A distinguished musician in the transformative years of the 1950s and 1960s, John Lee Hooker effortlessly left an indelible mark on the culture of Blues music. Born a son of a sharecropper from Mississippi, United States, in August, 1917, Hooker rose to have a prominent influence in the evolutionary process of Blues music of the last few decades. In an interesting turn of events, Hooker’s music exemplifies a solid gelling of Talking Blues, Delta Blues and Hill Country Blues. Through acquiring an impressive electric-guitar playing style, he is best known to have formed a new rhythm-centered playing arrangement of Blues songs, in contrast with the piano-based compositions of the 1930s and 1940s.

Hooker had a difficult childhood, and is reported to have run away from home when his father died in 1923. He lived in Memphis, Tennessee up until World War II, after which he would move around working in different factories for the war effort. It was only in 1948 when he found himself in Detroit, the homeplace of jazz blues. The city was known to be full of piano players, but lacked guitarists. After playing regularly in local bars and clubs, Hooker became well-known amongst a lot of agents and record label companies. In 1948, Hooker signed with Modern Records, and consequently a demo of his first ever single “Boogie Chillen” was released. Inspired by artists such as Blind Lemon Jefferson, Charley Patton, and Blind Blake, including his step-father Will Moore, Hooker’s characteristic rhythmic playing style, with the traditional groovy one-chord arrangements, are clearly evident in this first track. The same company would release a number of major hits in the coming years, such as “Hobo Blues”, “Hoogie Boogie” and “Crawling King Snake Blues”, all released in 1949 after the initial success of 1948. Hooker’s deep vocals, supplemented well with an amplified guitar tone are clearly heard in these tracks, laying the groundwork for future efforts by the king of Blues. Hooker was a difficult musician to play with, and a lack of