Junior Wells

Junior Wells (December 9, 1934 - January 15, 1998) was a blues harmonica player and vocalist who was a major influence in the development of modern Chicago blues. Born Amos Wells Blakemore, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, he began playing harmonica at the age of six. He first gained attention when he moved to Chicago in the early 1950s, performing with a range of blues artists including Muddy Waters and Little Walter.

Wells’s best-known album, Hoodoo Man Blues, was released in 1965. It featured the single “Messin’ with the Kid”, which became a blues standard. His other standout albums include Come On In This House (1976), You’re Gonna Miss Me (1977), and Junior Wells Plays the Blues (1978).

Other notable songs by Junior Wells include “Help Me”, “Hoodoo Man Blues”, “My Baby She Left Me”, “Little by Little”, and “Trouble Don’t Last Always”.

An interesting fact about Junior Wells is that he was the first musician to have an album released on the Alligator Records label, founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971.