List of blues musicians

Blues musicians are musical artists who are primarily recognized as writing, performing, and recording blues music.^[1] They come from different eras and include styles such as ragtime-vaudeville, Delta and country blues, and urban styles from Chicago and the West Coast.^[2] In the last several decades, blues music has developed a less regional character and has been influenced by rhythm and blues, rock, and other popular music.^[3]

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Pre-1940 blues

Son House

Mississippi John Hurt, 1964

Blind Lemon Jefferson

Lonnie Johnson, 1941

Lead Belly

Robert Jr. Lockwood, 1982

Sara Martin and Sylvester Weaver

Mississippi Fred McDowell, 1972

Jay McShann in Edinburgh, c.1995

Memphis Minnie, 1930

Buddy Moss in Georgia prison camp, 1941

Ma Rainey

Jimmy Rushing, 1946

Bessie Smith, 1936

Mamie Smith

Henry Townsend, 1983

Ethel Waters, 1943

Curley Weaver

Big Joe Williams, 1971

Jimmy Witherspoon, 1974

Contents

• A
• B
• C
• D
• E
• F
• G
• H
• J
• K
• L
• M
• O
• P
• R
• S
• T
• V
• W

List of Pre-1940 blues musicians, showing name, birth and death year, origin, primary style, and references

Name	Birth year	Death year	Origin	Primary style	Ref(s)
Mozelle Alderson	1904	1994	Ohio	Country blues	[4]
Alger "Texas" Alexander	1900	1954	Texas	Country blues	[5]
Ora Alexander	c.1909	Unknown	Alabama	Classic female blues	[6]
Albert Ammons	1907	1949	Illinois	Boogie woogie	[7]
Pink Anderson	1900	1974	South Carolina	Piedmont blues	[8]
Kokomo Arnold	1901*	1968	Georgia	Acoustic blues	[9]
Barbecue Bob	1902	1931	Georgia	Acoustic blues	[10]
Ed Bell	1905	1960s	Alabama	Piedmont blues	[11]
Gladys Bentley	1907	1960	Pennsylvania	Vaudeville blues	[12]
Black Ace	1905	1972	Texas	Country blues	[13]
Scrapper Blackwell	1903	1962	North Carolina	Urban blues	[14]
Blind Blake	1896	1934	Florida	Piedmont blues	[15]
Lucille Bogan	1897	1948	Mississippi	Classic female blues	[16]
Ted Bogan	1909	1990	South Carolina	Country blues	[17]
Son Bonds	1909	1947	Tennessee	Country blues	[16]
Big Bill Broonzy	1893*	1958	Mississippi	Urban blues	[18]
Kitty Brown	1899	Unknown	New York	Classic female blues	[19]
Willie Brown	1900	1952	Mississippi	Delta blues	[20]
Bumble Bee Slim	1905	1968	Georgia	Urban blues	[21]
Gus Cannon	1883*	1979	Mississippi	Jug band	[22]
Leroy Carr	1905	1935	Tennessee	Urban blues	[23]
Doctor Clayton	1898	1947	Georgia	Country blues	[24]
Sam Collins	1887	1949	Louisiana	Country blues	[25]
Elizabeth Cotten	1893	1987	North Carolina	Country blues	[26]
Floyd Council	1911	1976	North Carolina	Piedmont blues	[27]
Ida Cox	1896*	1967	Georgia	Vaudeville blues	[28]
Blind Blues Darby	1906	1975	Kentucky	St. Louis blues	[29]
Reverend Gary Davis	1896	1972	South Carolina	Piedmont blues	[30]
Walter Davis	1911*	1963	Mississippi	St. Louis blues	[31]
Tom Delaney	1889	1963	South Carolina	Urban blues	[32]
Georgia Tom Dorsey	1899	1993	Georgia	Urban blues	[33]
Little Buddy Doyle	1911*	1960*	Tennessee	Memphis blues	[34]
Bernice Edwards	1907	1969	Texas	Classic female blues	[35]
Sleepy John Estes	1899*	1977	Tennessee	Country blues	[36]
Ethel Finnie	1898	1981	Louisiana	Classic female blues	[37]
Blind Boy Fuller	1907*	1941	North Carolina	Piedmont blues	[38]
Jesse Fuller	1896	1976	Georgia	Piedmont blues	[38]
Jazz Gillum	1904*	1966	Mississippi	Urban blues	[39]
Boyd Gilmore	1905	1976	Mississippi	Delta blues	[40]
Coot Grant	1893	1970	Alabama	Classic female blues	[41]
Lil Green	1919*	1954	Mississippi	Urban blues	[42]
Shirley Griffith	1907	1974	Mississippi	Country blues	[43]
Richard "Hacksaw" Harney	1902	1973	Mississippi	Delta blues	[44]
Lucille Hegamin	1897*	1970	Georgia	Classic female blues	[45]
Edmonia Henderson	1898	1947	Tennessee	Classic female blues	[46]
Katherine Henderson	1909	Unknown	Missouri	Classic female blues	[47]
Edna Hicks	1895	1925	Louisiana	Classic female blues	[48]
Son House	1902	1988	Mississippi	Delta blues	[49]
Peg Leg Howell	1888	1966	Georgia	Country blues	[50]
Alberta Hunter	1895	1984	Tennessee	Classic female blues	[51]
Mississippi John Hurt	1894*	1966	Mississippi	Country blues	[52]
Jim Jackson	1890*	1937*	Mississippi	Country blues	[53]
Papa Charlie Jackson	1890*	1950*	Louisiana	Country blues	[54]
Skip James	1902	1969	Mississippi	Delta blues	[55]
Blind Lemon Jefferson	1893	1929	Texas	Country blues	[56]
Blind Willie Johnson	1897	1945	Texas	Gospel blues	[57]
Edith North Johnson	1903	1988	Missouri	Classic female blues	[58]
Lonnie Johnson	1899	1970	Louisiana	Urban blues	[59]
Mary Johnson	1898	1983	Mississippi	Classic female blues	[60]
Robert Johnson	1911	1938	Mississippi	Delta blues	[61]
Tommy Johnson	1896	1956	Mississippi	Delta blues	[62]
Little Hat Jones	1899	1981	Texas	Country blues	[63]
Lottie Kimbrough	1893	Unknown	Arkansas	Country blues	[64]
Lead Belly	1889	1949	Louisiana	Country blues	[65]
Furry Lewis	1893*	1981	Mississippi	Country blues	[66]
Meade Lux Lewis	1905	1964	Illinois	Boogie woogie	[67]
Charley Lincoln	1900	1963	Georgia	Country blues	[68]
Mance Lipscomb	1895	1976	Texas	Country blues	[69]
Virginia Liston	1890	1932	Louisiana	Classic female blues	[70]
Robert Lockwood, Jr.	1915	2006	Arkansas	Delta blues	[71][72]
Cripple Clarence Lofton	1887*	1957	Tennessee	Boogie woogie	[71]
Eddie Mapp	1910	1931	Georgia	Country blues	[73]
Sara Martin	1884	1955	Kentucky	Vaudeville blues	[74]
Lil McClintock	1883	Unknown	U.S.	Country blues	[75]
Kansas Joe McCoy	1905	1950	Mississippi	Country blues	[76]
Papa Charlie McCoy	1909	1959	Mississippi	Delta blues	[77]
Mississippi Fred McDowell	1904	1972	Tennessee	Delta blues	[78]
Charlie "Specks" McFadden	1895	1966	Illinois	Country blues	[79]
Fred McMullen	1905	Unknown	Florida	Piedmont blues	[80]
Jay McShann	1916	2006	Oklahoma	Blues	[81]
Blind Willie McTell	1901*	1959	Georgia	Country blues	[82]
Memphis Minnie	1897	1973	Louisiana	Memphis blues	[83]
Mississippi Sheiks			Mississippi	Country blues	[83]
Little Brother Montgomery	1906	1985	Louisiana	Barrelhouse blues	[84]
Whistlin' Alex Moore	1899	1989	Texas	Boogie woogie	[84]
Buddy Moss	1914	1984	Georgia	Piedmont blues	[85]
Hambone Willie Newbern	1901	1965	Tennessee	Country blues	[86]
St. Louis Jimmy Oden	1903	1977	Tennessee	Urban blues	[87]
Charley Patton	1891	1934	Mississippi	Delta blues	[88]
Piano Red	1911	1985	Georgia	Boogie woogie	[89]
Buster Pickens	1916	1964	Texas	Country blues	[90]
Joe Pullum	1905	1964	Alabama	Urban blues	[91]
Ma Rainey	1886*	1939	Georgia	Classic female blues	[92]
Red Nelson	1907	1970	Mississippi	Urban blues	[93]
Walter Roland	c.1902 or 1903	1972	Alabama	Boogie woogie	[94]
Jimmy Rushing	1903	1972	Oklahoma	Urban blues	[95]
Dan Sane	1896	1956	Mississippi	Memphis blues	[96]
Alec Seward	1901	1972	Virginia	Piedmont blues	[97]
Robert Shaw	1908	1985	Texas	Boogie woogie	[98]
J.D. Short	1902	1962	Mississippi	Delta blues	[99]
Henry "Son" Sims	1890	1958	Mississippi	Delta blues	[100]
Bessie Smith	1894	1937	Tennessee	Classic female blues	[101]
Clara Smith	1894*	1935	South Carolina	Classic female blues	[102]
J. T. "Funny Papa" Smith	1885*	1940*	U.S.	Country blues	[103]
Mamie Smith	1883	1946	Ohio	Vaudeville blues	[45]
Pinetop Sparks	1910	1935	Mississippi	Boogie woogie	[104]
Speckled Red	1892	1973	Louisiana	Boogie woogie	[105]
Victoria Spivey	1906	1976	Texas	Vaudeville blues	[106]
Frank Stokes	1888*	1955	Tennessee	Memphis blues	[107]
Roosevelt Sykes	1913	1984	Arkansas	Urban blues	[108]
Tampa Red	1904	1981	Georgia	Urban blues	[109]
Johnny Temple	1906	1968	Mississippi	Delta blues	[110]
Henry Thomas	1874	1930*	Texas	Country blues	[111]
Ramblin' Thomas	Unknown	Unknown	Louisiana	Country blues	[112]
Henry Townsend	1909	2006	Mississippi	St. Louis blues	[113]
Willie Trice	1910	1977	North Carolina	Piedmont blues	[8]
Bessie Tucker	c.1906	1933	Texas	Country blues	[114][115]
Walter Vinson	1901	1975	Mississippi	Country blues	[116]
Sippie Wallace	1898	1986	Arkansas	Classic female blues	[117]
Washboard Sam	1910	1966	Arkansas	Country blues	[118]
Ethel Waters	1896	1977	Pennsylvania	Urban blues	[119]
Curley Weaver	1906	1962	Georgia	Country blues	[120]
Sylvester Weaver	1897*	1960	Kentucky	Country blues	[121]
Casey Bill Weldon	1909	Unknown	Arkansas	Country blues	[122]
Peetie Wheatstraw	1902	1941	Tennessee	St. Louis blues	[123]
Bukka White	1909	1977	Mississippi	Delta blues	[124]
Josh White	1908	1969	South Carolina	Country blues	[125]
Big Joe Williams	1903	1982	Mississippi	Delta blues	[126]
Sonny Boy Williamson I	1914	1948	Tennessee	Urban blues	[127]
Ralph Willis	1910*	1957	Alabama	Piedmont blues	[128]
Oscar "Buddy" Woods	1903	1955	Louisiana	Urban blues	[129]
An asterisk (*) denotes that other sources give different dates, origin, or style.

1940–1979 blues

Luther Allison

Billy Boy Arnold

Bobby "Blue" Bland

Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, 1999

Paul Butterfield at Woodstock Reunion, 1979

Eric Clapton, 2006

Eddie Clearwater in Montreux, 1978

Albert Collins at Long Beach Blues Festival, 1990

Willie Dixon at Monterey Jazz Festival, 1981

Lowell Fulson in Paris, 1980

Buddy Guy, 2008

John Lee Hooker in Toronto, 1978

Louis Jordan in New York City, 1946

Albert King in Paris, 1978

B.B. King in Rome, 1984

Freddie King in Paris, 1975

Muddy Waters with James Cotton, 1971

Charlie Musselwhite, 2003

Pinetop Perkins in Paris, 1976

Jimmy Rogers, 1991

Otis Rush, 1997

Son Seals, 1977

Eddie Shaw, 2015

George "Harmonica" Smith, 1980

Hubert Sumlin in Montreux, 1978

Koko Taylor, 2006

Luther Tucker, 1964

Big Joe Turner, 1955

T-Bone Walker at American Folk Blues Festival, Hamburg, 1972

Junior Wells, 1983

Contents
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · V · W · Y

List of 1940–1979 blues musicians, showing name, birth and death years, origin, primary style, and references

Name	Birth year	Death year	Origin	Primary style	Ref(s)
The Aces			Illinois	Chicago blues	[130]
Woodrow Adams	1917	1988	Mississippi	Electric blues	[131]
Luther Allison	1939	1997	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[132]
Mose Allison	1927	2016	Mississippi	Urban blues	[133]
Kip Anderson	1938	2007	South Carolina	Soul blues	[134]
Etta Baker	1913	2006	North Carolina	Country blues	[135]
John Henry Barbee	1905	1964	Tennessee	Acoustic blues	[10]
Lou Ann Barton	1954		Texas	Electric blues	[136]
Johnnie Bassett	1935	2012	Florida	Electric blues	[137]
Lefty Bates	1920	2007	Alabama	Chicago blues	[138]
Carey Bell	1936	2007	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[139]
Buster Benton	1932	1996	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[140]
Roy Book Binder	1943		New York	Acoustic blues	[141]
Elvin Bishop	1942		California	Electric blues	[142]
Bobby Bland	1930	2013	Tennessee	Soul blues	[143]
Rory Block	1949		New Jersey	Country blues	[144]
Mike Bloomfield	1943	1981	Illinois	Electric blues	[145]
Boogie Woogie Red	1925	1985*	Louisiana	Boogie woogie	[146]
Eddie Boyd	1914	1994	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[147]
Lonnie Brooks	1933	2017	Louisiana	Electric blues	[148]
Charles Brown	1922	1999	Texas	West Coast blues	[149]
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown	1924*	2005	Louisiana	Electric blues	[150]
Roy Brown	1925*	1981	Louisiana	Jump blues	[151]
Walter Brown	1917	1956	Texas	Memphis blues	[152]
Roy Buchanan	1939	1988	Alabama	Electric blues	[153]
George "Mojo" Buford	1929	2011	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[154]
Eddie "Guitar" Burns	1928	2012	Mississippi	Detroit blues	[155]
R. L. Burnside	1926	2005	Mississippi	Hill country blues	[156]
Aron Burton	1938	2016	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[157]
Paul Butterfield	1942	1987	Illinois	Electric blues	[22]
Carolina Slim	1923	1953	North Carolina	Piedmont blues	[158]
Eric Clapton	1945		England	Electric blues	[159]
Willie Cobbs	1932	2021	Arkansas	Electric blues	[160]
Albert Collins	1932	1993	Texas	Electric blues	[161]
Johnny Copeland	1937	1997	Louisiana	Texas blues	[162]
James Cotton	1935	2017	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[163]
Pee Wee Crayton	1914	1985	Texas	West Coast blues	[164]
Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup	1905	1974	Mississippi	Urban blues	[165]
James Crutchfield	1912	2001	Louisiana	Barrelhouse blues	[166]
Cyril Davies	1932	1964	England	Electric blues	[167]
Blind John Davis	1913	1985	Mississippi	Urban blues	[168]
James "Thunderbird" Davis	1938	1991*	Alabama	Electric blues	[169]
Larry Davis	1936	1994	Arkansas*	Texas blues	[170]
Maxwell Street Jimmy Davis	1925	1995	Mississippi	Electric blues	[171]
Jimmy Dawkins	1936	2013	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[172]
Floyd Dixon	1929	2006	Texas	West Coast blues	[33]
Willie Dixon	1915	1992	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[173]
Champion Jack Dupree	1910*	1992	Louisiana	Louisiana blues	[174]
Big Joe Duskin	1921	2007	Alabama	Barrelhouse blues	[175]
Johnny Dyer	1938	2014	Mississippi	Electric blues	[176]
Snooks Eaglin	1936	2009	Louisiana	Electric blues	[175]
Archie Edwards	1918	1998	Virginia	Country blues	[35]
David "Honeyboy" Edwards	1915	2011	Mississippi	Electric blues	[177]
Robert "Big Mojo" Elem	1931*	1997	Mississippi	Delta blues	[178]
Margie Evans	1939	2021	Louisiana	Electric blues	[179]
The Fabulous Thunderbirds			Texas	Texas blues	[180]
Turner Foddrell	1928	1995	Virginia	Acoustic blues	[181]
Forest City Joe	1926	1960	Arkansas	Electric blues	[182]
"Baby Face" Leroy Foster	1923	1958	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[183]
Guitar Pete Franklin	1928	1975	Indiana	Electric blues	[184]
Calvin Frazier	1915	1972	Arkansas	Detroit blues	[185]
Denny Freeman	1944	2021	Florida	Texas blues	[186]
Johnny Fuller	1929	1985	Mississippi	West Coast blues	[187]
Lowell Fulson	1921	1999	Oklahoma	West Coast blues	[188]
Bob Gaddy	1924	1997	West Virginia	Urban blues	[189]
Rory Gallagher	1948	1995	Ireland	Electric blues	[190]
Clarence Garlow	1911	1986	Louisiana	Louisiana blues	[191]
Lee Gates	1937	2020	Mississippi	Electric blues	[192]
Lacy Gibson	1936	2011	North Carolina	Chicago blues	[193]
Good Rockin' Charles	1933	1989	Alabama	Chicago blues	[194]
Henry Gray	1925	2020	Louisiana	Chicago blues	[195]
L.C. Green	1921	1985	Mississippi	Electric blues	[196]
Peter Green	1946	2020	England	Electric blues	[197]
Guitar Nubbit	1923	1995	Florida	Electric blues	[198]
Guitar Slim	1926	1959	Louisiana	Louisiana blues	[199]
Buddy Guy	1936		Louisiana	Chicago blues	[200]
Phil Guy	1940	2008	Louisiana	Electric blues	[201]
John P. Hammond	1942		New York	Electric blues	[199]
James Harman	1946	2021	Alabama	Electric blues	[202]
Harmonica Slim	1934	1984	Texas	Texas blues	[203]
Wynonie Harris	1915	1969	Nebraska	Jump blues	[204]
Shakey Jake Harris	1921	1990	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[205]
Little Hatch	1921	2003	Mississippi	Electric blues	[196]
Johnny Heartsman	1936	1996	Texas	Electric blues	[206]
Duke Henderson	1925	1973	Missouri	West Coast blues	[207]
Z. Z. Hill	1935	1984	Texas	Soul blues	[208]
Silas Hogan	1911	1994	Louisiana	Louisiana blues	[209]
Smokey Hogg	1914	1960	Texas	Electric blues	[210]
John Dee Holeman	1929	2021	North Carolina	Piedmont blues	[211]
Earl Hooker	1930	1970	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[212]
John Lee Hooker	1917*	2001	Mississippi	Detroit blues	[213]
Lightnin' Hopkins	1912	1982	Texas	Country blues	[214]
Big Walter Horton	1917*	1981	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[214]
Howlin' Wolf	1910	1976	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[215]
Long John Hunter	1931	2016	Louisiana	Texas blues	[216]
J. B. Hutto	1926	1983	South Carolina	Chicago blues	[53]
John Jackson	1924	2002	Virginia	Piedmont blues	[217]
Elmore James	1918	1963	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[218]
Etta James	1938	2012	California	Soul blues	[219]
Bobo Jenkins	1916	1984	Alabama	Detroit blues	[146]
Jimmy Johnson	1928	2022	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[220]
Luther Johnson (Guitar Junior)	1939	2022	Mississippi	Electric blues	[221]
Luther "Georgia Boy" Johnson	1934	1976	Georgia	Chicago blues	[222]
Floyd Jones	1917	1990*	Arkansas	Electric blues	[223]
Little Sonny Jones	1931	1989	Louisiana	New Orleans blues	[224]
Moody Jones	1908	1988	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[225]
Tail Dragger Jones	1940	2023	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[226]
Louis Jordan	1908	1975	Arkansas	Jump blues	[227]
Kansas City Red	1926	1991	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[228]
Jo Ann Kelly	1944	1990	England	Electric blues	[229]
Junior Kimbrough	1930	1998	Mississippi	Hill country blues	[230]
Albert King	1923	1992	Mississippi	Electric blues	[231]
B.B. King	1925	2015	Mississippi	Electric blues	[232]
Earl King	1934	2003	Louisiana	New Orleans blues	[233]
Eddie King	1938	2012	Alabama	Chicago blues	[234]
Freddie King	1934	1976	Texas	Electric blues	[235]
Little Freddie King	1940		Mississippi	Electric blues	[236]
Bob Kirkpatrick	1934		Louisiana	Texas blues	[237]
Alexis Korner	1928	1984	France	Electric blues	[238]
Sammy Lawhorn	1935	1990	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[239]
Lazy Lester	1933	2018	Louisiana	Swamp blues	[240]
Calvin Leavy	1941*	2010	Arkansas	Soul blues	[241]
Lovie Lee	1908	1997	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[242]
Lefty Dizz	1937	1993	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[243]
J. B. Lenoir	1929	1967	Mississippi	Urban blues	[244]
Lightnin' Slim	1913	1974	Missouri*	Louisiana blues	[245]
Hip Linkchain	1936	1989	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[246]
Little Joe Blue	1934	1990	Mississippi	Electric blues	[247]
Little Sonny	1932*		Alabama	Electric blues	[248]
Little Walter	1930	1968	Louisiana	Chicago blues	[249]
Little Willie Littlefield	1931	2013	Texas	West Coast blues	[250]
John Littlejohn	1931	1994	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[251]
Lonesome Sundown	1928	2005*	Louisiana	Swamp blues	[252]
Louisiana Red	1932	2012	Alabama	Electric blues	[253]
Willie Love	1906	1953	Mississippi	Electric blues	[254]
Magic Sam	1937	1969	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[255]
Magic Slim	1937	2013	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[256]
J.J. Malone	1935	2004	Alabama	West Coast blues	[257]
Johnny Mars	1942	2011	South Carolina	Electric blues	[258]
John Mayall	1933	2024	England	Electric blues	[259]
Pete Mayes	1938	2008	Texas	Texas blues	[260]
Percy Mayfield	1920	1984	Louisiana	West Coast blues	[261]
Earring George Mayweather	1928	1995	Alabama	Chicago blues	[262]
Delbert McClinton	1940		Texas	Electric blues	[263]
Jimmy McCracklin	1921	2012	Texas	West Coast blues	[264]
Brownie McGhee	1915	1996	Tennessee	Piedmont blues	[265]
Memphis Slim	1915	1988	Tennessee	Urban blues	[266]
Big Maceo Merriweather	1905	1953	Georgia	Barrelhouse blues	[267]
Amos Milburn	1927	1980	Texas	Urban blues	[268]
Luke "Long Gone" Miles	1925	1987	Louisiana	Texas blues	[269]
Roy Milton	1907	1983	Oklahoma	Jump blues	[270]
Gatemouth Moore	1913	2004	Kansas	Urban blues	[271]
Johnny B. Moore	1950		Mississippi	Chicago blues	[272]
Muddy Waters	1913	1983	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[273]
Matt "Guitar" Murphy	1929	2018	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[274]
Charlie Musselwhite	1944		Mississippi	Electric blues	[85]
Sam Myers	1936	2006	Mississippi	Electric blues	[275]
Robert Nighthawk	1909	1967	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[276]
Andrew Odom	1936	1991	Louisiana	Chicago blues	[277]
Johnny Otis	1921	2012	California	West Coast blues	[278]
Junior Parker	1932	1971	Mississippi	Memphis blues	[279]
Odie Payne	1926	1989	Illinois	Chicago blues	[280]
Dave Peabody	1948		England	Acoustic blues	[281]
Pinetop Perkins	1913	2011	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[282]
Rod Piazza	1947		California	Electric blues	[283]
Dan Pickett	1907	1967	Alabama	Country blues	[284]
Snooky Pryor	1919*	2006	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[285]
Doug Quattlebaum	1927	1996	South Carolina	Piedmont blues	[286]
Bonnie Raitt	1949		California	Electric blues	[287]
Jimmy Reed	1925	1976	Mississippi	Electric blues	[288]
Sonny Rhodes	1940	2021	Texas	Electric blues	[288]
Fenton Robinson	1935	2007*	Mississippi	Electric blues	[289]
Jimmie Lee Robinson	1931	2002	Illinois	Chicago blues	[290]
Sonny Rodgers	1939	1990	Arkansas	Electric blues	[291]
Jimmy Rogers	1924	1997	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[292]
Roomful of Blues			Rhode Island	Electric blues	[288]
Bobby Rush	1933		Louisiana	Soul blues	[237]
Otis Rush	1924	1997	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[293]
Son Seals	1942	2004	Arkansas	Electric blues	[294]
Eddie Shaw	1937	2018	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[295]
Roscoe Shelton	1931	2002	Tennessee	Electric blues	[296]
Johnny Shines	1915	1992	Tennessee	Chicago blues	[297]
Frankie Lee Sims	1917	1970	Louisiana	Texas blues	[298]
Drink Small	1933		South Carolina	Acoustic blues	[299]
Barkin' Bill Smith	1928	2000	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[300]
George "Harmonica" Smith	1924	1983	Arkansas	Electric blues	[297]
Moses "Whispering" Smith	1932	1984	Mississippi	Louisiana blues	[301]
Robert Curtis Smith	1930	2010	Mississippi	Piedmont blues	[302]
Smoky Babe	1927	1975*	Mississippi	Acoustic blues	[303]
Little Smokey Smothers	1939	2010	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[304]
Otis "Big Smokey" Smothers	1929	1993	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[303]
Otis Spann	1930	1970	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[305]
Arthur "Big Boy" Spires	1912	1990	Mississippi	Electric blues	[306]
Arbee Stidham	1917	1988	Arkansas	Electric blues	[307]
Taj Mahal	1942		New York	Acoustic blues	[308]
Baby Tate	1916	1972	Georgia	Piedmont blues	[309]
Eddie Taylor	1923	1985	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[310]
Hound Dog Taylor	1917*	1975	Mississippi	Electric blues	[311]
Koko Taylor	1935*	2009	Tennessee	Electric blues	[312]
Sam Taylor	1916	1990	Tennessee	Urban blues	[313]
Sonny Terry	1911	1986	Georgia	Country blues	[314]
Tabby Thomas	1929	2014	Louisiana	Louisiana blues	[315]
Big Mama Thornton	1926	1984	Alabama	Electric blues	[316]
Luther Tucker	1936	1993	Tennessee	Chicago blues	[317]
Big Joe Turner	1911	1985	Missouri	Jump blues	[114]
Ike Turner	1931	2007	Mississippi	Electric blues	[318]
Titus Turner	1933	1984	Georgia	Soul blues	[319]
Jimmie Vaughan	1951		Texas	Electric blues	[320]
Stevie Ray Vaughan	1954	1990	Texas	Electric blues	[297]
Mose Vinson	1917*	2002	Mississippi	Electric blues	[321]
Johnny "Big Moose" Walker	1927	1999	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[322]
T-Bone Walker	1910	1975	Texas	West Coast blues	[323]
Baby Boy Warren	1919	1977	Louisiana	Detroit blues	[118]
Willie D. Warren	1924	2000	Arkansas	Detroit blues	[324]
Washboard Willie	1909	1991	Alabama	Detroit blues	[11]
Boogie Bill Webb	1924	1990	Mississippi	Electric blues	[325]
Junior Wells	1934	1998	Arkansas	Chicago blues	[326]
Golden "Big" Wheeler	1929	1998	Georgia	Chicago blues	[327]
Lavelle White	1929		Louisiana	Soul blues	[328]
Joe Willie Wilkins	1921	1979	Mississippi	Memphis blues	[329]
Jody Williams	1935	2018	Alabama	Chicago blues	[330]
Johnny Williams	1906	2006	Louisiana	Chicago blues	[331]
Lester Williams	1920	1990	Texas	Texas blues	[332]
Sonny Boy Williamson II	1909*	1965	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[333]
Alan Wilson	1943	1970	Massachusetts	Electric blues	[334]
U.P. Wilson	1934	2004	Louisiana	Texas blues	[237]
Johnny Winter	1944	2014	Texas	Electric blues	[335]
Jimmy Witherspoon	1920	1997	Arkansas	Jump blues	[336]
Big John Wrencher	1924*	1977	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[337]
Billy Wright	1918*	1991	Georgia	Jump blues	[338]
Johnny "Man" Young	1918	1974	Mississippi	Chicago blues	[339]
An asterisk (*) denotes that other sources give different dates, origin, or style.

Blues since 1980

Dexter Allen, 2004

Eric Bibb, 2006

Jimmy Burns, 2012

Deborah Coleman, 2009

Shemekia Copeland, 2019

Robert Cray, 2007

Debbie Davies, 2019

RonnieEarl, 1996

Robben Ford, 2007

Corey Harris, 2006

Alvin Youngblood Hart, 2009

Keb' Mo', 2012

Chris Thomas King, 2005

Kenny Neal, 2012

Lucky Peterson

Roy Rogers, 2014

Kenny Wayne Shepherd, 2010

Susan Tedeschi, 2006

Joe Louis Walker, 2007

Contents
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · V · W

List of blues musicians since 1980, showing name, birth and death years, origin, primary style, and references

Name	Birth year	Death year	Origin	Primary style	Ref(s)
Linsey Alexander	1942	2025	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[340]
James Armstrong	1957		California	Electric blues	[341]
Dexter Allen	1970		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[342]
Marcia Ball	1949		Texas	Electric blues	[343]
Chico Banks	1962	2008	Illinois	Chicago blues	[344]
L.V. Banks	1932	2011	Missouri	Chicago blues	[345]
Barrelhouse Chuck	1958	2016	Ohio	Chicago blues	[346]
Tab Benoit	1967		California	Electric blues	[140]
Terry "Harmonica" Bean	1961		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[347]
Chris Beard	1957		New York	Electric blues*	[348]
Adolphus Bell	1944		Alabama	Electric blues*	[349]
Lurrie Bell	1958		Illinois	Electric blues	[139]
Eric Bibb	1951		New York	Acoustic blues*	[350]
Blind Mississippi Morris	1955		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[351]
Skeeter Brandon	1948		Virginia	Electric blues*	[352]
Ronnie Baker Brooks	1967		Illinois	Electric blues*	[353]
Jimmy Burns	1943		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[354]
Cedric Burnside	1978		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[342]
Charles Caldwell	1943	2003	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[355]
Karen Carroll	1958		Illinois	Electric blues	[356]
William Clarke	1951	1996	California	Electric blues	[357]
Deborah Coleman	1956	2018	Virginia	Electric blues	[358]
Shemekia Copeland	1979		New York	Electric blues*	[359]
Robert Cray	1953		Georgia	Electric blues	[360]
Debbie Davies	1952		California	Electric blues	[164]
Boo Boo Davis	1943		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[354]
Guy Davis	1952		New York	Electric blues	[361]
Thornetta Davis	1963		Michigan	Electric blues*	[362]
Little Arthur Duncan	1934	2008	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[363]
Ronnie Earl	1953		New York	Electric blues	[178]
Tinsley Ellis	1957		Georgia	Electric blues	[364]
Kirk Fletcher	1975		California	Electric blues*	[365]
Sue Foley	1968		Canada	Electric blues	[366]
Robben Ford	1951		California	Electric blues	[366]
Rick Franklin	1941	2005	Virginia	Electric blues*	[367]
Anson Funderburgh	1954		Texas	Electric blues	[188]
Grady Gaines	1934	2021	Texas	Electric blues	[368]
Terry Garland	1953		Tennessee	Country blues	[369]
Larry Garner	1952		Louisiana	Electric blues*	[370]
Otis Grand	1950		U.S.	Electric blues	[371]
Guitar Slim Jr.	1951		Louisiana	Electric blues	[372]
Sandra Hall	1951		Georgia	Electric blues*	[373]
Larry Hamilton	1951	2011	Texas	Electric blues	[374]
Odessa Harris	1936	2003	Arkansas	Electric blues*	[226]
Alvin Youngblood Hart	1963		California	Acoustic blues*	[365]
Ted Hawkins	1936	1995	Mississippi	Acoustic blues	[375]
Big Boy Henry	1921	2004	North Carolina	Electric blues*	[376]
George Higgs	1930	2013	North Carolina	Electric blues*	[377]
Fruteland Jackson	1953		Mississippi	Electric blues*	[377]
Colin James	1964		Canada	Electric blues	[378]
Steve James	1950	2023	New York	Acoustic blues	[379]
L.V. Johnson	1946		U.S.	Electric blues	[380]
Johnny "Yard Dog" Jones	1941		Illinois	Electric blues*	[381]
Paul "Wine" Jones	1946	2005	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[340]
Tutu Jones	1957		Texas	Electric blues*	[382]
Keb' Mo'	1955		California	Acoustic blues	[383]
Harrison Kennedy	1942		Canada	Electric blues*	[348]
Chris Thomas King	1962		Louisiana	Electric blues*	[384]
Little Jimmy King	1968	2002	Tennessee	Electric blues	[385]
Lady Bianca	1953		Kansas	Electric blues	[386]
Johnny Laws	1943	2021[387]	Illinois	Electric blues*	[388]
Professor Eddie Lusk	1948	1992	Illinois	Electric blues*	[388]
Bob Margolin	1949		Massachusetts	Electric blues	[74]
Johnnie Marshall	1961		Georgia	Electric blues*	[389]
Larry McCray	1962		Arkansas	Electric blues	[390]
Clara McDaniel	1948		Michigan	Electric blues*	[391]
Johnny B. Moore	1952		U.S.	Chicago blues	[392]
Kenny Neal	1957		Louisiana	Electric blues	[393]
Jay Owens	1947		Florida	Electric blues	[394]
Sista Monica Parker	1956		Indiana	Electric blues*	[395]
Neal Pattman	1927	2005	Georgia	Electric blues*	[396]
Asie Payton	1937	1997	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[397]
Lucky Peterson	1964		New York	Electric blues	[398]
Kelly Joe Phelps	1960		Washington	Electric blues*	[398]
Lonnie Pitchford	1955		Kentucky	Electric blues*	[399]
Gene "Birdlegg" Pittman	1947		Pennsylvania	Electric blues*	[400]
Gary Primich	1958		Illinois	Electric blues	[401]
Henry Qualls	1934		Texas	Acoustic blues*	[402]
Johnny Rawls	1951		Mississippi	Electric blues	[347]
Sherman Robertson	1948		Louisiana	Electric blues	[403]
Duke Robillard	1948		Rhode Island	Electric blues	[403]
Andy Rodgers	1922	2004	Mississippi	Acoustic blues*	[404]
Mighty Mo Rodgers	1942		Illinois	Electric blues*	[405]
Roy Rogers	1950		California	Electric blues*	[292]
Saffire – The Uppity Blues Women				Acoustic blues	[255]
Isaac Scott	1945	2001	Washington	Electric blues*	[406]
Kenny Wayne Shepherd	1977		Louisiana	Electric blues	[407]
Lonnie Shields	1956		Arkansas	Electric blues*	[408]
Cootie Stark	1926	2005	South Carolina	Acoustic blues	[409]
Angela Strehli	1945		Texas	Electric blues	[353]
Demetria Taylor	1973		Illinois	Chicago blues	[107]
Eddie Taylor Jr.	1972		Illinois	Electric blues*	[353]
Melvin Taylor	1959		Mississippi	Electric blues	[410]
Otis Taylor	1948		Illinois	Electric blues*	[388]
Susan Tedeschi	1970		Massachusetts	Electric blues	[411]
Lil' Dave Thompson	1969	2010	Mississippi	Electric blues*	[342]
Pyeng Threadgill	1977		New York	Electric blues*	[359]
Teeny Tucker	1958		Ohio	Electric blues*	[412]
Maurice John Vaughn	1952		Illinois	Chicago blues	[413]
Joe Louis Walker	1949	2025	California	Electric blues	[414]
Carl Weathersby	1953	2024	Mississippi	Electric blues	[415][416]
Valerie Wellington	1959	1991	Illinois	Electric blues	[325]
Mike Wheeler	1961		Illinois	Electric blues*	[353]
Albert White	1942		Georgia	Electric blues*	[373]
Lil' Ed Williams	1955		U.S.	Chicago blues	[392]
Zora Young	1948		Mississippi	Electric blues	[417]
An asterisk (*) denotes that other sources give different dates, origin, or style.

See also

• List of nicknames of blues musicians
• Lists of blues musicians by genre
• Blues portal