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.
Thirty Days
Johnny Winter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gonna talk to the gypsy woman gonna tell her so
She gonna put out a worldwide voodoo
That'll be the very thing that'll suit you
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days
Gonna talk to the judge in private early this morning
Gonna put across something against you
That'll be the very thing that'll send ya
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days
30 days (30 days)
30 days (30 days)
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days (30 days)
Gonna put across something against you
That'll be the very thing that'll send ya
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days
If I don't get no satisfaction from the judge
Gonna take it to the FBI & the local fuzz
If they don't give me no compensation
I'm gonna take it to the United Nations
Gonna see you be back home in 30 days
30 days (30 days)
30 days (30 days)
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days (30 days)
If they don't give me no compensation
I'm gonna take it to the United Nations
Gonna see you be back home in 30 days
-- repeat last verse --
The lyrics to Johnny Winter's song "Thirty Days" are a stern warning to someone who has left or abandoned their partner. The singer is giving them exactly 30 days, and no more, to return home or face the consequences. The singer believes that the power of a worldwide voodoo, which will be conjured by a gypsy woman, will be enough to ensure their safe return. He also plans to take legal action against the person and speaks directly to the judge in an attempt to get a warrant signed. If necessary, he is willing to escalate the situation by involving the FBI and the United Nations to get compensation and ensure the person's return.
The song's title, "Thirty Days," is a reference to the time limit that the singer has given to the person in question. Though the song is ostensibly about someone abandoning their partner, it holds more significant implications. As a blues song, it is not uncommon for the lyrics to be loaded with double meanings; it is possible that the 30 days could represent a deadline for redemption or a warning about the impending consequences of one's actions. The image of a gypsy woman performing a worldwide voodoo highlights the singer's desperation to get the person to come home, even if it means resorting to supernatural means.
Line by Line Meaning
Gonna give you 30 days to get back home
You have 30 days to return home.
Gonna talk to the gypsy woman gonna tell her so
I will speak to the gypsy woman and request her to perform voodoo to bring you back.
She gonna put out a worldwide voodoo
The gypsy woman will perform a voodoo spell worldwide.
That'll be the very thing that'll suit you
The voodoo spell will be the best way to bring you back.
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days
I will ensure that you return within 30 days.
Gonna talk to the judge in private early this morning
I will speak privately to the judge early in the morning.
He took me to the sherrif's office to sign a warrant
The judge accompanied me to the sheriff's office to sign a warrant.
Gonna put across something against you
I will put a complaint against you.
That'll be the very thing that'll send ya
The complaint will be enough to bring you back.
If I don't get no satisfaction from the judge
If the judge does not rule in my favor.
Gonna take it to the FBI & the local fuzz
I will take the matter to the FBI and the police.
If they don't give me no compensation
If they do not offer any compensation.
I'm gonna take it to the United Nations
I will escalate the matter to the United Nations.
30 days (30 days)
30 days to return home.
Gonna see that you be back home in 30 days (30 days)
I will ensure that you return home within 30 days.
If they don't give me no compensation
If they do not offer any compensation.
I'm gonna take it to the United Nations
I will escalate the matter to the United Nations.
Gonna see you be back home in 30 days
I will ensure that you return home within 30 days.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, ENTERTAINMENT ONE U.S. LP, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CHUCK BERRY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind