Muddy Waters - At Newport (2023)

The complete album + 3 bonus tracks.

At Newport is one of Muddy Waters' most celebrated albums. The blues portion of the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival took place on Sunday afternoon, July 3, at the end of the long weekend of jazz performances. The program also included, among others, sets by John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Rushing, Sammy Price, and Otis Spann. Waters' portion of the show includes unforgettable versions of Hoochie Coochie Man, I've Got My Mojo Working, and Tiger in Your Tank.

The cover photograph of Muddy Waters holding John Lee Hooker's guitar gave the impression that he was at a folk festival rather than the prestigious Newport Jazz Festival. However, the record revealed the King of Chicago blues at his very best, shouting his music above the discordant wail of a band that included Otis Spann, James Cotton, Pat Hare, and Francis Clay. Film of the event shows a sharply dressed Waters shimmying and jiving around the stage with the energy of a man half his age. Some of that atmosphere is apparent on the record, in a program that includes "Hoochie Coochie Man," Big Bill Broonzy's "I Feel So Good," then-recent singles "I Got My Brand on You" and "Soon Forgotten," and a massive "Got My Mojo Working." The set ends in poignant mood with the announcement of the end of the festival and Otis Spann's improvised "Goodbye Newport Blues."

"The King of Chicago blues at his very best."