Joe Louis Walker
Merging the electric, urban sounds of West Coast and Chicago blues with the down-home acoustic traditions of the Delta, guitarist Joe Louis Walker never strayed far from what he calls the real blues. In a career that spans more than 35 years, he’s balanced tradition with innovation and made a significant mark on the evolution of the genre.
Born on Christmas Day in 1949 to parents whose migrant work took them from Arkansas to San Francisco, Walker first discovered the blues via their collection of 78 recordingsa treasure trove of artists like Amos Milburn, B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf. He picked up the guitar at age 14, and left home two years later to pursue his creative muse in San Francisco’s fabled Haight-Ashbury district. Sharing a room with guitarist Mike Bloomfield, Walker worked his way into the Bay Area blues scene. Among the more prominent spots on his beat was the Matrix Club, where he met and played with the likes of Freddy King, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Magic Sam and other legends whose tours made stops in San Francisco.
A lot of people think I started playing the blues in the mid ‘80s, but I was gigging in the ‘60s, Walker explains. But in 1975, weary of the lifestyle he had created, Walker took the high road and joined a gospel quartet called The Spiritual Corinthians. I was living the blues lifestyle during a time when everything was excessive, he says. I had to find another way to live. That’s when I immersed myself in gospel music. The Spiritual Corinthians’ ten- year trajectory included a 1980 album called “God Will Provide,” and has left an indelible imprint on Walker’s approach to songwriting and singing to this day. I like to keep my feet in gospel, he says, because it’s pure.
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Live Review
Film Review
Live From New York
Album Review
- In The Morning by C. Michael Bailey
- Silvertone Blues by Ed Kopp
- Preacher and the President by Ed Kopp
July 18, 2012
Joe Louis Walker Celebrates Alligator Debut with Philadelphia...
January 20, 2012
Blues Legend Joe Louis Walker Celebrates Label Debut with Philadelphia...
January 11, 2012
Joe Louis Walker's "Hellfire" Set for January 31 Release
October 04, 2010
Joe Louis Walker - Blues Conspiracy: Live on the Legendary Rhythm and...
August 30, 2009
Joe Louis Walker's Incendiary Between a Rock and the Blues
August 12, 2008
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Joe Louis Walker Concerts
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Albums
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