This is no April Fools’ joke — legendary blues rocker Johnny Winter will be playing the Arcadia Blues Club , 16 E. Huntington Dr., Friday night, April 1. Winter, brother of popular 1970s rocker Edgar Winter, will also meet with fans after his performance and give away T-shirts and posters.
Johnny Winter
Come in early for best seats. Doors open at 7 p.m.; music starts at 8 p.m. with Bobby Bluehouse, Anny Lieberman and Winter. Tickets are $25 at www.arcadiasbluesclub.com and $30 at the door.
Since 1969 and his self-titled debut, Johnny has recorded almost 40 albums of classic rock and blues and was one of the top arena rock acts in the mid-70s. In the late 70s he produced and played on a series of Grammy award-winning albums with Muddy Waters, who affectionately referred to Johnny as his “son.”
Guitarist Winter signed with Columbia Records in 1969 and immediately laid out the blueprint for his fresh take on classic blues with a powerful combination of authentic Texas funk and his own high energy interpretation for the legions of fans just discovering the blues via the likes of Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. Constantly shifting between primal country blues in the vein of Robert Johnson to scorching electric slide guitar, Johnny has always been one of the most respected singers and influential guitar players in rock and the clear link between British blues rock and American Southern rock ala the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Throughout the 70s and 80s he was the unofficial torch bearer for the blues, championing and aiding the careers of his idols like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker. The Johnny Winter story is the stuff of legend. Born in Beaumont, Texas, in a rough and tumble oil town he grew up listening to and then playing Blues and Rock ‘n’ Roll at a very early age. His inclusion in a story about Texas music in Rolling Stone in 1968 ignited a bidding war among record labels for his talent.
Winter made an appearance at Eric Clapton’s 2007 Crossroads Festival with Derek Trucks, Buddy Guy and Clapton that became an Emmy award-winning DVD. Not long ago in a ceremony with Slash presenting in Nashville, Gibson Guitars released the signature Johnny Winter Firebird guitar that has been his beloved trademark for years. He recently performed with the Allman Brothers at the Beacon Theater in Manhattan on the 40th anniversary of their debut. Today Johnny Winter performs to sold out shows worldwide. Winter has been headlining such prestigious events as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Chicago Blues Festival, Swedish Rock Fest, Warren Haynes X-mas jam and Europe’s Rockpalast viewed by millions. Warner Bros.’ new 40th anniversary DVD of “Woodstock: 3 Days of Love and Peace: The Director’s Cut,” features, for the first time, Winter playing his smoking classic “Meantown Blues.” His “I’m A Bluesman” disc on Virgin/EMI was recently nominated for a Grammy.
— By Scott Hettrick with information provided by Arcadia Blues Club