Alcoholic. Epileptic. Severely challenged in music and business. Despite these obstacles, Jimmy Reed became perhaps the most successful R&B/pop crossover artist of the 50s and 60s with songs like Big Boss Man and Bright Lights, Big City. Influencing musicians from Elvis Presley, The Righteous Brothers, and John Hammond to Neil Young, The Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead, Reed's music has stood the test of time.
The first biography of this legendary bluesman, Big Boss Man traces Reed's life from fields of the Mississippi Delta to the steel mills, stockyards and blues dives of Chicago and on to nightclubs and recording studios, and finally stages worldwide.
Musicians, family members and others whose lives Reed touched offer revealing and heart-wrenching insights into this now-revered bluesman. From hit records and aborted comeback attempts to insider tales of recording sessions and the road, Big Boss Man brings Reed's fascinating story to life.
Product Description:
(Book). Alcoholic. Epileptic. Technically challenged. Jimmy Reed nevertheless overcame these roadblocks to become perhaps the most successful R&B/pop cross-over artist of the '50s with songs like "Big Boss Man" and "Bright Lights, Big City." Musicians, family members, and those whose lives Reed touched offer revealing and heart-wrenching insights into this now-revered bluesman. While Reed's alcoholism was no secret, its effect on his musicianship is less understood. This engaging book tells the real story that until now has not been told.
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