Earl Hooker
Born in 1929 in Clarksdale, Mississippi (the same birthplace as his cousin, John Lee Hooker), Earl Hooker moved to Chicago while still a boy and, by his teens, began to make himself known as a fledging guitarist on the Chicago blues scene, where he befriended Bo Diddley and guitar master Robert Nighthawk, among others. His association with Nighthawk led to an interest in slide playing, which he developed and mastered over his career, leading some to proclaim Hooker as the greatest slide guitarist of his generation. He moved to Memphis in the early '50s, joining Ike Turner's touring band as well as performing with Sonny Boy Williamson on the latter's King Biscuit Hour radio slot. Back in Chicago by the mid-50s, Hooker spent much of the remaining decade and early '60s again playing around on the local scene, accompanying Muddy Waters and Junior Wells, and recording for smaller labels. He toured Europe in 1965 with singer Joe Hinton, even performing on the British hit music program "Ready, Steady, Go," although larger success continued to elude him up until his untimely death from tuberculosis at age 40 in 1970. He is now considered to be one of the most important blues guitarists of the postwar era.
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Top Tracks
- Sweet Home Chicago
- Drivin' Wheel
- Hookin'
- You Got To Lose
- Don't Have To Worry
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