Artist:Delbert McClinton
Song:Giving It Up for Your Love
Album:Ultimate Collection
Giving It Up for Your Love was a top ten hit in 1980. It is to date the biggest hit for blues rocker Delbert McClinton. Before that he was probably best known for playing harmonica on Bruce Channel's 1961 hit Hey! Baby. He was born Nov. 4, 1940 in Lubbock, TX. His family moved to Fort Worth when he was 11. McClinton played harmonica in the local band The Straitjackets in the late 50s. He played with blues legends like Sonny Boy Williamson II and Howlin' Wolf. Then he played harmonica on Hey! Baby and toured with Channel. While in England, he gave John Lennon harmonica lessons. McClinton formed The Ron-Dels with Ronnie Kelly and Billy Wade Sanders and they charted with the 1965 single If You Really Want Me To, I'll Go. The first time I heard of McClinton was when he formed the duo Delbert & Glen with Glen Clark. They released two albums on Atlantic and split up. McClinton released three albums for ABC Records before they were swallowed by MCA. His song Two More Bottles of Wine was a 1978 country hit for Emmylou Harris. After two albums for Capricorn, McClinton signed with Capitol for the 1980 album The Jealous Kind and the single Giving It Up for Your Love reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. That album was recorded at Muscle Shoals and produced by Barry Beckett who also played keyboards. The band was the Muscle Shoals regulars like Billy Sanders on guitar, David Hood on bass and Roger Hawkins on drums plus the Muscle Shoals Horns. Giving It Up for Your Love was written by Jerry Lynn Williams who wrote several songs for Eric Clapton. McClinton recorded two albums for Capitol. McClinton also recorded for MCA, Alligator, Curb and Mercury. McClinton won a Grammy in 1991 for his duet with Bonnie Raitt Good Man, Good Woman and he scored a top five country hit with a duet with Tanya Tucker called Tell Me About It. This 1999 budget comp from Universal's Hip-O label covers McClinton's entire career up until that point. After that he had his best run on the blues charts with a series of albums on New West Records. McClinton wrote and produced with Nashville session guitarist Gary Nicholson. He won a Best Contemporary Blues Album Grammy for his 2006 album Cost of Living. His latest album was released on his own label in 2022. McClinton looks to be retired but it looks like he appears on the Big Easy Cruise every January. Here's Delbert McClinton performing Giving It Up for Your Love at Farm Aid in Champaign, IL Sept. 22, 1985.
No comments:
Post a Comment