Luther Allison

Luther Allison
Allison in 1996
Allison in 1996
Background information
Birth nameLuther Sylvester Allison
Born(1939-08-18)August 18, 1939
Widener, Arkansas, U.S.
DiedAugust 12, 1997(1997-08-12) (aged 57)
Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Genres
OccupationMusician
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1957–1997
Labels

Luther Sylvester Allison[1] (August 17, 1939 – August 12, 1997)[2][3] was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was born in Widener, Arkansas,[4] although some accounts suggest his actual place of birth was Mayflower, Arkansas.[1][5] Allison was interested in music as a child and during the late 1940s he toured in a family gospel group called The Southern Travellers.[1] He moved with his family to Chicago in 1951[6] and attended Farragut High School[1] where he was classmates with Muddy Waters' son.[4] He taught himself guitar and began listening to blues extensively. Three years later he dropped out of school[1] and began hanging around outside blues nightclubs with the hopes of being invited to perform. Allison played with the bands of Howlin' Wolf and Freddie King, taking over King's band when King toured nationally.[4][1] He worked with Jimmy Dawkins, Magic Sam and Otis Rush,[1][4] and also backed James Cotton. Chicago Reader has called him "the Jimi Hendrix of blues guitar".[7]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Harris, Sheldon (1991). Blues who's who : a biographical dictionary of blues singers. New York, N.Y.: Da Capo Press. pp. 30–33. ISBN 0306801558.
  2. ^ Doc Rock. "The Dead Rock Stars Club: 1996–1997". TheDeadRockStarsClub.com. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  3. ^ "Luther Allison, 57, a Bluesman". New York Times. 1997-08-17. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-07-25.
  4. ^ a b c d "LUTHER ALLISON". Alligator Records. Retrieved 2020-08-03.
  5. ^ "Allison, Luther". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2020-08-03.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference amy was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Krakow, Steve (2 February 2016). "Luther Allison was the Jimi Hendrix of blues guitar". Chicago Reader. Retrieved November 4, 2022.