Johnny Winter is a musical icon. His unique guitar-playing style is a harmonious blend of blues and rock 'n' roll—an achievement that few have accomplished. This has led to many hit records over the years and a strong, dedicated fan base. Kenny Buffaloe, a popular martial arts personality, had the rare opportunity to interview Johnny Winter about his illustrious career, early musical influences, the current state of blues/rock music, and his new tour and album I’m A Bluesman . Johnny recently performed in North Carolina as part of the “Eastern Music Festival” in two sold-out shows. Before the performance, there was Johnny and his guitar. During the show, Johnny Winter became his guitar. The audience was mesmerised by his outstanding performance. Johnny Winter is one of the last of a dying breed of great blues musicians still with us. The late, great Muddy Waters said it best when he stated, “Johnny Winter is the only white man I have ever met who really understands the blues.”
For over 30 years, Johnny Winter has been a guitar hero without equal. Signing with Columbia Records in 1969, Johnny immediately laid out the blueprint for his fresh take on classic blues—a prime combination for the legions of fans discovering the blues through the likes of Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. Constantly shifting between simple country blues in the vein of Robert Johnson and all-out electric slide guitar blues-rock, Johnny has always been one of the most respected singers and guitarists in rock. He is also a clear link between British blues-rock and American Southern rock, exemplified by the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Throughout the '70s and '80s, Johnny was the unofficial torchbearer for the blues, championing and aiding the careers of his idols, such as Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker.
His recent Grammy-nominated I'm A Bluesman disc, released by Virgin/EMI, has only added to his Texas-sized reputation.
For this release, Johnny paired again with long-time producer Dick Shurman (who has worked with Robert Cray, Wayne June, Albert Collins, and Roy Buchanan), as well as Tom Hambridge (who has produced Susan Tedeschi and George Thorogood). Backing him on the album is his road-tested touring band, consisting of guitarist
Paul Nelson
, bassist Scott Spray, and drummer Wayne June. Guest appearances include keyboardist Reese Wynans, from Stevie Ray Vaughan's celebrated backing group, Double Trouble, among others.
"I'm A Bluesman"
was a matter of finding the time and right material, Johnny says. The 13-track collection includes three tunes by his friend and second guitarist, Paul Nelson, who writes with Winter's bassist Scott Spray. They collaborated on the prison-themed "Shakedown," a relationship-gone-bad song titled "Pack Your Bags," and the album's title track, which Nelson describes as a Johnny Winter biography set to music. "I wanted to write a song about his life, who he is, and what he represents to other musicians. I'm really proud that when he heard the song, he said I’d gotten it right."
Winter also recorded two new songs by producer Tom Hambridge: "Cheatin' Blues" and the first single, "Lone Wolf." Johnny and his band cut the tracks for I'm A Bluesman at several studios in New England, where Winter now resides. However, Johnny remains a native Texan, born and raised in Beaumont—the town where the famous Spindletop gusher kicked off the "black gold" rush in 1901.
Growing up in a rough-and-tumble town populated by oilfield wildcatters and shipyard workers, Johnny spent long hours listening to a local DJ named J.P. Richardson—The Big Bopper of "Chantilly Lace" fame—and became hooked on 50s rock & roll. He formed his first band, Johnny and the Jammers, in 1959 at the age of 15, with his 12-year-old brother Edgar on keyboards.
Racial tensions in Beaumont were still high in those days, having seen one of the worst race riots in Texas history just nine months before Johnny's birth. Despite the brutal legacy, Johnny remembers never hesitating to venture into black neighbourhoods to hear and play music.
Looking back, Johnny believes that people in the black community knew he was sincere and genuinely possessed by the blues. "Nothing ever happened to me. I went to black clubs all the time, and nobody ever bothered me. I always felt welcome." He also became friends with Clarence Garlow, a DJ at the black radio station KJET in Beaumont, who introduced Winter to rural blues and Cajun music.
There's a famous story from 1962, when Johnny and his brother went to see B.B. King at a Beaumont club called the Raven. They were the only white people in the crowd, but Johnny already had his chops down and wanted to play with the revered B.B. "I was about 17," Johnny remembers. "B.B. didn’t want to let me on stage at first. He asked for my union card, and I had one. I kept sending people over to ask him to let me play. Finally, enough people wanted to hear me that he let me on stage. He gave me his guitar, and I got a standing ovation. He took his guitar back!"
Winter's big breakthrough came a few years later, in 1968, when Rolling Stone writers Larry Sepulvado and John Burks featured him in a piece on the Texas music scene, prompting a bidding war among record labels, which Columbia won.
Johnny’s self-titled 1969 album announced loudly that there was a new guitar-slinger on the national scene. It included audacious covers of blues classics like B.B. King’s "Be Careful with a Fool," Sonny Boy Williamson II’s "Good Morning Little School Girl," Robert Johnson’s "When You Got a Good Friend," and fellow Texan Lightnin’ Hopkins’ "Back Door Friend." It also featured two standout original Winter songs, "Dallas" and the controversial "I’m Yours and I’m Hers," both of which went into heavy rotation on FM underground radio.
The album peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard chart and was quickly followed by Second Winter later that year. Writer Cub Koda later described the period as one in which "straight out of Texas with a hot trio, Winter made blues-rock music for the angels." That trio included bassist Tommy Shannon, who later joined SRV's Double Trouble, and drummer Uncle John Turner.
Winter stayed with Columbia and its boutique label, Blue Sky, for over a decade, producing well-received albums such as Johnny Winter And (1970), Still Alive and Well (1973), and John Dawson Winter III (1974). He also helped introduce blues giant Muddy Waters to another generation by producing and playing guitar on the Grammy-winning Hard Again (1977), as well as the Grammy-nominated I’m Ready (1978), Muddy “Mississippi” Waters Live (1979), and King Bee (1981). The collaborations were so successful that Waters took to referring to Johnny as his "adopted son."
Johnny Winter rarely does interviews. Kenny Buffaloe was privileged to have the opportunity to interview this blues legend. Buffaloe first heard about Johnny Winter and his younger brother, Edgar Winter, from a childhood friend named David Robinson. David introduced Buffaloe to the progressive rock music of the 1970s, an influence that has lasted to this day. David Robinson passed away over 20 years ago from brain cancer, and Buffaloe dedicates this interview to his memory.
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The following is Kenny Buffaloe’s exclusive interview with Johnny Winter.
Kenny Buffaloe : You have a very unique blues/rock musical style. Who were some of your early musical influences, and how did they affect your playing style?
Johnny Winter : I listened to everyone I possibly could. I bought every record I could find and put it into my own style.
Buffaloe : What was it that inspired you to start playing music from the beginning?
Winter : I always loved music. My parents were musical. My daddy played sax and banjo, and he taught me my first chords on the ukulele. I played ukulele before I played the guitar.
Buffaloe : Tell me about your performances at the legendary Woodstock Festival in 1969 and that era.
Winter : I don’t remember a whole lot about it. The weather was real nasty, I remember that as the main thing.
Buffaloe : Jimi Hendrix had a legendary performance at Woodstock. Did you ever play with him at any point?
Winter : Yeah, I did. My manager Steve Paul had a club there called The Scene , and I played with Hendrix there at The Scene .
Buffaloe : What could you tell me about Jimi Hendrix as an artist and a man?
Winter : He was a great guitar player and a really nice person too. His playing influenced me in a positive way. He was the best rock guitarist alive.
Buffaloe : I also know that you knew Janis Joplin very well. She was an outstanding performer on stage. What was your relationship professionally with her?
Winter : Janis was an outstanding performer, she sure was. As far as my relationship with her, she was a friend. We didn’t really do much together. Although, we sang together some, none of it is recorded. It was just impromptu, informal performances. She was something, she sure was.
Buffaloe : You and your younger brother Edgar Winter grew up together, but you have two completely different musical styles. What do you account for these differences, and do you think these styles complement each other?
Winter : Edgar and I do have completely different musical styles, you’re right about that. Our two styles do complement each other. Edgar knows everything I do, and we work great together. We never competed against each other musically or anything. We played for the same groups back then. We just went in different directions musically, that’s all. Edgar and I just played a reunion show together in our hometown of Beaumont, Texas, and it was great. We raised money for Hurricane Katrina victims down there.
Buffaloe : It seems a lot of British groups and performers, such as Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, Foghat, and Paul Rodgers, really have a keen interest in American Blues. However, right here in America, lots of rock 'n' roll people have overlooked or just taken the Blues for granted. Why do you think that is?
Winter : Honestly, I don’t really know. I guess it’s taken for granted being right here at home.
Buffaloe : The movie Crossroads was the story of a Black Blues performer named Willie Brown (a friend of the late, great Robert Johnson) and a young White teenager who really wanted to play the blues. It seems that part of the storyline of this movie was taken from your non-fictional life.
Winter : I am aware of the movie Crossroads ; it’s a good film. But how do you figure this movie contains an episode from my life?
Buffaloe : There are a couple of things in the movie that lead me to believe that. For example, there’s a scene where the white kid goes into the all-black nightclub and wants to play. Willie Brown goes up to him and says, “Kid, you better be able to take them home, or we’re both dead.” The kid plays wonderfully and is fully accepted by everyone. I know the real-life incident when you were 17 years old; you went to an all-black blues club where B.B. King was playing. You requested to play with him. After being reluctant at first, he had you come up and play. You played so well and beautifully, the black people there stood up and gave you a standing ovation. B.B. King was amazed and even said, “They’ve never given me a standing ovation, and this is my show!” It just struck me that these two incidents seemed very similar.
Winter : (Laughing) Kenny, I think you are reaching. I never got that impression from watching that movie. (Still laughing)
Buffaloe : Do you feel artists today are taking the music even further or just copying others before them? They don’t seem to have any solid roots or foundations in their music.
Winter : Honestly, I don’t believe artists today have solid roots or foundations. Music was better back in the “old days” in the '50s. The heart and soul just isn’t there today as it was before.
Buffaloe : Johnny, when you play, I can feel something. There’s something really special about your style.
Winter : Well, thank you. I appreciate that. I’m glad you enjoy it.
Buffaloe : What did you think of the great bluesman Robert Johnson and his legend?
Winter : Robert Johnson was the best slide guitar player that was ever around. To me, he was the best. As far as his legend goes, I don’t believe he sold his soul to the devil down at the crossroads. They are really reaching out there with that one. But they said at first he couldn’t play guitar, but after he came back, he could. So right there is something to think about. Pretty strange. I can say his music had a tremendous impact on so many artists even to this day. That’s because he was so good. He was a natural performer.
Buffaloe : Your playing style is a complete, harmonious blend of blues and rock 'n' roll. A lot of artists try to achieve this, but it seems you do it quite naturally. When you play, you become the music. Do you see blues music and rock music as two separate, distinct styles, or is it all just music to you—not separate entities?
Winter : Yeah, my music is a blend of blues and rock together. You’re right. And yes, when I play, I become the music. I don’t see blues and rock as two separate styles; it’s all just music to me. Rock 'n' roll was born from the blues anyway. So, the rock 'n' roll I play has got a lot of blues in it. I know a lot of bands do struggle with this. But it just comes naturally to me. It’s a gift, and I feel fortunate to have that ability.
Buffaloe : I lived in Japan for many years studying traditional Japanese martial arts. My martial arts masters always told me that music was intimately connected to the martial arts, as both are “expressions of your soul.” I have no musical ability; I simply love good music. I have developed a strong sixth sense from all my years in martial arts. I can feel something special from only certain performers. But I can definitely feel something from your music. I can’t put my finger on what that is, but it’s there, and it’s real.
Winter : Wow, that’s great. I had never thought of it that way—music connected to martial arts. Interesting. (Laughing)
Buffaloe : Congratulations on your new album I’m A Bluesman . It’s a great album that got several Grammy nominations. Even my 6-year-old son, Christian, really enjoys listening to it. I think it’s amazing how your music is timeless and reaches all generations. How do you feel about that? Does it make you happy?
Winter : My new album I’m A Bluesman getting several Grammy nominations—that was very nice. You’re right, my music does reach all generations, and that’s even reflected at my live shows. People from every age group come. This makes me happy. I was always just hoping that positive things like that would happen. Things are beginning to come my way, and I’m so thankful for that.
Buffaloe : Gibson Guitars is releasing the Johnny Winter Firebird guitar in its series. That’s quite an honour. You must be on cloud nine about this. How does it make you feel?
Winter : They are putting out the Johnny Winter Firebird style guitar very soon. That’s about all I know so far. When it comes out, it should be real nice. I don’t really know yet when that will be, but it should be sometime pretty soon. I think it’s an honour. I’m real happy about that.
Buffaloe : Recently, a lot of your early 1960s and 1970s albums are being re-released, remastered with bonus tracks on CD. They are finally doing your great work justice. I’m very happy for you at this point in your career.
Winter : You’re right about that. It sure is a long time coming for this. It makes me feel real good that people who wouldn’t ordinarily know are going out and ‘discovering’ this music with these recent reissues on CD. I’m real happy about it.
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Buffaloe : What advice would you give an up-and-coming blues artist that wants to get started in the industry in this day and age?
Winter : Learn as much as you can and listen to as much as you can. Now is not a good time to get into the blues to play for a living. It’s real hard to get into the business right now. Corporate has almost killed the business. They are too involved.
Buffaloe : The '70s were a great era for creative music. Why do you think the artists from the '70s were so different from musicians of today?
Winter : Yeah, the '70s were a great time for new, creative music. I don’t really have any idea why artists from the '70s are different from artists today.
Buffaloe : You know, one interesting thing going on right now is that for the first time in history, young people of today are seeking out the music of their parents and grandparents from the 1970s. Kids today say they don’t really like the music of their generation, that it has no heart and soul. So, they are seeking out the “old school” music. To me, that’s an interesting phenomenon and really says a lot about the music of today.
Winter : Yeah. Kids are seeking out the older music. This is what they enjoy listening to right now. It’s true that they’re just not “feeling” it from the music of their generation. It’s interesting, like the generation gap bridging. That’s the state of music currently, I guess.
Buffaloe : Your second album, Second Winter , is a pure musical masterpiece. It ranked right up there with Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland at the time of its release. Columbia/Legacy re-released it with bonus tracks and even a concert you did with your brother Edgar Winter at Albert Hall in England. Could you tell me about the creative process that went into making this historical album?
Winter : Firstly, you saying Second Winter rates up there with Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland , I really appreciate you saying that. The bonus disc with the concert at Albert Hall in England—Edgar performed with me, and we did different versions of certain songs that were studio recorded. As far as the creative process of making Second Winter , we just went in and did it. My music was never really played a lot on the radio. Fans are more familiar with Edgar’s songs like "Frankenstein," "Take A Free Ride," or "Rock And Roll Hoochie Koo." I really don’t know why a lot of what I did was overlooked. I honestly don’t know, man. It’s hard to say about things like that. I can say that it hasn’t made me bitter at all. I’m just going to keep on playing music until I die.
Buffaloe : It’s great to see you back on the road on tour. Your new band is incredible. Those guys have so much talent. How are you feeling physically being back out there?
Winter : Have you heard or seen my new band?
Buffaloe : From the new album I’m A Bluesman , but not live yet. But, they sound great.
Winter : Being back on the road, I feel great physically. No problems. I love just playing music. I’m happy to be back out there.
Buffaloe : Could you share with us a story from the 1970s concerning your career?
Winter : Well, I don’t know. It was pretty crazy back then, let’s just leave it at that. But I’ve calmed down a lot now.
Buffaloe : I know you have done work with Muddy Waters on several occasions. You produced and played on three of Muddy Waters’ albums, including Hard Again , which won a Grammy Award. How was it working with this legendary artist, and was Muddy Waters one of your inspirations?
Winter : Oh yeah! Muddy Waters was like a father to me. He was one of my favourite blues inspirations. Working with him was just great—a childhood dream come true. I knew all his music real well, so we had an easy time playing together. I was able to help him a lot at that point in his career, and I was honoured to do so. It meant a lot to me personally to get to play with him.
Buffaloe : Could you tell me about that occasion where you played with B.B. King at the age of 17? How did that come about?
Winter : Well, I went to the club where he was playing and kept bugging him to let me play. He finally did, and I think he was genuinely surprised by my ability. All the people in the club were nice; they were not a hostile crowd or anything. In the Black community, I was always accepted as a hardcore blues performer.
Buffaloe : The current state of FM radio makes it hard for performers and bands from the '70s who are still making new music today. Classic radio stations will only play a band’s classic music from the '70s, not their ‘new’ music. Modern rock radio, which plays ‘new’ music, won’t play a classic rock band’s new songs because they classify that band as a “classic rock band.” So, it’s a no-win, stuck-in-the-middle situation that has to be extremely frustrating. How do you feel about this?
Winter : I don’t feel too good about that at all. They are playing my new song I’m A Bluesman on certain stations. Satellite radio is excellent. I listen to satellite radio a lot. I hear a lot of my songs on there that I wouldn’t hear on FM radio. I even hear my older songs on there too. It makes me feel real good to hear my stuff on there.
Buffaloe : Are there any last words or thoughts you would like to leave for your many fans and supporters, many of whom, like myself, are fortunate to still be able to see you perform?
Winter : I’m just glad to still be able to do it, to still be around. I’m happy that everybody keeps listening to me. My tour is indefinite; we’re just going to keep on playing. I’m looking forward to playing in North Carolina, one of my favourite places to play. We’re even planning to go overseas and play a few shows in Germany, where we’ve always had a strong fan base.
Buffaloe : I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this interview. I wish you only the best in the future in all your endeavours. It was an honour to do this interview with you. Take care, and I’ll see you on the road.
Winter : I enjoyed it. I appreciate you taking the time to do this. Looking forward to seeing you and coming to North Carolina. Thank you.
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About the Interviewer
Kenny Buffaloe is well-known for his martial arts abilities and achievements. He has over 40 years of training and experience under several world-famous masters from Japan. What is less known, however, is his love for music. Kenny Buffaloe grew up listening to classic rock, southern rock, heavy rock, and blues music from the age of six. Although he has no musical ability or talent, he deeply appreciates the work of true and talented performers and bands who play from the heart. Johnny Winter is one such performer, and Buffaloe is grateful for the opportunity to interview this great blues icon.
Kenny Buffaloe is a former Nash County resident who taught traditional Japanese martial arts there from 1983 to 1990. Buffaloe appears annually at the International Festival of Cultures , demonstrating the powerful Kyokushin style of karate from Japan. He was also featured in the hit movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and several motion pictures filmed in Japan.
