Little Walter

The most influential and formally innovative harmonica player in post-war blues, Little Walter radically changed the way most artists approached the blues harp. He wasn't the first to amplify his instrument, but the way he used a microphone and amp along with his harmonica dramatically changed the sound and impact of the harp, giving it force along with volume, and practically every electric blues act learned from his work -- what Jimi Hendrix did for electric guitar, Little Walter did for the blues harp. For his talent and importance, Little Walter never released an album as a bandleader, recorded as a sideman almost as often as a headliner, and died just a year after his collaboration with Bo Diddley and Muddy Waters, Super Blues, was released. But 1997's His Best is a superb single-disc overview, and The Complete Chess Masters: 1950-1967 is a thorough summation of his most important work.