Warm Classic Rock Interviews with Famous Music Legends of the '60s '70s '80s - A BREATH OF FRESH AIR - MUDDY WATERS' eldest son MUD MORGANFIELD on The Blues

MUDDY WATERS' eldest son MUD MORGANFIELD on The Blues

03/31/23 • 52 min

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Warm Classic Rock Interviews with Famous Music Legends of the '60s '70s '80s - A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

He bears an uncanny resemblance to his father both in his looks and in his musicianship.

MUD MORGANFIELD is the eldest son of blues great Muddy Waters and he shares the same perfect blues phrasing as his dad. Mud is a bit of a late bloomer. He didn't begin a professional career in his native Chicago until after his father died in 1983 and he was nearly 30.

Born Larry Williams in 1954, Mud grew up surrounded by music, and particularly the Blues, and he's played music all his life, starting out with the drums his Dad gave him as a child, then moving on to the bass guitar. Supporting himself as a bus driver, just like his father did in the early years, Mud cut his teeth in south Chicago Blues clubs where he proved a popular draw on both the club and festival circuit. Audiences couldn’t get enough of his mix of his dad’s songs and original works. He says of his performances of Muddy Waters’ songs that he started to sing to show the world what his dad left behind. Mud is proud to sing his father’s songs and says while he’s not pretending to be Muddy, when he gets up on the stage, he can feel his ‘pops’ with him.

Mud tells me he had to go out and get himself some blues before he could sing and play with authenticity. He recalls his childhood and the role that his dad played and explains that growing up he never realised how important and influential his father was.

Today Mud Morganfield is a mullti-award winning artist himself and an established star in the world of Blues music. His singing is firmly rooted in the best traditions of Chicago Blues, but he is also a writer of wonderful, new, soulful songs and he is backed by some of the best musicians playing today. He is acclaimed by both critics and artists such as Buddy Guy and Jools Holland for his own musical ability,

Mud Morganfield’s latest Delmark album PORTRAIT is out now and receiving critical acclaim all over the world. During our chat, Mud makes it very clear that his entire career is dedicated to Muddy Waters. He credits his love for music to generational influences and is so proud that he inherited it.

For more information about Mud Morganfield head to his website ⁠https://www.mudmorganfieldblues.com/⁠

If you'd like to get in touch with me to suggest a guest or to provide feedback or comments on any of my episodes, please jump onto my website ⁠www.abreathoffreshair.com.au⁠ and send me a message.

You may also like to join me on facebook ⁠https://www.facebook.com/SandyKayePresents⁠

He bears an uncanny resemblance to his father both in his looks and in his musicianship.

For more information about Mud Morganfield head to his website ⁠https://www.mudmorganfieldblues.com/⁠

You may also like to join me on facebook ⁠https://www.facebook.com/SandyKayePresents⁠

Previous Episode

SERGIO MENDES - The World's Greatest Exponent of Brazilian Music

SERGIO MENDES is an iconic pianist, producer, songwriter, band leader, Grammy winner and Oscar nominee.

He is widely considered the best known Brazilian musician of all time, having reinvented himself continually over the course of a 60 year career.

Since a very early age, growing up in a small town in Brazil, Sergio began exploring different styles of music and his unique sound, including his use of Portuguese lyrics, was embraced all over the world. His career took off with worldwide hits by his group Brasil '66. He has more than 60 releases that feature bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk. Sergio was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song in 2012 as co-writer of the song "Real in Rio" from the animated film Rio. He is a unique example of a Brazilian musician primarily known in the United States, where his albums were recorded and where most of his touring has taken place. His mammoth hit 'Mas Que Nada' was the first ever international hit of a song in Portuguese. It was voted the fifth greatest Brazilian song ever and inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2013.

Sergio says the key to successful songs is the simple melody. Though he never expected it, Sergio Mendes' timing and unique sound made him an international success.

One of the biggest crossover Brazilian pop artists of his generation, Sergio Mendes helped define the sound of Latin pop and dance music in the 20th century. For most of the second half of the '60s, Sergio was the top-selling Brazilian artist in the United States, charting huge hit singles that regularly made the Top Five. His records with his group Brasil 66 regularly straddled the domestic pop and international markets in America, getting played heavily on AM radio stations, both rock and easy listening, and he gave his label, A&M, something to offer light jazz listeners beyond the work of the company's co-founder, Herb Alpert.

Decades later he still tours the world and performs at numerous music festivals. Always mindful to keep re-inventing himself in order to remain relevant, Sergio has successfully collaborated with artists like John Legend, will.i.am from The Black Eyed Peas and many well known Brazilian musicians.

In 2019, he issued his latest studio album, 'In the Key of Joy' in conjunction with a documentary film about his life.

At 82 years of age, Sergio is doing some of the best work of his life.

Join me for our interview as Sergio Mendes recounts his incredible musical career this week on A Breath of Fresh Air.

To learn more about Sergio Mendes head for my website https://abreathoffreshair.com.au or Sergio's website https://sergiomendesmusic.com/

And don't forget, if you'd like to request someone you'd like to hear being interviewed - as long as they're from the 60s 70s or 80s - simply send me an email to [email protected] and I'll do my very best to get your favourite artist onto the show.

I really hope you enjoy this episode with the extraordinary Sergio Mendes.

Next Episode

TERRI NUNN on BERLIN's Legacy, Motherhood, Music and Regrets

Singer songwriter and actress TERRI DUNN is best known for being one of the creators and the front person for the 80s band BERLIN. One of the female pioneers in an industry so heavily dominated by men, Terri tells us how difficult it is to be a woman in the music industry due in part to the amount of traveling required. She says that the pandemic allowed her to spend more time with her daughter, who had become depressed and she is very grateful for the opportunity to rekindle their relationship.

Terri Dunn is a woman who has survived the music industry for 45 years and this week she shares the genesis of the band and the music itself.

Terri tells us the band grew out of a group called The Toys, formed in 1978 in Orange County, California, by John Crawford (bass guitar), Dan Van Patten (drums), Chris Ruiz-Velasco (guitar), and Ty Cobb (vocals). After a few shows, the band changed its name to Berlin, discharging Cobb as lead singer in the process. After a brief stint with Toni Childs as lead singer, Terri Nunn joined the band after answering an ad through the Musicians Contact Service in Hollywood in 1979. Despite its name, Berlin did not have any known major connections with the capital of Germany; the name was chosen to make them seem European and exotic. They were inspired by the keyboard work of Kraftwerk, Devo, Sparks and The Screamers.

The band’s first single, 'A Matter of Time,' was released in 1979 and the group appeared on television for the first time. Nunn left the group later that year to pursue an acting career forcing the band to replace her.. The band released the 1980 album ‘Information', without her but the band struggled to sign with a mainstream label so by later that year, Berlin had effectively broken up.

Terri Nunn rejoined the band as singer in 1980 and they released a double A-sided single, 'Tell Me Why' / 'The Metro'. The single was intended as a one-off, since Crawford was by then focusing on his new band and regarded Berlin as a side project. However, the single was a success, helping to finance the EP album, Pleasure Victim.

In 1984, the band released their next album, Love Life, and the single 'No More Words', whose subsequent video saw Terri Nunn and bandmates re-enact a Bonnie and Clyde-style car chase and shoot-out, became their first top-20 hit. 'Take My Breath Away' (from the movie Top Gun) became their best-selling single in 1986 and a huge international hit, but also their last big hit.

The band's sound was innovative at the time, incorporating synthesisers in a way that hadn't been heard before in America. This innovation caught the attention of MTV in 1982, providing Berlin with a larger platform to showcase their music and garnering more significant attention. The success of the band was undoubtedly influenced by Terri's captivating presence in their videos, drawing in fans and solidifying Berlin's prominence in the music scene.

During our conversation Terri delves into her experiences joining Berlin and how opportunity and passion intertwined. Grateful for the chance to be part of such a revolutionary musical project, Terri discusses auditioning for John Crawford under false pretences and the importance of following one's dreams to overcome challenges and explore new opportunities.

Now, after more than 40 years apart, the original trio has reunited and are making music again.

I wanted music so much, it scared me. - Terri Nunn

For more information about Berlin and Terri Nunn head for the band's website https://www.berlinpage.com/

To contact me with feedback, comments or suggestions for other interviewees, go to my website https://abreathoffreshair.com.au

I hope you enjoy this week's episode - a conversation with Terri Nunn from 80s band Berlin.