John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III (born February 23, 1944 died July 16, 2014)… Read Full Bio ↴John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III (born February 23, 1944 died July 16, 2014) was an American blues guitarist, singer, and producer. Best known for his late 1960s and 1970s high-energy blues rock albums and live performances, Winter also produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for blues legend Muddy Waters. Since his time with Waters, Johnny Winter has recorded several Grammy-nominated blues albums and continues to tour extensively. In 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame and in 2003, he was ranked as 74th in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time", a debatable ranking based on those listed ahead of him as being more talented than Johnny.

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.

E.Z. Rider
Johnny Winter Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

E.Z. rider, oh, you E.Z. rider
Baby, don't you see what you done, done?
You done gone and left me while I lay sleepin'
Baby, now you know your natural man done come
Baby, now you know your natural man done come

I'm going to the country, yes, I'm goin' to the country
Yes, I'm goin' to stay there for a little while

You know I ain't good lookin' but don't let that deceive you
I talk about you like you sweet mama
Like you was a sweet angel child
Talk about you like you was an angel child

When you see me comin'
Baby, when you see me comn'
Won't you tell that old man?
(Something)

You know I ain't no stranger to you, baby
I been in your sweet lovin' arms before
Baby, you know
I've been in your sweet lovin' arms before

Hey rider, hey
(Something, something)
Woman, where you been, where you been all night?

You know your hair's all tanged
And your dress is all messy
And the shoes you got on baby

You ain't got your shoes on right
Baby, you ain't got your shoes on right

Overall Meaning

The song E.Z. Rider by Johnny Winter is a classic blues tune that features simple yet powerful lyrics. The song is about a man who has been left by his love, who has run off with another man. The singer is hurt and angry over the betrayal, but also seemingly resigned to his fate. He sings about how he's going to go to the country and stay there for a little while, but also proclaims that he ain't good lookin' but don't let that deceive you. He talks about how he loves his woman like she's a sweet angel child, but when he sees her coming, he asks her to tell that old man something.

The song is full of evocative imagery, from the tangled hair and messy dress of the woman to the singer's statement that he's been in her sweet lovin' arms before. It's a classic blues song that captures the pain, anger, and regret that comes with lost love. It's a testament to the power of Johnny Winter's guitar playing that the track is as memorable as it is, with its repetitive piano line and insistent vocal delivery.

Line by Line Meaning

E.Z. rider, oh, you E.Z. rider
Addressing the person as a smooth rider

Baby, don't you see what you done, done?
Asking the person why they left while the singer was asleep

You done gone and left me while I lay sleepin'
Stating that the person left while the singer was sleeping

Baby, now you know your natural man done come
Referring to himself as the person's natural man, indicating an intimate relationship

I'm going to the country, yes, I'm goin' to the country
Stating that the artist is going to the countryside for a while

Yes, I'm goin' to stay there for a little while
Emphasizing that the singer will spend some time there

You know I ain't good lookin' but don't let that deceive you
Acknowledging that the singer is not particularly attractive but suggesting that this has no bearing on their character

I talk about you like you sweet mama
Expressing admiration for the person

Like you was a sweet angel child
Extending the metaphor of the person as an angelic figure

When you see me comin'
Asking the person to let someone (presumably the old man mentioned later) know when the artist arrives

Won't you tell that old man? (Something)
Asking the person to inform someone referred to as the old man of the singer's arrival

You know I ain't no stranger to you, baby
Reminding the person that the artist is not a stranger

I been in your sweet lovin' arms before
Recalling a previous intimate encounter with the person

Hey rider, hey (Something, something)
Addressing the person as rider again, but the meaning of the following lines is unclear

Woman, where you been, where you been all night?
Asking where the person has been all night

You know your hair's all tanged
Commenting on the person's unkempt appearance

And your dress is all messy
Observing that the person's clothing is disheveled

And the shoes you got on baby
Pointing out that the person is wearing shoes

You ain't got your shoes on right
Implying that the person's shoes are on the wrong feet