Biography of Magic Sam

From his collected Cobra sides to his Delmark masterpieces West Side Soul and Black Magic, Magic Sam's recordings prove that (with the possible exception of Otis Rush at his best) nobody captured the spirit and soul of the 60s Chicago blues like the late Sam Maghett. When Sam died, Chicago lost its brightest star, yet because of his deserved reputation for guitar techniques and vocal passion, most of his recorded sides are available in some format. Along with several other artists, Luther Allison and Jimmy Dawkins for example, Magic Sam was associated with the so-called West Side sound, a 60s shift away from the Chess Studio sound associated with Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters. According to West Side musicians, the innovations were economically motivated because the tough West Side clubs paid so little. In the stripped-down guitar/bass/drums format, the guitarist worked overtime filling lead and rhythm roles simultaneously. Moreover, the demanding West Side audiences, many of them recently up from the South, took their blues seriously, and musicians had to play full-tilt to win their approval. During the 60s, blues musicians also needed to cover the soul hits on the charts. Put it all together, and you have three-piece bands alternating between innovative hard treatments of blues classics and contemporary soul material reduced to bare-bones readings. It made for some of the very best high-energy blues ever created. Vocally, Magic Sam drew on the church-based soul styling favored by B. B. King and Otis Rush. Instrumentally, he preferred the haunting minor-key phrases and upbeat rhythmic treatment of John Lee Hooker or J. B. Lenoir riffs. Add in Sam's songwriting skills and a heavy dose of charisma, and you come up with the embodiment of 60s Chicago blues at its best. There will never be another like him. ~ Barry Lee Pearson