at the Beacon Theater in Manhattan on the 40th anniversary of their debut. In 2007 and 2010, Winter performed at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festivals. Two guitar instructional DVDs have been produced by Cherry Lane Music and the Hal Leonard Corporation. The Gibson Guitar Company released the signature Johnny Winter Firebird guitar in a ceremony in Nashville with Slash presenting.
In 2004, Winter received a Grammy nomination for his I’m a Bluesman album. Backing him are guitarist Paul Nelson, bassist Scott Spray, and drummer Vito Liuzzi. Beginning in 2007, a series of live Winter albums titled the Live Bootleg Series and a live DVD have all entered the Top 10 Billboard Blues charts. In 2009, The Woodstock Experience album was released, which includes eight songs that Winter performed at the 1969 festival. Johnny Winter is signed to Megaforce Records, who will release a new studio album titled Roots on September 27, 2011. It will include Winter's interpretation of eleven early blues and rock 'n' roll classics and feature several guest artists.
Winter produced three Grammy Award-winning albums by Muddy Waters, Hard Again (1977), I'm Ready (1978), and Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live (1979). Several Winter albums were also nominated for Grammy Awards. In 1980, Winter was on the cover of the first issue of Guitar World and in 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame.
Back Luck Situation
Johnny Winter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The full moon, it is rising and the rain is falling down
Looking for my woman but she ain't nowhere around
Woo ho
She in a bad luck situation, gonna shoot my baby down
I don't share or have no mercy, I got murder on my mind
She in a bad luck situation 'cause she treat me so unkind
Just like today you livin' but tomorrow you could be dying,
Yeah
Ow, yeah, (boogie, with it)?
Woo, alright, yeah
Got my mojo in my pocket
Got my pistol in my hand
I've been thinkin'.
I've been wonderin', but I just don't understand
Gonna sure enough fix my woman where she don't meet no other man
Uh, woo, alright, ow
The lyrics to Johnny Winter's song "Bad Luck Situation" describe the singer's search for his woman, who is nowhere to be found. He is carrying his pistol and has murder on his mind, as he believes she has treated him unkindly and put herself in a bad luck situation. The chorus emphasizes the danger the woman is in, as the singer is determined to shoot her down. The song emphasizes the unpredictability of life, with the line "just like today you living but tomorrow you could be dying." The lyrics suggest that the singer's woman has cheated on him, and he is seeking revenge for her betrayal.
The song reflects the blues tradition of tales of heartbreak, betrayal, and revenge. The lyrics reveal a complicated and dark emotional landscape, highlighting the pain of betrayal and the intense emotions it can evoke. The singer's determination to exact revenge on his woman for her unkindness suggests that he feels deeply wronged and seeks a violent form of redemption. The chorus's emphasis on the woman's bad luck situation suggests that she is in a precarious position, and the singer will stop at nothing to make her pay.
Line by Line Meaning
The full moon, it is rising and the rain is falling down
As the weather becomes more hostile, I am on the hunt for my woman who is currently unaccounted for
Looking for my woman but she ain't nowhere around
I'm searching for my female companion but she's nowhere to be found
She in a bad luck situation, gonna shoot my baby down
My girl is in a tough spot, and I might have to kill her for her actions
I don't share or have no mercy, I got murder on my mind
I don't believe in sharing and have no desire to show mercy because I'm focused on killing someone
She in a bad luck situation 'cause she treat me so unkind
My significant other treats me poorly, which has put her in a difficult situation
Just like today you livin' but tomorrow you could be dying,
One day you could be alive, but the next day your life could come to a sudden end
Got my mojo in my pocket
I am carrying my magical charm that brings me good fortune
Got my pistol in my hand
I am holding my firearm
I've been thinkin'.
I've spent a lot of time pondering this situation
I've been wonderin', but I just don't understand
Despite all of my thinking, I still can't seem to make sense of what's happened
Gonna sure enough fix my woman where she don't meet no other man
I plan to eliminate my woman so that she doesn't have the opportunity to be with someone else
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JOHNNY WINTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jackschitt7783
This was recorded before I was born, "1974", born 8/1975 I started strumming strings early 1978. I was walking by the time I was 8 months old and asking for a guitar (probably?) before that. I would rather play than walk or do anything else. My Dad had this album in his vinyl collection. Besides other memories (few) before then that I can remember I can remember standing in front of the vinyl spinner for literally days figuring out (by ear) and being influenced by this record. To this day I don't understand why Johnny Winter didn't get the recognition he deserves. His riffs were some of the best! Ever! I'm 44 years old now and this is still one of my favorite songs of all time.
Thank you, Johnny Winter!
@PaintingDenver
Thanks publishing this, so I can keep my album in it's cover, under a glass frame!
@Caje-zf8md
Great solo work by the late Johnny Winter.
@psycholoog-denhaag
I have this album. I have to look it up
@nigel900
Fantastic! 👍🏻
@boopoopies
Just like today you’re living well tomorrow you could be dying
@mctavish23
Still have the LP.
@gottadomor7438
I don't but I did ... and I played it a LOT.
@KurtHansonIan
Johnny Winter = #totalDude
@jurgenkutschker5813
What a great stuff from one of the alltime best.🍺🍺🍺🍺🤘🤘🤘🤘🌷