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Topic: Town honors Muddy Waters (NSC) Return to archive
July 9th, 2005 02:39 AM
Ten Thousand Motels Town honors Muddy Waters

By Marni Pyke
Daily Herald Staff Writer


Westmont has got its mojo working again.

On a spring day 23 years ago, the blues left the village when Muddy Waters breathed his last at a two-story frame house on Adams Street.

On Thursday, Westmont returned to that chapter in its history, opening an exhibit that pays tribute to its most famous — and soulful — citizen.

The display at Westmont Centre, 1 S. Cass Ave., is filled with Waters’ memorabilia, including a Grammy award, original posters, clothing and his Fender Telecaster guitar. Many were donated by Waters’ family members, who came to the dedication.

“He traveled a lot in that suit,” Waters’ wife Marva Morganfield said, pointing to a sharp, rust-colored corduroy outfit on display.

“It’s pretty hip today still,” Waters’ daughter-in-law Tara Morganfield said.

The village also is giving Cass Avenue the temporary title of Muddy Waters Way as part of the Taste of Westmont Festival that runs through Sunday.

Waters, who was born McKinley Morganfield, grew up in the rural Mississippi Delta. His grandmother nicknamed him “Muddy” for his fondness of playing in the river.

Waters’ blues music evolved from those dirt-poor beginnings and he never let his children forget it, son Joseph Morganfield recalled.

“We were kind of spoiled a bit, but he brought us down to earth,” Morganfield said.

Waters left Mississippi for Chicago in 1943, where he worked a series of temporary jobs in the day and played his music at night.

Blues hits such as “Hoochie Coochie Man” and “Baby, Please Don’t Go” inspired a generation of rock ‘n’ roll artists such as Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones, who took their name from a Waters’ song.

For someone who jammed in Paris and London and held court in his Chicago South Side home, moving to the suburbs in 1973 might seem a contradiction.

But Waters loved his Westmont retreat, where the likes of B.B. King dropped by and Clapton went swimming in his mentor’s outdoor pool.

“There never was a dull moment,” Joseph Morganfield remembered. “There was always someone popping by. There was always blues in the house.”

But that didn’t mean Waters was a lax parent.

“He was old-fashioned about discipline and made sure we obeyed him,” Morganfield said.

And, although his dad had a well-earned reputation as a lady’s man, Waters was “strict about dating,” Joe added, chuckling.

Marva Morganfield remembers marrying Muddy in a 1979 ceremony at the house on Adams Street.

“There were a lot of memories in that house,” she said.

And a lot of creativity.

“He’d wake me up in the morning and say, ‘Marva, get a pencil and paper and write this down,’” she said.

It was a well-known fact the godfather of blues lived in Westmont but residents gave the family their privacy, Mayor William Rahn said.

“People knew who they were. They were celebrities, but it was kept very quiet,” he said.

It was an emotional day for Marva Morganfield, who called it an event Muddy would have loved.

“He would have been very excited,” she said.
July 9th, 2005 09:33 AM
polksalad69 that's cool. thanks for the article. that's very close to home. I'll have to check it out. I heard they are having a Muddy Tribute at their little suburban festival. not bad with John Primer but the real Muddy Tribute has been playing at Antones in Austin recenlty.

http://www.westmont.il.gov/Visitors/Special_Events/tow_top.htm
July 9th, 2005 10:05 AM
Ten Thousand Motels
quote:
polksalad69 wrote:
that's very close to home. I'll have to check it out.


I had a chance to go see Big Bill Morganfield a few months back not a half hour from me. I didn't make it but thought seriously about it.
July 9th, 2005 11:52 AM
Ten Thousand Motels

[Edited by Ten Thousand Motels]
July 9th, 2005 12:30 PM
Ten Thousand Motels Does anyone else remember their first exposure to Muddy Waters? I think I've posted this story once but I'll do it again. I was about 17 or 18, back in the late 60's. My friend was taking care of this guy's camp on the lake near my house that summer. So we go down to party a bit. Now the guy that owned that camp, I'll call him "D". must have had about a hundred blues records. I always perceved the guy to be a bit of a spoiled brat as his family owned the local wood mill that employed alot of the town. But at any rate, my friend pulls out this record with a set of three Muddy Waters lps. He kind of pulls out this vinyl and says something along the lines of "this is Muddy Waters you gotta hear this shit". Anyway it went over my head.

July 9th, 2005 03:33 PM
Child of the Moon I remember being quite young - maybe like 7 or 8 - living in the San Leandro/Oakland area of California and going out to get groceries with my dad. I remember one of his topics of conversation was "bluesmen nicknames," and he started telling me about all these cool names that old blues guys had back in the day. Ledbelly, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Muddy Waters... ooh, "Muddy Waters," huh? That sounds cool. Of course I probably heard his music in passing both before and after that, but I know I actually started to actively seek out his music around the time I got into the Stones, which was prior to my freshman year of high school. I remember a longtime friend of mine, who was never that bright musically, saying that he hated blues music around this time. I just remember saying, "If you can't take the blues, then you can't take anything," and walked away.
[Edited by Child of the Moon]
July 9th, 2005 06:56 PM
polksalad69
quote:
Ten Thousand Motels wrote:


I had a chance to go see Big Bill Morganfield a few months back not a half hour from me. I didn't make it but thought seriously about it.



I've never seen Big Bill. I saw Primer a few weeks back. He's always good. Definately have to check out the park one of these days if I don't make it to the fest tomorrow night. Wait, it's just a street dedicated to Muddy?

I don't remember my first exposure to Muddy but I remember when he died. The big news was, are the Stones going to show up. I think I was in 8th grade at the time.


[Edited by polksalad69]
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