Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois. It is based on earlier blues idioms, such as Delta blues, but is performed in an urban style. It developed alongside the Great Migration of African Americans of the first half of the twentieth century. Key features that distinguish Chicago blues from the earlier traditions, such as Delta blues, is the prominent use of electrified instruments, especially the electric guitar, and especially the use of electronic effects such as distortion and overdrive.
Theodore Roosevelt "Hound Dog" Taylor was an American Chicago blues guitarist and singer.
James Henry Cotton was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career.
Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the Living Blues magazine in Chicago in 1970.
Lonnie Brooks was an American blues singer and guitarist. The musicologist Robert Palmer, writing in Rolling Stone, stated, "His music is witty, soulful and ferociously energetic, brimming with novel harmonic turnarounds, committed vocals and simply astonishing guitar work." Jon Pareles, a music critic for the New York Times, wrote, "He sings in a rowdy baritone, sliding and rasping in songs that celebrate lust, fulfilled and unfulfilled; his guitar solos are pointed and unhurried, with a tone that slices cleanly across the beat. Wearing a cowboy hat, he looks like the embodiment of a good-time bluesman." Howard Reich, a music critic for the Chicago Tribune, wrote, "...the music that thundered from Brooks' instrument and voice...shook the room. His sound was so huge and delivery so ferocious as to make everything alongside him seem a little smaller."
Carey Bell Harrington was an American blues musician who played harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass guitar for other blues musicians from the late 1950s to the early 1970s before embarking on a solo career. Besides his own albums, he recorded as an accompanist or duo artist with Earl Hooker, Robert Nighthawk, Lowell Fulson, Eddie Taylor, Louisiana Red and Jimmy Dawkins and was a frequent partner with his son, the guitarist Lurrie Bell. Blues Revue called Bell "one of Chicago's finest harpists." The Chicago Tribune said Bell was "a terrific talent in the tradition of Sonny Boy Williamson and Little Walter." In 2023, he was inducted in the Blues Hall of Fame.
Bruce Iglauer is an American businessman and record producer who founded Alligator Records as an independent record label featuring blues music.
William "Billy Boy" Arnold is an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. Arnold is a self-taught harmonica player and has worked with blues legends such as Bo Diddley, Johnny Shines, Otis Rush, Earl Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters and others.
Little Smokey Smothers was a Chicago blues guitarist and singer. He played with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and played with other Chicago blues musicians in the 1960s, then left music for most of the 1970s. He returned to music in the late 1970s and continued performing until his death in 2010.
Lacy Gibson was an American Chicago blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He notably recorded the songs "My Love Is Real" and "Switchy Titchy" and in a long and varied career worked with Buddy Guy and Son Seals.
Earwig Music Company is an American blues and jazz independent record label, founded by Michael Frank in October 1978 in Chicago.
Selwyn Birchwood is an American blues guitarist, vocalist and songwriter from Tampa, Florida. He was the winner of the Blues Foundation’s 2013 International Blues Challenge, as well the winner of the Albert King Guitarist of the Year award, presented at the same event. To win, he bested 125 other bands from around the world. Birchwood plays electric guitar and electric lap steel guitar. His live performances feature his original songs. Living Blues magazine said, "Selwyn Birchwood is making waves, surprising people and defying expectations. Be on the lookout. He revels in the unexpected." The Tampa Tribune said Birchwood plays with "power and precision reminiscent of blues guitar hero Buddy Guy. He is a gritty vocalist [who is] commanding with his axe." Rolling Stone said "Birchwood is a young, powerhouse guitarist and soulful vocalist. Don't Call No Ambulance is a remarkable debut by a major player." The Washington Post said, "Selwyn Birchwood is an indelibly modern and original next-generation bluesman; his tough vocals, guitar and lap steel touch on classic Chicago blues, Southern soul and boogie."
Richard L. Shurman is an American record producer, sound engineer, music journalist, music historian, and backing vocalist.
Deep Down is an album by the American blues musician Carey Bell, recorded in Chicago in 1995 and released by the Alligator label.
One More for the Road is a studio album by the American blues musician Charles Brown. It was released in 1986 through Blue Side Records, and rereleased in 1989 through Alligator Records. It was regarded as a comeback album for Brown, who had been out of the spotlight for decades.
The Real Deal is an album by the American musician Smokey Wilson, released in 1995. Wilson supported the album with a North American tour.
In the Shadow of the City is an album by the American musician Maurice John Vaughn, released in 1993. Vaughn supported the album with a North American tour. "(Everything I Do) Got to Be Funky", which was a minor, regional radio hit, appears on the soundtrack to Major League II.
Fish Ain't Bitin' is the second album by the American musician Corey Harris, released in 1997 through Alligator Records. Harris supported the album with a North American tour that included shows opening for B.B. King. Fish Ain't Bitin' won a W. C. Handy Award for the best acoustic blues album of 1997.
Lost in the Blues is an album by the American musician Otis Rush, released in 1991. A version of the album titled Troubles, Troubles was released in Europe by Sonet Records.
Ace in the Hole is an album by the American musician Elvin Bishop, released in 1995. It was his third album for Alligator Records. Bishop promoted the album by touring with B. B. King. Ace in the Hole was nominated for a Bammie Award.
