Mr. Lucky
Studio album by
John Lee Hooker
Released1991
RecordedOcean Way Recording Studios, Hollywood
Plant Recording Studios, Sausalito
Russian Hill Recording, San Francisco
GenreBlues
Length46:04
LabelVirgin Records (Charisma, PointBlank, Classic) [1] / Silvertone (UK)
ProducerRy Cooder, Mike Kappus, Roy Rogers, Carlos Santana
John Lee Hooker chronology
Lonesome Road
(1990) 		Mr. Lucky
(1991) 		More Real Folk Blues: The Missing Album
(1991)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Robert ChristgauA−[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[3]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings[6]
Rolling Stone[5]

Mr. Lucky is a 1991 album by American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist John Lee Hooker. Produced by Ry Cooder, Roy Rogers and Carlos Santana under the executive production of Mike Kappus, the album featured musicians including Keith Richards, Blues Hall of Fame inductee Johnny Winter; and three inductees of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Van Morrison, Booker T. Jones and Johnnie Johnson. And also Chester D. Thompson, who once played with Santana, on keyboards, has collaborated on writing a song on the album. Released on Virgin Records, including on its imprint label Classic Records, Mr. Lucky peaked at #101 on the "Billboard 200". By the way, Chester D. Thompson must not be mistaken with Chester Cortez Thompson, a drummer who also played with Santana, Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, Weather Report, Genesis and Phil Collins .

History

In 1989, John Lee Hooker achieved commercial and critical success with The Healer, an album which paired him with musicians including Carlos Santana [7] and Bonnie Raitt, with whom Hooker shared a Grammy Award for "Best Traditional Blues Recording" for the track "In the Mood".[8] With Mr. Lucky, producers Cooder, Rogers and Santana follow the same successful formula, to mixed critical reviews; Rolling Stone praised the album as a refinement over its predecessor with an "all around...sharper fit", its notable guests serving as "superb sidemen for a great bluesman".[9] Entertainment Weekly, by contrast, described the album as essentially "a tribute album" where "most of the tunes...don't sound like Hooker at all".[10] In spite of mixed reception, the album charted well, reaching #101 on the "Billboard 200" chart in 1991 and also enjoying international sales success.[11][12] It was nominated for, but did not win, a Grammy.[13]

Track listing

All songs composed by John Lee Hooker (except where noted).

  1. "I Want to Hug You" (Hooker, Al Smith) – 2:52
  2. "Mr. Lucky" (Hooker, Smith) – 4:38
  3. "Backstabbers" (Hooker, Smith) – 5:01
  4. "This Is Hip" – 3:23
  5. "I Cover the Waterfront" – 6:39 (Johnny Green, Edward Heyman)
  6. "Highway 13" – 6:32
  7. "Stripped Me Naked" (Hooker, Benny Rietveld, Carlos Santana, Chester D. Thompson) – 4:18
  8. "Susie" – 4:23
  9. "Crawlin' King Snake" (Traditional) – 3:20
  10. "Father Was a Jockey" – 4:58

Personnel

Performance

Production

Charts

Chart (1991) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[14] 22

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[15] Gold 35,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ SPIN Media LLC (December 1991). SPIN. SPIN Media LLC. pp. 1–.
  2. ^ Ron Wynn. "Mr. Lucky - John Lee Hooker | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  3. ^ Givens, Ron (1991-11-15). "Mr. Lucky". EW.com. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  4. ^ "CG: John Lee Hooker". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  5. ^ Leahey, Andrew. "Album Reviews, Ratings, and Best New Albums". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 22, 2007. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  6. ^ Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
  7. ^ "The Healer". Rollingstone.com. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  8. ^ Thom Owens. "The Healer - John Lee Hooker | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  9. ^ Milward, John. (October 3, 2001) John Lee Hooker, Mr. Lucky Rolling Stone. Accessed December 17, 2007.
  10. ^ Givens, Ron. (November 15, 1991). Music Capsule Review "Mr. Lucky" Entertainment Weekly. Accessed December 17, 2007.
  11. ^ "Mr. Lucky - John Lee Hooker | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  12. ^ Steffen Hung. "John Lee Hooker - Mr. Lucky". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  13. ^ Rolling Stone. John Lee Hooker. rollingstone.com. Reproduced from The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Simon & Schuster, 2001). accessdate December 17, 2007
  14. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 131.
  15. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1992 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
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