Eddy Clearwater

Early life

Edward Harrington, born January 10, 1935, in Macon, Mississippi, was raised by his grandmother, who was part Cherokee. In 1948 his family relocated to Birmingham, Alabama.

A cousin of harmonica player Carey Bell, Harrington taught himself guitar at thirteen, playing left-handed and upside down. He sang with gospel acts like the Five Blind Boys of Alabama. After moving to Chicago in 1950, he stuck with gospel music at first, then shifted to blues after collaborating with Magic Sam and Otis Rush.

Career

Eddy Clearwater was a mainstay of the Chicago blues world from the 1950s onward, playing shows across the United States and at festivals in France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Turkey, and the Netherlands. He moved to Chicago in 1950 and took a job washing dishes while staying with an uncle, who introduced him to blues greats like Otis Rush and Magic Sam. Chuck Berry’s music inspired him, so he started covering Berry’s tunes and writing songs with a similar feel.

In 1953, performing as Guitar Eddy, he began playing regular gigs at bars on Chicago’s South and West Sides. His debut single, “Hill Billy Blues,” came out in 1958 on his uncle’s Atomic H label under the name Clear Waters—a moniker dreamed up by his booking agent, drummer Armand “Jump” Jackson, as a twist on Muddy Waters. That name eventually became Eddy Clearwater. He kept working steadily through the 1960s and 1970s, becoming one of the first blues musicians to win over college crowds on Chicago’s North Side.

He held a regular Saturday slot on the north stage at Kingston Mines while Linsey Alexander played the south stage. He toured Europe twice in the 1970s and appeared on BBC Television. He earned the nickname The Chief and often performed in a Native American headdress. His 1980 album “The Chief” on Rooster Blues put him on the map, and follow-ups “Help Yourself” (1992) and “Mean Case of the Blues” (1996) locked in his reputation.

He later released “Cool Blues Walk” (1998), “Chicago Daily Blues” (1989), and “Reservation Blues” (mid-2000). In 2004, he earned a Grammy nomination for “Rock ’n’ Roll City,” a collaboration with Los Straitjackets.

Personal life

Clearwater was first married to Earlean Harrington of Chicago and was stepfather to her son Daryl Thompson. He later married his manager, Renee Greenman, and they owned Reservation Blues, a Wicker Park blues bar and restaurant, in the early 2000s. He fathered two sons, Jason and Edgar.

He underwent successful triple heart bypass surgery on January 8, 1997. He lived in Skokie, Illinois, where the mayor declared January 6 as Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater Day. He died at his Skokie home on June 1, 2018, of heart failure at age 83.