Mud Morganfield tells HPR where he got his blues

To say that art imitates life would be an understatement in regard to Chicago blues royalty Mud Morganfield’s work. The eldest son of blues legend Muddy Waters wasn’t always in the spotlight with his music, though he was born with the blues coursing through his veins.

Growing up Morganfield saw very little of his father, but his influence was there. “My dad was gone a lot so my mom--her name was Mildred,tried to raise the girls and boys, and I was the only son of hers by Muddy.” says Morganfield,”I mean the girls are no problem because they could relate, but it’s hard to raise boys into men.”

“My pops didn’t encourage me, but he always wanted his children--or at least one of them--to play some blues,”Morganfield says.”It was just a calling for me. My father was tapping the blues on my mother’s stomach since I come here. So it wasn’t a hard choice for me.”

Morganfield spent years on the road working as a truck driver. “I was always singing over at my house and I said I’m just going to drive truck because my dad already done that, but the blues come calling for me.” Morganfield said,”I couldn’t run anymore. I couldn’t run I couldn’t hide--it’s what I do.”

The blues are clearly woven into his moral fabric, in being his father’s son and growing up on Chicago’s west side--it’s easy to see where Morganfield’s blues stemmed from. “Chicago is a pretty rough town, so I had to be a pretty tough guy.” Morganfield said, “There’s no children in Chicago. I know you’ve heard the news--how all of the kids are killing kids. It’s just rough. I grew up there--but I wouldn’t change a thing about my upbringing because it’s where I got my blues at.”

He recalled not only the violence in his neighborhood, he spoke of the destruction of the Watts riots, and the difficulty that followed the Chicago blizzard in 1968. I found it heartbreaking, but he corrected me, saying, “We came through it--so it’s ok. I’ve had these blues all my life--that’s good blues.”

Once Morganfield started his career in the blues, he approached the spotlight with ease. “It’s never been difficult. I never got stage fright, I never got butterflies in my stomach, and I knew it was my calling,” Morganfield said, ”I was proud to be Muddy’s son and showing the world this great legacy was kind of passed on.”

Morganfield’s setlist includes a mixture of his father’s tunes and his original material. His deep warm voice sounds strikingly like his father’s. His songs stem from personal experiences from the inner streets of Chicago. In a nutshell Morganfield says the song “Blues in My Shoes”, from his “Son of the Seventh Son” album, gives the audience a reflection of his hardships.

He recalls speaking to his father over the telephone, while he experienced his own blues on the road. “Sometimes he would call me telling me how unhappy he was about things not working, feeling like people were putting him down, or telling him his music was too slow.”

“If it wasn’t for my dad’s influence, I probably wouldn’t be where I am today--let’s make that clear.” Morganfield says, ”It’s not only me--there’s so many artists who use my dad’s name as a stepping stone. That’s a fact and they deserve it. It’s a good thing because it keeps his legacy alive.”

Recently, Morganfield recorded an album with Big Head Todd and the Monsters. Their tour starts this coming September. It will feature the talents of Chicago blues guitarist Lonnie Baker Brooks and Chicago blues harmonica player Billy Branch. Morganfield humbly adds, “All I can do is do my part to keep the blues alive.”

IF YOU GO:

Mud Morganfield

Friday, July 29, 9 p.m.

Newman Outdoor Field, 1515 15th Ave. N, Fargo

For tickets call: 1-866-552-5837

For the complete line up: http://fargobluesfest.homestead.com/index.html