Studebaker John & The Hawks - Born To Win / Too Tough

Album: Born To Win
Size: 141,8 MB
Time: 60:53
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1991
Styles: Chicago Blues
Art: Full

01. Roll, Roll, Roll (4:25)
02. Pleasure And Pain (4:03)
03. Clouds Of Darkness (5:51)
04. Some Were Born To Win (3:58)
05. Little Girl (4:27)
06. Without You (4:34)
07. Just Coastin' (3:34)
08. She's So Kind (3:39)
09. Open The Door (6:57)
10. Dirty Lie (5:06)
11. Hey Baby (3:21)
12. Let's Boogie Tonight (5:23)
13. King Of Cheap (5:30)

Taking his stage name from an automobile he once owned, Studebaker John Grimaldi was a product of the vibrant blues scene of Chicago's West Side. Born November 5, 1952, his father was himself an amateur musician, and as a youngster, Grimaldi began playing the many instruments lying about the house. Becoming a fixture at the open-air flea markets in the Maxwell Street area -- a venue for countless blues buskers -- he began focusing on harmonica after catching performances from the likes of Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson; after taking in a Hound Dog Taylor club date, Grimaldi also turned to guitar. He formed the blues-rock band the Hawks during the early '70s as a showcase for his reedy vocals, primal harp sound, and blistering slide guitar skills, and in the years to follow also developed into a fine songwriter. While keeping his day job as a construction worker, Grimaldi began recording during the mid-'80s, issuing a live Netherlands set later re-released domestically as Rockin' the Blues '85. His next major release was 1994's Too Tough, followed in 1995 by Outside Lookin' In. He maintained a prolific recording schedule in the years to come, issuing Tremoluxe in 1996 and Time Will Tell in 1997. ~Bio by Jason Ankeny

Thanks to Kempen.
Born To Win

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Album: Too Tough
Size: 109,2 MB
Time: 46:44
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1994
Styles: Chicago Blues
Art: Full

01. Your Hoodoo Man (3:20)
02. This City (4:42)
03. Somewhere In Your Heart (3:16)
04. Real Love (4:07)
05. The Boogie Walk (4:18)
06. Satisfy My Soul (3:57)
07. Too Tough (3:46)
08. Somebody Forgot To Tell My Heart (4:23)
09. Out Of Control (2:56)
10. Flame Of Desire (3:33)
11. For Lovin' You (4:23)
12. Everyday (3:59)

In 1994, Blind Pig released John's first nationally distributed album, entitled Too Tough. Fully displaying John's beguiling musical talents, it was an immediate favorite with blues radio programmers and it claimed a strong position on the blues charts for many months after its release. The radio trade Hard Report called it "a sound that could only come out of the collective blues history of Chicago. A CD full of originals is refreshing and when it's this hot, Mrs. O'Leary's cow would be proud." A couple of the tracks appear on the soundtrack of the award-winning Canadian art film called "Exotica", directed by Atom Egoyan.

Thanks to Kempen.
Too Tough

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