Johnny Winter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Johnny Winter
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Johnny Winter in 2007
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Dawson Winter III |
| Born | February 23, 1944 Leland, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Died | July 16, 2014 (aged 70) Zurich, Switzerland |
| Genres | Electric blues, blues rock, rock and roll, Texas blues |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, mandolin, harmonica |
| Years active | 1959–2014 |
| Labels | Columbia, Blue Sky, Alligator, Point Blank |
| Associated acts | Edgar Winter |
John Dawson Winter III (February 23, 1944 – July 16, 2014), known as Johnny Winter, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. Best known for his high-energy blues-rock albums and live performances in the late 1960s and 1970s, Winter also produced three Grammy Award-winning albums for blues singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. After his time with Waters, Winter recorded several Grammy-nominated blues albums. In 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame and in 2003, he was ranked 63rd in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
Contents
Early career
Johnny Winter was born in Beaumont, Texas, on February 23, 1944. Winter and younger brother Edgar (born 1946) were nurtured at an early age by their parents in musical pursuits. Johnny and his brother, both of whom were born with albinism, began performing at an early age. When he was ten years old, the brothers appeared on a local children's show with Johnny playing ukulele.
His recording career began at the age of fifteen, when his band Johnny and the Jammers released "School Day Blues" on a Houston record label. During this same period, he was able to see performances by classic blues artists such as Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and Bobby Bland. In the early days, Winter would sometimes sit in with Roy Head and the Traits when they performed in the Beaumont area, and in 1967, Winter recorded a single with the Traits: "Tramp" backed with "Parchman Farm" (Universal Records 30496). In 1968, he released his first album The Progressive Blues Experiment, on Austin's Sonobeat Records.
Death
Winter was professionally active until the time of his death near Zurich, Switzerland, on July 16, 2014. He was found dead in his hotel room two days after his last performance, at the Cahors Blues Festival in France on July 14, at the age of 70. The cause of Winter's death was not officially released. According to his guitarist friend and record producer Paul Nelson, Winter died of emphysema combined with pneumonia.
In 1980, Winter was on the cover of the first issue of Guitar World. In 1988, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, the first non-African-American performer to be inducted into the Hall.
Discography
Studio albums
- The Progressive Blues Experiment (Sonobeat 1968, re-released by UA/Imperial 1969)
- Johnny Winter (Columbia 1969)
- Second Winter (Columbia 1969)
- Johnny Winter And (Columbia 1970)
- Still Alive and Well (Columbia 1973)
- Saints & Sinners (Columbia 1974)
- John Dawson Winter III (Columbia 1974)
- Nothin' but the Blues (Blue Sky 1977)
- White, Hot and Blue (Blue Sky 1978)
- Raisin' Cain (Blue Sky 1980)
- Guitar Slinger (Alligator 1984)
- Serious Business (Alligator 1985)
- Third Degree (Alligator 1986)
- The Winter of '88 (MCA/Voyager 1988)
- Let Me In (Point Blank 1991)
- Hey, Where's Your Brother? (Point Blank 1992)
- I'm a Bluesman (Virgin 2004)
- Roots (Megaforce 2011)
- Step Back (Megaforce 2014)
- Live Johnny Winter And (Columbia 1971)
- Captured Live! (Blue Sky 1976)
- Together (Blue Sky 1976) – with Edgar Winter
- Live in NYC '97 (Virgin 1998)
- The Woodstock Experience (Sony/Legacy 2009)
- Live at the Fillmore East 10/3/70 (Collectors' Choice 2010)
Images for kids
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Johnny Winter, Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1969
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Woodstock Reunion, Parr Meadows, Ridge, New York, 1979
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Johnny Winter, Mühle Hunziken, Switzerland 2009
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Johnny Winter 1990
