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Top Ten Blues Artists Often Snubbed on Top Ten Lists - Part 2
One of the unsung heroes of the Blues is Eddie Taylor, a self taught guitarist who was an integral part of some of the greatest Blues recordings.
I'm going to just list Taylor's accomplishments and let those speak for him:
1. He taught his friend, Jimmy Reed how to play the guitar and then played in his band.
Jimmy Reed's greatest recordings were on Vee-Jay Records and Eddie was his guitarist. Which means he was one of the greatest guitar players in the Chicago Blues scene in the 50s and 60s.
Note: Every true Blues fan knows who Jimmy Reed was and has heard his songs which were covered by the Rolling Stones and a zillion other bands.
2. He worked with John Lee Hooker on his Vee-Jay recordings. Some of the songs included "Going Upstairs" (later covered by Steppenwolf), "Dimples" (a lot of artists covered it), "Want Ad Blues" (covered by George Thorogood and many others).
3. Eddie Taylor worked with the legendary Elmore James on Vee-Jay.
4. Eddie recorded solo records and songs like "Big Town Playboy" became a regional hit.
4. Other artists he worked with include Big Walter Horton (who played harp in the Maxwell Street scene in the "Blues Brothers" movie), Kansas City Red, Sam Lay (Butterfield Blues Band), Sunnyland Slim and others.
Not all Blues fans know who Eddie Taylor was, but if you've listened to any amount of classic Chicago Blues, then you've probably heard him playing guitar without knowing it.
Eddie Taylor was inducted into the Blues Hall Of Fame in 1987. He's not well known outside of Blues circles but he certainly was a legend.
Al Handa
Aug 2, 2026
Aug 1, 2026
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