Big Bill Morganfield
Blues in the Blood (Blind Pig)
If Big Bill Morganfield were a lounge singer, say, or a rapper, blues fans wouldn’t rush to compare him to his father, the late legend Muddy Waters. But Morganfield performs not only in Waters’ old genre, he has the same deep, commanding, slightly rubbery voice, plays guitar in a similarly aggressive way (albeit with fewer solos) and covers his father’s lesser-known “Why Don’t You Live So God Can Use You.” The verdict? Neither as original (“Boogie Child”?) nor as dynamic as Waters (who is?). Morganfield, 47, is nonetheless a master of the down-home, slinky Chicago groove. “The way that you treat me/I know it’s time to go,” he sings between rooster calls on the train-driving “Time to Go,” and the well-worn sentiment comes alive.