Johnny Winter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Johnny Winter
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Winter in 1990
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Dawson Winter III |
| Born | February 23, 1944 Beaumont, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | July 16, 2014 (aged 70) near Zürich, Switzerland |
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| Years active | 1959–2014 |
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John Dawson Winter III (born February 23, 1944 – died July 16, 2014) was an American musician. He was a talented singer, guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. Johnny Winter was famous for his energetic blues rock music and exciting live shows. He was also known for his amazing slide guitar playing.
Winter produced three albums for the legendary blues singer Muddy Waters. These albums even won Grammy Awards. Later, Winter's own blues albums were nominated for Grammys too. In 1988, he joined the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine named him one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
Contents
Early Life and Musical Beginnings
Johnny Winter was born in Beaumont, Texas. This was on February 23, 1944. He and his younger brother, Edgar Winter, both had a condition called albinism. Their parents encouraged them to play music from a young age. Their father was also a musician. He played saxophone and guitar.
Johnny and Edgar started performing very early. When Johnny was ten, the brothers appeared on a local children's TV show. Johnny played the ukulele on the show.
Johnny Winter's Music Career
Starting Out as a Musician
Johnny Winter began his recording career at age 15. His band, Johnny and the Jammers, released a song called "School Day Blues". Around this time, he saw many famous blues artists play. These included Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and Bobby Bland.
In 1968, he released his first album. It was called The Progressive Blues Experiment.
Becoming a Star with Columbia Records
Johnny Winter got his big break in December 1968. He met and played with musician Mike Bloomfield in Chicago. Bloomfield then invited Winter to play at a concert in New York City. Representatives from Columbia Records were at this concert. Winter played a song and received huge applause. Soon after, he signed a record deal. It was one of the biggest deals at that time.
Winter's first album with Columbia was Johnny Winter. It came out in 1969. This album featured songs that became his signature tunes. These included his own song "Dallas" and "Good Morning Little School Girl". The album's success led to his earlier album being re-released.
In the same year, Winter's band toured and played at big music festivals. One famous festival was Woodstock. His brother Edgar joined the band. They recorded their second album, Second Winter, in 1969. This album included popular songs like Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" and Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited".
Forming Johnny Winter And
In 1970, Edgar Winter started his own band. Johnny Winter then formed a new group. It included members from the band the McCoys. This new band was called "Johnny Winter And". Their first album was also named Johnny Winter And. This album showed Winter moving towards a more rock-focused sound.
The band's mix of rock and blues songs was captured on their live album. It was called Live Johnny Winter And. In 1973, Winter released Still Alive and Well. This album was a blend of blues and hard rock.
Working with Muddy Waters
Winter often shared a story about his childhood dream. He always wanted to play with the blues legend Muddy Waters. This dream came true in 1974. Blues artists gathered to honor Waters. This event led to a TV series called Soundstage.
In 1977, Winter helped Waters record an album. It was called Hard Again. Winter produced the album and played guitar on it. He produced two more studio albums for Waters. These were I'm Ready and King Bee. He also produced a popular live album. This partnership earned three Grammy Awards for Waters. Winter also won a Grammy for his own album, Nothin' But the Blues.
Later Career and Achievements
After working with Blue Sky Records, Winter recorded for other labels. He focused on blues music. In 2004, his album I'm a Bluesman was nominated for a Grammy Award. From 2007, his live albums often appeared on the Billboard Blues chart.
In 2009, The Woodstock Experience album was released. It featured eight songs Winter played at the 1969 Woodstock festival. In 2011, he released Roots. This album featured his versions of classic blues and rock 'n' roll songs. Many guest artists played on it.
His last studio album was Step Back. It came out in 2014. This album also featured many famous guest musicians. Winter and his producer, Paul Nelson, won a Grammy Award for Step Back in 2015.
Winter continued to perform live. He played at many festivals in North America and Europe. He performed with the Allman Brothers in New York City. He also played at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festivals. The Gibson Guitar Company even released a special Johnny Winter Firebird guitar.
Personal Life and Passing
Johnny Winter married Susan Warford in 1993. She passed away in 2019.
Winter was still actively performing when he passed away. He died near Zürich, Switzerland, on July 16, 2014. He was found in his hotel room two days after his last concert. This concert was at the Cahors Blues Festival in France. According to his friend and producer, Paul Nelson, Winter died from emphysema combined with pneumonia.
David Marchese from Rolling Stone magazine wrote about Winter. He said Winter was one of the first blues rock guitar heroes. He released many popular albums and became a big concert draw. Winter "made an iconic life for himself by playing the blues."
Awards and Recognition
Johnny Winter produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for Muddy Waters. These were Hard Again (1977), I'm Ready (1978), and Muddy "Mississippi" Waters – Live (1979).
Several of Winter's own albums were nominated for Grammys. These included Guitar Slinger (1984) and Serious Business (1985). In 2015, Winter won a Grammy for Step Back after he passed away. This album also won the 2015 Blues Music Award.
In 1980, Winter was on the cover of the first issue of Guitar World magazine. In 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. He was the first non-African-American performer to join the Hall. Many guitarists have said Winter influenced their music. These include Joe Perry and Billy Corgan.
Guitars and Playing Style
Johnny Winter used many different guitars during his career. But he is most famous for playing Gibson Firebird guitars. He owned several, but he especially liked a 1963 Firebird V model.
Other guitars he played included a Gibson ES-125 (his first electric guitar). He also played a Fender Stratocaster and a Gibson Les Paul Goldtop.
Winter played guitar using a thumb pick and his fingers. He never used a flat pick. His playing style was inspired by musicians like Chet Atkins. Winter preferred a plastic thumb pick and a steel pinky slide.
Discography
Studio Albums
- The Progressive Blues Experiment (1968)
- Johnny Winter (1969)
- Second Winter (1969)
- Johnny Winter And (1970)
- Still Alive and Well (1973)
- Saints & Sinners (1974)
- John Dawson Winter III (1974)
- Nothin' but the Blues (1977)
- White, Hot and Blue (1978)
- Raisin' Cain (1980)
- Guitar Slinger (1984)
- Serious Business (1985)
- Third Degree (1986)
- The Winter of '88 (1988)
- Let Me In (1991)
- Hey, Where's Your Brother? (1992)
- I'm a Bluesman (2004)
- Roots (2011)
- Step Back (2014)
Live Albums
- Live Johnny Winter And (1971)
- Captured Live! (1976)
- Together (1976) – with Edgar Winter
- Live in NYC '97 (1998)
- The Woodstock Experience (2009)
- Live at the Fillmore East 10/3/70 (2010)
Images for kids
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Winter in 1990
See also
In Spanish: Johnny Winter para niños
