Johnny Winter plays a breathtaking 'Rock Me Baby'

[nomadtraveller100]

I saw Johnny Winter back in 1978. Great show. Thanks for this!

[fenderbenderization]

Dont care what Y'all say, I respectfully read all posts here! Just play me dem Texas blues!!!

[mcbrowncb]

He's one ugly son of a bitch, but man, he can play.

[MrJLHooker]

He's an illustrated Man!!

[joytuc58]

Thanks for posting this on Youtube. I used to have all his albums. Haven't heard this song in almost 40 years. Just as good as ever.

[FunNotNuts]

I'm dimly recalling some of Johnny's African American contemporaries saying waaayyy back, that Johnny's music came as close to black as a white man can get. Heh!

[Panglos]

The sad truth is that greedy managers--in Johnny's case, Roy Ames and Clive Davis--can derail or ruin a promising career, and deprive the public of exposure to a great artist.

Even worse, their malfeasance contributed to the heroin and barbiturate addiction that nearly killed Johnny. Though he recovered from that, he will never recover from the permanent loss of recognition that is reflected in his (admittedly meaningless) rankings.

Screw popularity contests. Just listen.

[OleCooter]

My God!!!!!!!!!!!!! The best ever!!!!!! Gezzz , still takin back. Best guitar player , voteed 6 years strait. Maked eddie van how sounf like crap!

[TomGunnHill]

What kinda p**** calls himself ' The Edge' - that young boy should get some living done before he talks about any Edge - some of us have been there, done that - it's not something to talk about.

Tom (back from the e*** and not wanting to go there again)

[LanceHelmut]

does anyone do electric blues rock "up there " with johnny winter ? yes...hendrix, beck, page, clapton..are all peers ..but jimi stands above all b/c of his extreme genius songwriting. for just playin' i'm not sure srv is as smokin as j.w... d. allman and d. betts (gods) thought an AWFUL lot of j.w....muddy effin waters thought an awful lot of j.w.....****** post thanx.

[fenderbenderization]

@LanceHelmut I Think they call him SRV..nahhsure.

[LanceHelmut]

@fenderbenderization johnny and srv are strictly 2nd tier...NO EPIC songwriting if you can't write an album like electric lady land you're 2nd tier. ...SRV a good technician and mimicker of GOD......JIMi an innovator and writer like the fab- 4 and stones most every oneelse is s very good but really just a parody of those 3 plus the lord jehovah..bob dylan

[bbgb2002]

Johnny Robert McMahan, my father was Denton everyone called him Mac, we lived in the rancher right behind you in Beaumont Texas, we had bamboo as the fence line, we all had huge yards, that was a good time, I was only 7 I think, don't matter I know you and love you my neighbor, hope you are all well!

[flying26100]

je l 'ai découvert en 71 , et toujours , écouté , et tentant d 'imiter !!! ;)

[1skullduggery]

so awesome. and it dosen't even look like he's moving...lol.

[rumpledilskin]

Johnny's sound was distinctly dirty, gritty, raw, and with an energy of it's own. Very earthy, true to it's roots. Shows the difference between growing up listening to tube radios and vinyl, vs. mp3's and ipods...

[bobbyray56]

Wow, this is awesome, Robin Trower take note:)

[occams99]

@bobbyray56 Two different beasts man but I'd put my money on a Texas' picker any time a dime draws the line.

[MrKirkenstein]

no guitarist list is complete without Rory Gallagher, Michael Hedges, Frank Zappa, Todd Rundgren rating in the top 10..

[bevanmcg]

Voodoo Chile in there somewhere !!

[dynodon1000]

I graduated h.s. in 68 , saw alot of the old timers bands when they were getting started..Used to go to Piedmont Park ,in Atlanta every sunday to see free Allman Bros. concerts ..Saw Johnny W. in a small biker bar , in Marietta , Ga. (still have ringing in my ears ) Saw Pink Floyd when they were an opening act..It is great that so many of them are still rockin....But I hate best guitar players lists,,if I made a top ten list ,, it would turn into about 400 names....

[bevanmcg]

@dynodon1000 so tru man : )

[99strange]

four stars, 99

[exfed9]

I graduated HS in 1974 and every kid I know had his version of Jumping Jack Flash and said "you have to get this it's better than the Stones version" LOL I love the John Dawson Winter III album !!! & Captured Live.

[fast35053]

All right guys, there are alot of greats out there from all genre's. nobody has mentioned Billy Gibbons of Z.Z. Top, Carlos Santana, Ritchie Blackmore, Pete Townsend, Jimmy Page, Slash, Rusty Burns of Point Blank, Eddie Van Halen, Jon Bon Jovi, even country musics George Strait, and Kiks Brooks, ALL bad ass in their own right. Granted we were talking about blues, just saying...................

[fast35053]

@TAZ4169 DAMN Bud, i was beginning to think that i was the only one that knew of Frank and Mahogany Rush. Frightening talent indeed. i guess everyone who's posted here is lucky to be of an age where we were able to see all this talent LIVE. I've seen 'em all I figure except Hendrix. I always wished i could have seen him.............

[99strange]

Damn good upload, thanks,99

[morsejason72atYahoo]

Johny still alive and well.... love to find a HD come into you're kitchen

[fireblossom2u]

It's all about taste. Johnny has plays in the pocket but in a very forward edge way. He is always right on. As a comparison, Clapton plays back in the pocket sort of riding the back edge while Johnny pushes at the front. That's what makes his playing so immediate and tense. If you are used to laid back and are waiting for him to settle into that spot he will wear you out. The references he makes to other songs and the speed while ripping along the scales is indeed breathtaking.

[toobmaniac]

He is not one of the best..His tone is annoying and he's all over the place..Actually he's kinda spooky..He's a good performer but he wouldn't be in the top 100 as far as i am concerned..I know a lot of guitarists and am one myself and in my 43 years i have never heard anyone ever say Johnny winter was an influence , and i'm sure i will never meet anyone who will say that he was an influence...It just won't happen

[rockemstockum]

@toobmaniac You're apparently not from Texas my Friend. I could find you at least 100 guitar players in Texas who would tell you Johnny is an Influence. And in my 56 years I know Lots of guitarists too (of which I am one too) and there are plenty of guitarists who would cite him as an influence,.. Including ME!! .

[toobmaniac]

@rockemstockum No I was Born and raised here in Ohio...You don't have to come from Texas to like the way a Texan plays..Two of my main influences are from Texas " Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Johnson " I never said he was a bad player..He's just a bit too eclectic for me and his style does nothing for me....I know multitudes of musicians and to the very last one they will say his stuff is okay, but that he wasn't an influence as far as having an impact on the way they play..

[rockemstockum]

@toobmaniac Well,.. we have a lot in common anyway,..I too was born in Ohio and moved to Texas when I was 12. And I understand,.. we can't all enjoy the same of everything. And yes, Eric Johnson and Stevie Ray are Definitely a couple of Texas Greats. Still,..I'd bet if you were to ask them (or could've asked Stevie) ,they'd tell you Johnny was an Influence on them. He's one of the Kings in this state. But to each his own and as long as you keep on playing, it's all Good! Rock On!

[ETericET]

@rockemstockum Me also.

[LordSauceness]

@toobmaniac *and he's all over the place*

Ah....that is what makes Johnny Winter so very great! You must have never been to a live Johnny Winter concert. It had to be experienced to be believed. He's non-fucking stop! Even today, with Johnny at about 30% of his old speedy ways, he still kicks ass.

Being 'all over the place', is one reason why there are so few J.W. copycats, but hundreds of SRV copyists. Like Johnny said, " Stevie plays good, but he doesn't take any chances"

[fast35053]

@LordSauceness Johnny is ONE of the greats, you give credit where credit's due. SRV is another Great. imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Listen to Jonny Lang, the songs Lie To Me and Breaking Me.... KILLER Blues....A young kid when i met him in Austin TX., at Antones.....another to listen to if you like guitar licks is Robin Trower, not so much a blues man but smokin ass rock, has been around forever. Listen to Bridge of Sighs, absolutely the best guitarist that ever lived, IMHO....

[LordSauceness]

@fast35053 *Johnny is ONE of the greats, you give credit where credit's due. SRV is another*

I love all types of guitar playing & guitar players. SRV is also one of my favs. But us humans have a tendency to wanna pick out the 'best'. Most people only look at just the electric guitar and then announce 'the greatest'.

However, there are several categories in blues. Clapton, SRV, Gary Moore are all greats indeed. But none of them can do it all as good as J.W. Slide, accoustic & electric.

[LordSauceness]

@fast35053 *another to listen to if you like guitar licks is Robin Trower,*

I was very lucky as a teen to get to know & befriend a teen guitar virtuoso. Not many can claim that. At age 15 & after less than 3 years of playing, he was better than 90% of the players that around even by today's standards. You'd be hard pressed to find someone who would be able to copy his licks from 1972. I've got a couple of their tunes uploaded. It's been hard to impress me after watching him play.....lol..

[fast35053]

@LordSauceness I agree wholeheartedly, hard to impress me after seeing Trower play. check out the video of Bridge of Sighs uploaded by bootstrapjesse. shows him playing in 2005. DAMN....Watch him bend the strings on that Fender, the facial expressions. You can see its coming from his very soul........I saw him in Dallas in 74, Hands down the best concert i ever saw. White Tux and barefooted, he leaned left and right, front and back but his feet never moved. We were amazed to say the least, LOL.

[fast35053]

@LordSauceness You were talking about Robin Trower right? LOL...If so, you were a lucky man to have been able to hang out with him. Where were you from? I met and hung out with SRV in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas back in the day. I remember getting out of the Marine Corp and driving across Dallas and hearing Cold Shot on the radio and thinking HOLY SHIT, I KNOW THIS GUY, LOL.............

[fast35053]

@LordSauceness Hey Bud, listen to PAPERTREEMUSIC, I'M LEAVING. New kid over in the UK. he has some srv influence, alvin lee, you'll hear alot of influence from different blues men. subscribe to his channel. he is definately going somewhere..........check it out............

[MichaelSeanHarrell]

SHIT!!!TEARIN IT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!

[timpenfield5]

HOLY SHIT.THAT OPENING LICK COULD KILL MILLIONS

[ruelsmith]

One word: WOW! It's funny how you read all these lists of the "greatest guitar player of all time" and he's pushed down on the list. I've seen lists where the likes of Tom Morrello and The Edge were rated higher? That's crazy... Certainly in the top10, if not top 5 guitar players of all time!

[crossbonesist]

@ruelsmith I try to remember it's merely a popularity contest and has nothing to do with with a musicians true contribution or legacy... that's how I deal with that crap!

[catdog420]

@ruelsmith How can any sane person compare Morello & The Edge with Johnny Winter ? Johnny is a GOD!

[dantean]

@ruelsmith Sorry, but the real point is that "Greatest Ever" lists are a stupid idea to begin with. Like what you like but refrain from declaring a winner (or "winners"), This isn't the Olympics or a bowling tournament.

[washeduplove]

go johnny go

[imajeepster]

how the hell does he do that. oh yeah...he's from texas (sort of).

[mcgaheefamily]

I THINK JOHNNY WAS BORN WITH A GUITAT IN HIS HAND

[RBELLOUS]

Johnny touches your spine like no other guitarist can.

[PROWLERS1]

Yes it is breathtaking!

[AUdioHipster]

THe Johnny Winter sound .. is no compromise .. just the best God;s green earth .. has to offer ... The this.... AUdioHipster

[winterguitarkingyea]

Johnny Winter bad ass greatest guitar player of all tiomes was great at the beginning totally original ... Blues Rock King of The Jungle Hall of Fame LIVING legend ...

[MrKingtonejoe]

This is the ONLY way to play the blues...your OWN way !!! Johnny could'nt copy anyone if his life depended on it...YEAH BABY !!!

[huichol53]

As usual, on fire Huichol53........

[robin56]

Johnny is so great. 50 years on.

[tb0432]

I see you have some more Johnny stuff since I checked last - great stuff. Thank you.

[xkecoupe]

splendid performance of the guitar legend.