Died On This Date (April 30, 1983) Muddy Waters / Blues Icon
themusicsover Muddy Waters (Born McKinley Morganfield)
April 4, 1914 – April 30, 1983
Although he was born in Mississippi, Muddy Waters is considered the Father of Chicago Blues. By electrifying the delta blues of his youth, Waters almost singlehandedly influenced the British blues explosion of the ’60s. Acts like the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Cream might not have been born if it weren’t for Muddy Waters. By the early 1950s, Waters, along with his sidemen, Little Walter and Howlin’ Wolf were the biggest draw in Chicago, and in 1958, he set out to conquer the UK, who until that point had only known the acoustic blues of the likes of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee. In doing so, Waters sparked a musical revolution. Waters died in his sleep of natural causes on April 30, 1983.
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