Son Seals
A Journey Through The Blues: The Son Seals Story
(2007 VizzTone Label Group)
“I've
been broke all kinds of different ways, but the
one thing I try to keep from being broken is my
spirit.“ Son Seals, February 2002
Son Seals was born Frank
Seals on August 13, 1942 in Osceola, AR about 50
miles outside Memphis. His father, Jim Seals, played
slide trombone, piano, guitar, & drums and danced
with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, whose alumni include
Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey. He was also proprietor
of the Dipsy Doodle Club - a 175-seat juke joint
frequented by Sonny Boy Williamson, Robert Nighthawk
and Albert King.
No surprise that Son decided
at an early age to become a musician like his father
and Jim made sure Son would learn to do things right.
Drums were Son’s first instrument; he played
them behind Nighthawk at age 13. But by the time
he was 18, Son Seals turned his talents to guitar,
fronting his own band in Little Rock.
Son Seals hit the road playing
guitar with Earl Hooker in 1963, and soon after
that as a drummer with Albert King (with whom he
recorded the seminal Stax album Live Wire/Blues
Power). He moved to Chicago in 1971 and began jamming
with everyone from Junior Wells to Hound Dog Taylor
to James Cotton and Buddy Guy. After Hound Dog Taylor's
Alligator debut album hit and he began touring,
Son took over Hound Dog's regular weekend gigs at
The Expressway Lounge and Flamingo Club on Chicago's
South Side. It was at one of those gigs that Bruce
Iglauer of Alligator Records discovered Son.
Seals' jagged, uncompromising
guitar riffs and gruff vocals were showcased very
effectively on that 1973 debut, The Son Seals Blues
Band, which contained his “Your Love Is like
a Cancer“ and a raging instrumental called
“Hot Sauce.“ Son's audience base grew
as he began to tour, playing colleges, clubs and
festivals across the country. His 1977 album, Midnight
Son, was his true breakthrough. The album received
widespread acclaim from every major music publication.
Rolling Stone called it “one of the most significant
blues albums of the decade.“ Robert Palmer,
writing in The New York Times, called Son “the
most exciting young blues guitarist and singer in
years.“
On the strength of Midnight
Son, Son began what would become regular tours of
Europe, and he even appeared in a national television
ad for Olympia beer. A strong series of six more
successful Alligator releases followed through the
1980s and 1990s, growing Son's audience from a few
hundred into many thousands. He became a favorite
of critics everywhere. “Excellent modern blues,”
exclaimed Blues & Rhythm. Musician declared
Son delivered “performances of the most profound
emotion...one of the genre's most soulful exorcists.”
But it wasn't just the critics. Fellow musicians
- from inside and outside of the blues world - took
notice of Son’s immense talents. He shared
stages with icons like B.B. King and Johnny Winter.
Even the popular rock group Phish came calling,
covering Son’s “Funky Bitch” on
record and inviting the bluesman to join them on
stage at many of their tour stops.
Over the years, Son had his
share of hardship, more than most experience in
a lifetime. His personal life took two devastating
blows in the late '90s. On January 5, 1997, during
a domestic dispute, Seals was shot in the jaw by
his former spouse, the bullet permanently lodged
in his brain. He miraculously recovered and continued
touring. Two years later he had his left leg amputated
as a result of diabetes. What would have surely
forced most performers into retirement only made
Son more dedicated to his music and audience.
In 2000, Son Seals signed
to Telarc Blues and recorded Lettin’ Go, which
won a W.C. Handy (now Blues Music) Award for Traditional
Blues Album of the Year. In 2002 Alligator released
Deluxe Edition highlighting the best of Son.
Son's reputation as a charismatic
live performer and a fiercely individual songwriter
took him from playing in small clubs to headlining
international blues festivals. He emerged as one
of Chicago's - and the world's - greatest bluesmen,
and one of the genre's most powerful live performers.
From his introduction as a hot young firebrand in
1973 to becoming a leading voice of Chicago blues,
Son Seals blazed a blues trail that others will
follow for years to come.
Son Seals passed away on
December 20, 2004 due to complications from diabetes.
“Son was a bluesman
through and through. He never tried to smooth the
rough edges off his guitar sound, nor the grit from
his voice. His music was all about healing.”
Bruce Iglauer, Alligator Records
Sources:
Veteran Guitarist Paying the Dues to Play the Blues
by Dave Hoekstra, Chicago Sun-Times, February 3,
2002
Son Seals Biography, Alligator Records
Son Seals Biography by Bill Dahl and Al Campbell,
All Music Guide
Ciao’
for now, peace.
Cornbread
| Cornbread@STLBlues.net
CBP
|
