Grammy-winning harmonicist Sugar Blue delivered his most widely recognized contributions when he appeared twice on the Rolling Stones’ 1977 album Some Girls, above all on the hit single “Miss You,” a part Mick Jagger first encountered while Blue was busking on a Paris sidewalk. Beyond those landmark sessions he established himself as a premier session player and star attraction, lending his sound to an array of artists that includes Paul Horn, Hiram Bullock, Stan Getz, Prince, Bob Dylan, Willie Dixon, Son Seals, Johnny Shines, and Shemekia Copeland. Widely acknowledged as one of the leading electric harpists of his generation, Blue draws on advanced improvisational skills, upper-register passages, circular breathing, and electronic processing that have prompted music writers to dub him “the Jimi Hendrix of the harmonica” and a “harp pyrotechnician.” Although he issues relatively few leader dates, the 1979 debut Crossroads and the 1994 release In Your Eyes remain touchstones of contemporary electric blues. His 2012 concert recording Raw Sugar, issued by Beeble Music, ranks among the earliest harmonica blues essentials to emerge in the twenty-first century. Blue Voyage, released in 2016, entered the charts.
Born James Whiting in New York City in 1950, Blue is the son of a singer and dancer who appeared regularly at the Apollo Theater. He received his first harmonica at age ten and, while still in his mid-teens, shared stages with Muddy Waters. His earliest studio work occurred in the early 1970s on dates led by Johnny Shines and Louisiana Red. After moving to Paris in 1976, he met the Rolling Stones and subsequently recorded with them on Some Girls, Emotional Rescue, and Tattoo You, adding his signature lines to tracks that include “Miss You.” He also appeared on jazz sessions with Stan Getz and Paul Horn before issuing the solo album Crossroads in 1979 and From Paris to Chicago in 1982. A 1985 Grammy Award recognized his playing on the Atlantic anthology Blues Explosion. Returning to the United States in the mid-1980s, Blue made Chicago his home and, after signing with Alligator, recorded Blue Blazes in 1994 and followed it a year later with In Your Eyes. He maintained an active performing and touring schedule, yet twelve years elapsed before the next studio album, Code Blue, surfaced in 2007. Threshold arrived in 2010, succeeded two years later by the live set Raw Sugar. The veteran bluesman enjoyed a banner 2016 that brought the new studio album Voyage, an extensive world tour, and a featured appearance in the documentary Sidemen: A Long Road to Glory. Chronic restlessness continues to drive Blue toward fresh sonic environments; for the 2019 album Colors he composed and recorded across four continents—in Chicago, Beijing, Italy, and South Africa.
