Ripple Library - Raisin' Cain - The Wild and Raucous Story of Johnny Winter by Mary Lou Sullivan

In my previous book report on Cheetah Chrome’s autobiography I mentioned it’s amazing that he’s still alive to tell his story. Well, that goes double for Johnny Winter. Cheetah is an insane rock & roll wildman but I bet he could’ve picked up a few useful pointers from Johnny on partying, guitar playing and day to day mayhem.

Johnny Winter was born in 1944 and caught the rock & roll bug when the music was still in its infancy. By the age of 15 he was leading his own bands in Beaumont, TX and became an eager student and apprentice of the blues. Armed with fiendish talent and a huge set of balls, he got to sit in with B.B. King and managed not to embarrass himself. After spending years on the road and cutting singles for shady local record he got a big break and was signed to Columbia Records. Playing Woodstock in 1969 helped catapult Johnny into superstardom.

Author Mary Lou Sullivan met Johnny Winter in 1984 and was fascinated by the crazy life he’d led and decided to write his autobiography, against the wishes of Johnny’s manager at the time. Eventually she spent a years worth of Saturday nights interviewing Johnny at his home and on the phone. Once she got his version of the story, she started talking to dozens of people in his life including his mother, brother Edgar and his wife. Key collaborators like Rick Derringer, Tommy Shannon and Uncle John Turner told their tales alongside numerous other friends, record producers and industry people. You get a well rounded view of the man’s life. Johnny is brutally honest and never tries to make himself the hero when he wasn’t. And when his memory differs from others, both sides are presented.

The tales from the glory years of the 1960’s and 70’s are just as wild as you would expect. There’s plenty of sex (Johnny loved to get naked and show everyone his white pubic hair if anyone doubted he was truly albino), drugs (you won’t believe the amount he’s done) and, of course, rock and roll. Working with his hero Muddy Waters led to some of the greatest music both men ever produced and Johnny loves talking about the albums they made together. If you’re a blues fan, these chapters will make you very happy.

Towards the end of the 1980’s Johnny began to have some management issues that caused huge problems for him that lasted many years. The portrait painted of ex-manager Teddy Slatus is not a pretty one and a great lesson out there for anyone who wants to know what really happens in the entertainment business. His actions negatively impacted Johnny’s mental and physical health, finances and, ultimately, his music. Johnny’s affairs are now handled the right way and word has it his playing is regaining its fiery brilliance.

Raisin’ Cain is one of the better rock biographies I’ve read (and I’ve read A LOT of them). The research, dedication and excellent writing make this a must for anyone with a pair of eyes that has a good pair of ears.

--Woody

Buy an autographed copy from the author
http://www.johnnywinterbook.com/paypal_orders


Buy from Amazon: Raisin' Cain: The Wild and Raucous Story of Johnny Winter (Book)

Ripple Theater - Johnny Winter - Live Through The '80s DVD

You’d be forgiven for thinking that a DVD titled Johnny Winter Live Through The ‘80s wouldn’t be all that great, but you’re wrong. Johnny Winter went through a bit of a rebirth in the 1980’s thanks to the popularity of Stevie Ray Vaughan and a new contract with Chicago blues label Alligator Records. Both of these helped introduce Johnny to a new audience and got some youngsters showing up at his concerts. I should know, since I was one of them. Even during the peak of my snotty thrash metal high school powers, I still loved blues and classic rock. A friend and I went to see Johnny at the Beacon Theater in NYC, early 1985 and were blown away by the frail, shirtless Texan’s incredible energy and fiery playing. (His brother Edgar opened the show and did a great set that included a truly bizarre hip hop version of “Frankenstein.”)

This DVD really brought me back to that great night at the Beacon 25 years ago. Starting off in Toronto, 1983 there’s a kick ass version of “Unseen Eye” and 3 other smokers. Johnny’s leading a powerful trio with John Paris on bass & harmonica and drummer Bobby Torello. In 1984, Tom Compton takes over on drums and there’s footage from 3 different concerts – 1 from Europe and 1 in the US. The playing is tight but loose and production is primo. The band really rips it up on songs like “Mad Dog” and his frenzied take on Dylan’s “Highway 61.” After a semi-embarrassing music video for the song “Don’t Take Advantage Of Me” (it was the 80’s, all videos sucked) there’s an electronic press kit Alligator Records put together with a cool interview with Johnny. After that, it’s right back to the boogie with more footage from Europe in 1987 and 88.

Back in the 80’s Johnny stopped using his gorgeous Gibson Firebird guitars in exchange for butt-ugly Steinberger guitars. Despite their cosmetic unfortunateness, Johnny still makes them sound great. Proof that good guitar tone is all in the hands and not in the gear. If you’re a blues-rock lover you’ll definitely want to pick this up and give your TV speakers a work out.

--Woody

Buy here: Winter, Johnny - Live Through The 80's

and go back and explore more: Live Through the 70's

Johnny Winter - Johnny Winter And. . . Live

Recorded in late 1970 and released in early 1971, this captures the incredible Johnny Winter and his awesome band at their finest – loud, raw and blazing through a killer set of blues and rock and roll. What a band! Not only do you have Johnny’s fired up guitar, but you have Rick Derringer as his foil. These 2 guys played well together and you can really hear them inspire each other on this album. Randy Jo Hobbs’s bass playing is thoroughly bong rattling. Randy had played with Derringer in the McCoys and later went on to join Montrose.

The album opens with the incredible drumming of Bobby Caldwell (who would help form Captain Beyond in a year or 2) on a blistering version of “Good Morning Little School Girl.” This is some hard-ass boogie rock. Johnny takes the first guitar solo while Rick plays some funky riffs underneath him before switching roles and eventually soloing at the same time. Johnny is mixed in the left channel and Rick is on the right. Check it out on headphones for a lesson on how great musicians complement each other. There’s also great guitar interplay on the slow blues “It’s My Own Fault.” Lots of bands were abusing the blues in the early 70’s but few in the rock world could keep up with the Texas master. The band also blast through some of their favorite rock & roll numbers like “Johnny B. Goode,” the Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and a very high energy medley of “Great Balls Of Fire/Long Tall Sally/Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.”

But the highlight of this (and any Johnny Winter live experience) is the incredible “Mean Town Blues.” Originally recorded on Johnny’s 1968 debut album The Progressive Blues Experiment, this slide guitar masterpiece became his calling card. There are other great live versions from Woodstock (1969) and London’s Royal Albert Hall (1970) but this is by far the best. The band really smokes on this one and use a lot of dynamics. Rick and Johnny play separately and together to make for a very exciting ride. The highlight is when Rick and Randy drop out to let Johnny soar over Bobby’s kick ass drumming.  

The CD is currently out of print but you can probably find a used copy of it or the LP pretty easily on ebay. An official biography of Johnny Winter has recently been published titled Raisin' Cain - The Wild and Raucous Story of Johnny Winter that has been getting great reviews. He’s led a pretty intense life and there’s bound to be incredible stories of his work with Muddy Waters, his brother Edgar Winter and Rick Derringer. Play this one loud!

 -- Woody

buy here: Johnny Winter And / Live