Longing for that down home music? Looking for a shot of brilliance? Tryin’ to forget that you asked for water and your woman/man gave you gasoline? Then you must be celebrating the 100th birthday (or it might be the 102nd birthday) of McKinley Morganfield, a man reborn to serve humanity as Muddy Waters. An artist for whom the word genius falls laughably short, Waters recorded a bushel of blues classics, helped mainstream amplified guitar, and brought the blues mania to Britain that soon after birthed the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Eric Clapton, and half the other people in that iTunes folder your dad can’t figure out how to open.

An essential Muddy Waters sideman as well as a hitmaker in his own right, Jimmy Rogers pioneered the blues guitar style that launched a thousand songs. Blues All Day Long tells the untold story of a revered legend who was down by law with Muddy and whose groundbreaking guitar work bridged generations—and sends its electrifying echoes into our present day.

“Great work. Long, long overdue.” —Taj Mahal

“A great read. I loved it. What a nice tribute to the great Jimmy Rogers.” —Charlie Musselwhite