Charlie Musselwhite

Born in Kosciusko, Mississippi, in 1944 and raised in Memphis, Charlie Musselwhite learned the Southern blues firsthand before moving to Chicago in the early 1960s. There he became part of the South Side scene, playing alongside musicians such as Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Buddy Guy and Big Walter Horton. A harmonica player, singer and guitarist, Musselwhite developed a style rooted in electric Chicago blues, infused with sounds from Delta blues, country blues and Memphis roots. His debut album, Stand Back! Here Comes Charley Musselwhite’s Southside Band, was released in 1966 and established him firmly in the American blues revival of that era. Later based in California, he broadened his approach without abandoning that foundation, with albums including Takin’ My Time (1971), Continental Drifter (1999), Sanctuary (2004), Delta Hardware (2006) and The Well (2010). His career also includes collaborations with John Lee Hooker, Tom Waits, Cyndi Lauper, Ben Harper on Get Up! (2013) and No Mercy in This Land (2018), and Elvin Bishop on 100 Years of Blues (2020). Charlie Musselwhite was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2010.