Magic Sam moved to Chicago in 1956, where his guitar playing earned him bookings at blues clubs on the West Side. He recorded singles for Cobra Records from 1957 to 1959, including "All Your Love" and "Easy Baby". They did not reach the record charts but had a profound influence, far beyond Chicago's guitarists and singers. Together with recordings by Otis Rush and Buddy Guy (also Cobra artists), they were a manifesto for a new kind of blues. Around this time Magic Sam worked briefly with Homesick James Williamson.
Magic Sam gained a following before being drafted into the U.S. Army. He served six months in prison for desertion and received a dishonorable discharge.
In 1963, he gained national attention for his single "Feelin' Good (We're Gonna Boogie)". He successfully toured the U.S., Britain and Germany. He was signed to Delmark Records in 1967, for which he recorded West Side Soul and Black Magic. He continued performing live and toured with blues harp player Charlie Musselwhite and Sam Lay.
Magic Sam's breakthrough performance was at the Ann Arbor Blues Festival in 1969, which won him many bookings in the U.S. and Europe.
His career was cut short when he suddenly died of a heart attack in December 1969. He was 32 years old. He is buried in the Restvale Cemetery, in Alsip, Illinois. In February 1970, the Butterfield Blues Band played at a benefit concert for Magic Sam, at Fillmore West in San Francisco. Also on the bill were Mike Bloomfield, Elvin Bishop, Charlie Musselwhite and Nick Gravenites.
His guitar style, vocals, and songwriting have inspired and influenced many blues musicians. In the film The Blues Brothers, Jake Blues dedicates the band's performance of "Sweet Home Chicago" to the "late, great Magic Sam".
The stage name Magic Sam was devised by Sam's bass player and childhood friend Mack Thompson at Sam's first recording session for Cobra as an approximation of "Maghett Sam". The name Sam was using at the time, Good Rocking Sam, was already being used by another artist.
"Magic Sam had a different guitar sound," said his record producer, Willie Dixon. "Most of the guys were playing the straight 12-bar blues thing, but the harmonies that he carried with the chords was a different thing altogether. This tune "All Your Love", he expressed with such an inspirational feeling with his high voice. You could always tell him, even from his introduction to the music."
Awards and recognition
1982, Blues Foundation Blues Music Award for Magic Sam Live in the category Vintage or Reissue Album of the Year (US)
1982, Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, induction as Performer
1984, Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, West Side Soul selected in the category Classics of Blues Recordings – Albums
1990, Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, Black Magic selected in the category Classics of Blues Recordings –
Partial album discography
1967 West Side Soul Delmark Recorded Chicago, 1967
1968 Black Magic Delmark Recorded Chicago, 1968
1969 Raw Blues Live 1969 Rock Beat Records Recorded in Berkeley, Calif., 1969
1980 The Late Great Magic Sam L+R Recorded 1963–64, 1969
1981 Magic Sam Live Delmark Recorded live in Chicago, 1963–64, and Ann Arbor, 1969
1981 Magic Touch Black Magic Recorded live in Chicago, 1966
1989 The Magic Sam Legacy Delmark Outtakes and alternate takes recorded in Chicago, 1966–68
1991 Give Me Time Delmark Solo demo and rehearsal home recordings, 1968
2001 With a Feeling – The Complete Cobra, Chief & Crash Recordings 1957–1966 Westside Most pre-Delmark recordings; also available as Out of Luck, P-Vine, 2003
2002 Rockin' Wild in Chicago Delmark Recorded live in Chicago, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1968
2008 Genius: The Final Sessions Intermedia Previously unreleased
2013 Live at the Avant Garde June 22, 1968 Delmark Recorded live at the Avant Garde coffeehouse, Milwaukee, June 22, 1968
I Found A New Love
Magic Sam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I won't have to cry no more
Yes, I found a new love
I won't have to cry no more
I ain't gonna love you, pretty baby
I don't intend to bow so low
Wow, you made me so unhappy
You made me so unhappy
But right now I'm not that way
But when you first left me, baby
I never thought that I could feel this way
So now if you hear me, baby
Make sure you understand
I found this wonderful woman
And you can have yourself a man
'Cause I love my love
Oh, she makes me feel so gay
But I really don't mind it
'Cause I likes to feel this way
So now if you hear me, baby
Make sure you understand
I found this wonderful woman
And you can have yourself a man
'Cause I love my love
Oh, she makes me feel so gay
But I really don't mind it
'Cause I likes to feel this way
I won't beg you no more, baby
Magic Sam's song "I Found A New Love" is a classic blues track that tells the story of the singer finding a new love after a painful break-up. The lyrics express the joy of finding someone new, and the relief of no longer needing to cry over the old love. The singer declares that he won't love the previous partner anymore and doesn't intend to lower himself by begging her back.
In the first verse, the singer says that he found a new love and won't have to cry anymore. The second verse expresses the singer's reluctance to love the previous partner again and how hurt she made him feel. The third verse highlights the transformation that has taken place in the singer's life since he found a new love, and he is no longer unhappy. The fourth verse is a message to the previous partner, telling her that he has moved on and found someone new, and she can have a man of her own. The chorus expresses the joy that the new love brings and how the singer likes to feel this way.
The song's lyrics speak about the importance of moving forward from past relationships and finding new love. Magic Sam's powerful vocals and guitar work bring the lyrics to life, making the song a blues classic.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I found a new love
I have discovered a new romantic relationship
I won't have to cry no more
This new person makes me happy and fulfilled, and I won't have to suffer heartbreak anymore
Yes, I found a new love
I am confirming my discovery of a new romantic relationship
I won't have to cry no more
I am emphasizing again how this new relationship has brought me happiness and won't make me cry anymore
I ain't gonna love you, pretty baby
I am no longer going to love you, my former romantic partner
I don't intend to bow so low
I do not plan on returning to a relationship that caused me unhappiness and heartbreak
Wow, you made me so unhappy
I am expressing how much pain and sadness you caused me in our previous relationship
But right now I feel so gay
I am currently experiencing joy and happiness with my new love
You made me so unhappy
I am repeating how much unhappiness you caused me in our previous relationship
But right now I'm not that way
Now, I am not feeling unhappy since I have found someone new in my life
But when you first left me, baby
When we first broke up, I never thought I could feel this happy with someone else
I never thought that I could feel this way
I never thought that I could ever be this joyful with someone new after our breakup
So now if you hear me, baby
In case you hear me now, my ex-partner
Make sure you understand
Please take note and comprehend what I am saying
I found this wonderful woman
I have found an amazing woman to love and be with
And you can have yourself a man
You can find another man to be with because I have moved on
'Cause I love my love
I love my new partner so much
Oh, she makes me feel so gay
She makes me feel incredibly happy and joyous
But I really don't mind it
I do not mind feeling so happy because it is what I deserve after all the unhappiness I have experienced in the past
'Cause I likes to feel this way
I enjoy feeling this happy and satisfied in my new relationship
I won't beg you no more, baby
I am done begging you to come back to me or to try to make things work between us
Contributed by Addison L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.