Interview and story by Eric Gleason

For a man who’s met or played with nearly every modern blues legend, Joe Louis Walker is remarkably humble. Growing up in San Francisco in a time when the men we now know as legends were reaching the height of their prowess and popularity, Walker found himself surrounded by people who would make most of us star-stricken and unable to speak complete sentences, much less play fluid, soulful guitar licks that could give many a blues legend a run for his money.

The challenge in interviewing someone with such a storied career and impressive resume (23 albums, four Blues Music Awards) is trying to find time to talk about it all within the confines of a 20-minute conversation. We’re talking about a man who shared a house with Michael Bloomfield; who’s played with Muddy Waters, Fred McDowell, Ike Turner, Albert King, Freddy King, Robert Jr. Lockwood, Lightnin’ Hopkins and many others.

Yet, as you talk to Walker about his career and his friends, he’s not dropping names. The way he talks about playing with some of these people is like the way I tell people about my last road trip with my friends: this is what we did; this is who was there; and this is what it meant to me. No pretention, no sense that he’s trying to impress anyone – it just is what it is.

In the brief time we had to talk, there just wasn’t enough time to find out about all of his experiences with blues royalty and give him enough time to talk about his own body of work, including his latest album, “Hellfire,” his new relationship with Alligator Records, where his music comes from and, most importantly, where it’s going:

Q: You’ve got a big new deal with Alligator Records now.

A: Yeah, I’m on Alligator now, and it seems to be working out for both of us.

Q: This is kind of a big deal. So how did it come about that you signed with Alligator?

A: Well, you know, I feel the same [laughs]. It’s a pleasure. They’re working very hard, and we’re working very hard, and it opened some doors that we haven’t had open in a while. It’s a good fit. It’s a good fit, and so far so good.

Q: So when did this deal come about? Was that last fall?

A: I signed with Alligator at the beginning of the year, maybe the end of last year. Me, my wife and my manager all paid for this record, and we shopped it around, and Alligator seemed to be the most likely home for us, and it’s sort of proven out to be true. I’m very happy, and I hope that they are, too.

Q: I didn’t realize that you’d funded this yourself and then shopped it around.

A: Oh yeah.

Q: I read that you worked with Tom Hambridge on this album.

A: Yes, yes, and I met Tom through Murali Coryell, Larry Coryell’s son. I played on Murali’s record [also produced by Tom Hambridge], and we got together. One thing lead to another, and we started working together ourselves.

(more…)