Muddy Waters - Muddy Waters Woodstock Album (US 1975)

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Recorded in 1975, The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album was the brainchild of the Band's Levon Helm and producer/songwriter Henry Glover. At the time, the duo's production company, RCO, had recently set up shop in a barn-turned- studio in Woodstock, New York, and Muddy Waters was their first client. 

The album, born of a unique merger of top-flight talent (Waters' touring band plus the cream of the musicians then living in and around Woodstock), is one of the loosest, swingingest records that Waters ever cut, and features such musicians as blues-harp great Paul Butterfield, Helm and Garth Hudson (of the Band), guitarist Bob Margolin and keyboardist Willie "Pinetop" Perkins (from Waters' band), and renowned session players Fred Carter and Howard Johnson.

The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album includes five original songs written by Waters ("Going Down to Main Street," "Born With Nothing," "Funny Sounds," "Love, Deep as the Ocean" and the previously unreleased CD-only bonus track, Fox Squirrel) plus covers of Louis Jordan's "Let the Good Times Roll" and Caldonia, Bobby Charles' "Why Are People Like That" and Leiber & Stoller's Kansas City. 

As chronicled in the newly penned liner notes by Billboard's Chris Morris, the disc proved to be the last that Waters would record for Chess. 

It was, however, a memorable farewell - The Muddy Waters Woodstock Album was awarded the 1975 Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Recording.

Of all the post-Fathers & Sons attempts at updating Waters' sound in collaboration with younger white musicians, this album worked best because they let Waters be himself, producing music that compared favorably to his concerts of the period, which were wonderful. 

His final album for Chess (recorded at Levon Helm's Woodstock studio, not in Chicago), with Helm and fellow Band-member Garth Hudson teaming up with Waters' touring band, it was a rocking (in the bluesy sense) soulful swansong to the label where he got his start. 

Waters covers some songs he knew back when (including Louis Jordan's "Caldonia" and "Let the Good Times Roll"), plays some slide, and generally has a great time on this Grammy-winning album. 

This record got lost in the shuffle between the collapse of Chess Records and the revival of Waters' career under the auspices of Johnny Winter, and was forgotten until 1995.

Personnel
✪ Muddy Waters - vocal/guitar 
✪ Paul Butterfield - harmonica
✪ Henry Glover - producer
✪ Levon Helm - bass/drums/producer
✪ Garth Hudson - accordion/keyboards/saxophone
✪ Howard Johnson - saxophone
✪ Sammy Lawhorn - guitar
✪ Bob Margolin - guitar
✪ "Pinetop" Perkins - piano

01. Why Are People Like That  03:37
02. Going Down To Main Street  04:16
03. Born With Nothing  05:23
04. Caledonia  06:19
05. Funny Sounds  04:34
06. Love, Deep As The Ocean  05:13
07. Let The Good Times Roll  05:15
08. Kansas City  05:12
Bonus Track:
09. Fox Squirrel  03:54

Extra Bonus Concert:  
Tuesday June 15, 1976  
Muddy Waters Paul's Mall,Boston
WBCN-FM Stereo 

Personnel
♣ Muddy Waters - guitar, vocals
♣ Willie "Big Eyes" Smith - drums
♣ Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson - guitar
♣ Calvin Jones - bass
♣ Bob Margolin - guitar
♣ Joe "Pine Top" Perkins - piano
♣ Jerry Portnoy - harmonica

01. Dj Intro  00:23
02. Instrumental #1 (cut in)  04:55 
03. Instrumental #2  08:12
04. Instrumental #3  03:25

≈≈≈≈ Enter Muddy Waters ≈≈≈≈
05. Muddy Waters Day Proclamation  03:57
06. Caldonia  05:41
07. Kansas City  08:38
08. Hoochie Coochie Man  02:51 
09. I Want You To Love Me  04:21 
10. Baby Please Don't Go  04:05 
11. Long Distance Call  07:29
12. Mannish Boy  05:22
13. Got My Mojo Working  03:05

Encore
14. You Don't Have To Go  03:48 
15. Exit Music  01:43
16. dj outro  01:01

Part 1: Muddy 1
Part 2: Muddy 2
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Part 1: Muddy 1
Part 2: Muddy 2
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Part 1: Muddy 1
Part 2: Muddy 2