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Lonnie Brooks

Voodoo Blues

Born Lee Baker, Jr. in Dubuisson, Louisiana on December 18, 1933, Lonnie Brooks began his career playing everything from rock 'n' roll to country & western and R&B. Originally desiring to play banjo, Lonnie Brooks instead mastered the guitar. His first professional job came when zydeco legend Clifton Chenier (the father of Cajun artist C.J. Chenier) saw him playing guitar on his front porch and drafted him into the famous Red Hot Louisiana Band. In the mid-1950s, Lonnie Brooks, now known as Guitar Junior, cut a series of Gulf Coast proto-rock 'n' roll hits for the Goldband label, now considered swamp rock classics. Lonnie Brookas hitched a ride with Sam Cooke's touring caravan and got off in Chicago in 1960. Because Chicago already had a Guitar Junior, he changed his name to Lonnie Brooks, and jumped headlong into Chicago blues. Lonnie Brooks joined Jimmy Reed's touring band, and also recorded singles for Mercury, Chess and other labels in the 1960s, before Capitol released Lonnie Brooks' first album, Broke And Hungry (under the name Guitar Junior) in 1969. During the 1960s and 1970s, Lonnie Brooks performed regularly in some of Chicago's toughest clubs, playing blues, rock, and R&B. Although Lonnie Brooks was forced to perform other artist's hits, he was never without a gig. His big break came in 1978, when Lonnie Brooks introduced four songs on Alligator Records' Living Chicago Blues anthology. By now Lonnie Brooks had forged his own sound - a vibrant mix of rock 'n' roll, R&B, funky Cajun boogie, country twang, and hard Chicago blues, a style his band dubbed voodoo blues. The success of these recordings led him to a full recording contract with the label and a series of stellar albums, each loaded with Lonnie Brooks' signature guitar playing and rich, expressive vocals. And, as anyone who has seen Lonnie Brooks in concert can attest, his live shows are legendary for kick-starting parties and spreading good times like wildfire. Lonnie Brooks is the father of Chicago blues artists Ronnie Baker Brooks and Wayne Baker Brooks.

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Home → Overview → Blues Artists → Lonnie Brooks