Remembering Blues Pioneer Jimmy Reed

On this day in 1976 we lost Pioneer, Jimmy Reed.

Jimmy Reed remains one of the finest blues musicians of all time and has influenced everyone from my beloved Rolling Stones to Elvis Presley and Hank Williams Jr!

The Stones even covered Reed’s “Little Rain” on Blue and Lonesome. (Mick and Brian Jones, God bless him, worshiped Jimmy!) How cool is that Ronnie Wood AKA WOODY released a solo album, Mr. Luck — A Tribute to Jimmy Reed: Live at the Royal Albert Hall!

Ronnie Wood on Jimmy Reed: “Everyone talks about Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf and Buddy Guy,” he says. “Jimmy was simple in his delivery. His songs are such different characters in their own way.”

Jimmy Reed hailed from Mississippi and passed away in San Francisco, just before his 51st birthday.

To name (one of many) hits: ‘Honest I Do’ and ‘Bright Lights, Big City’… are some still honored on my Tuesday Bluesday program, every Tuesday night!

And of course, Jimmy is not just a Blues Hall of Famer, but was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Rightfully so) in 1991.

Love you, Jimmy!

If you listened to WMMR on Sunday, October 22, 2023, you will have heard Pierre and my special. We recorded it in Jerry Blavat's Geator Gold studio.

It was a fun time recording the special. Val Shively, owner of R&B Records in Upper Darby aided us in the experience.

We took a ton of photos during our visit to Jerry’s home studio. That was where he broadcasted Geator Gold Radio. Pierre and I recorded the final show ever in that studio. Both of us want to thank everyone who tuned in Sunday morning to hear us play it back on WMMR. It was a very special experience to be inside the studio.

You can watch the video of that first visit here. You can listen to the incredible special by following this link.

As you can see in the photos, all of the Geator’s 45s are stacked up on top of each other like playing cards. There are no labels and no sleeves on any of them. Wow. How was the Geator able to ever find what the was looking for? It is a testament to his genius as a DJ.

Enjoy these photos of Pierre and I from Jerry Blavat's Geator Gold Studio.