September 2009 marked the 43rd anniversary of the closing of Big John's. But the music lives on, thanks to the musicians who played there and their legions of blues fans everywhere. Check out this recent photo of the Chicago Blues Reunion:

Chicago Blues Reunion (left to right)--Sammy Lay, Corky Siegel, Barry Goldberg, Harvey Mandel, Nick Gravenites, and Tracy Nelson are still keeping the spirit of Big John's alive 40 years after the legendary blues club closed. Click the photo to visit their web page. And, click here to watch a video of one of their rehearsals.

This article appeared in May 2001 on the web site of the Jazz Institute of Chicago and appears here with their kind permission. It is a memoir about when I worked at the legendary Chicago blues club, Big John's, in the mid-1960s.

Big John's was the crucible for the urban blues scene across America and beyond. The list of artists who performed at Big John's reads like a blues Who's Who during the last third of the 20th Century: Paul Butterfield and Mike Bloomfield, Muddy Waters, Barry Goldberg and Steve Miller, Howlin' Wolf, Corky Siegel and Jim Schwall, Otis Rush, Charlie Musselwhite, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, and others. Big John's was one joint that was always jumpin'....

Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield at Big John's, November 1964. Photo courtesy of Norman Dayron.

The first time I went to Big John’s was on a cold Wednesday evening in November 1964. I had just returned from graduate school at Stanford. A friend and classmate of mine from Northwestern (Class of 1963), Pam Teichner, took me there. As we walked through the Old Town club’s squeaky swinging doors, I heard guitarist Mike Bloomfield and organist Barry Goldberg tear into "Green Onions," the great song by Booker T. and the MG's.

Big John’s was packed. Every table, every bar stool, every square-foot of floor space was filled. Bloomfield’s band turned on everyone. It mesmerized me. I went back the next night, and the next–and almost every night until Big John’s was dealt the death blow by the powers that be in September 1966.

During those two years, I witnessed the beginnings of Chicago blues as we think of it today. Not black blues, not white blues – but Chicago blues. Paul Butterfield, Mike Bloomfield, Nick "The Greek" Gravenites, Barry Goldberg, Steve Miller, Corky Siegel, Jim Schwall, Harvey Mandel, Muddy Waters, Otis Spann, Little Walter, James Cotton, Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Howlin’ Wolf, Sam Lay – these were the blues artists, white and black, who made Big John’s one of the best blues clubs Chicago – and America – has ever known.

Not long after I began hanging out at Big John’s, I became acquainted with its manager, Bob Wettlaufer (who earlier had managed the popular Gate of Horn folk music and comedy club), and its owner, John Haas. One night they asked me if I’d like to work for them – as maitre’d, bouncer, I.D. checker, bartender, waiter, whatever! I jumped at the opportunity! I've always been glad I did!

That was in December 1964. I was 24 years old. Only yesterday....

Big John’s was located at 1638 North Wells on the west side of the street, just south of Eugenie and three-fourths of a block north of North Avenue. It appealed to musicians and customers alike. Everything jibed: the long bar with Marsh’s caricatures of musicians and employees hanging behind it; the beat up chandeliers with their dim, orange light bulbs; the red-and-white checkered table cloths; the abstract paintings by local artists Gerry Proctor, Jack Beckley, and Danny Morgan; the old upright piano that was always in the way between the service bar and the bandstand; the stage that was never large enough to hold all of the musicians and their equipment; the frantic dancing in the narrow, almost non-existent aisles (and often on chairs); the kitchen in the rear that was open only when the cook felt like working; and the two pool tables in the backroom that always frustrated Chicago policemen looking for gambling – and where Bob Dylan, in disguise, racked'em up until closing one night after a concert.

Vince Azzarro, owner of the Bulls and co-owner of the Earl of Old Town, and John Haas, owner of Big John's.

It was the music and the musicians that turned people onto Big John's. Bloomfield and his band were the first to play blues there, filling the club every night, no matter what the weather was like outside. For most people, including myself, it was the first time we had seen anything like it.

As Bloomfield’s engagement came to an end, he recommended the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, led by the young blues harmonica player from Hyde Park. To everyone’s surprise, the Butterfield band proved to be even more popular than Bloomfield’s band. With Jerome Arnold on bass, Sammy Lay on drums (both black musicians and former sidemen of Howlin’ Wolf), and Elvin Bishop from Oklahoma on guitar, Butterfield developed his own musical concept of Chicago blues.

Butterfield and his band played blues standards, such as "Stormy Monday," "Every Day I Have the Blues," and "Mojo,"but they also introduced a number of their own numbers, including "Born in Chicago" and "Run Out of Time." Butterfield and his band quickly earned the respect and admiration of both the younger, aspiring white blues musicians and the older, established black blues musicians. For eight consecutive months, it was the Butterfield band, Wednesday thru Sunday, at Big John's.

Bob Wettlaufer, manager of Big John's, in the pool room. He was a wicked player.

It was during this Butterfield engagement when I met Ray Nordstrand of WFMT, Chicago's fine arts station and one of the best-listened to FM stations in the United States, then and now. He was kind enough to tell the listeners of his late-night Midnight Special every Saturday who was performing at Big John’s each week. Before long, people from all over Chicago and the suburbs were among those forming long lines up Wells Street toward Eugenie, and sometimes even down Eugenie. People often waited an hour to get inside.

In the summer of 1965, Butterfield signed a management agreement with Al Grossman, Bloomfield’s and Dylan’s manager, and took his band to the East Coast. Bloomfield joined Butterfield’s group and gave it even greater vibrancy and drive. At the Newport Folk Festival on July 25th, the Butterfield-Bloomfield band with Goldberg joining on organ backed Bob Dylan. They played three numbers and nearly caused a riot. Many of Dylan’s fans, who preferred traditional, acoustic folk music, were outraged by what they heard. But many, many others loved the new sound, dubbed folk rock.

Elvin Bishop, guitar, and Paul Butterfield, harmonica.

Dylan asked Goldberg to be his permanent organist, but Goldberg declined and returned to Chicago, where he and his band followed Butterfield’s at Big John’s. His guitarist, Steve Miller, was on vacation from the University of Wisconsin. They also drew large crowds to Big John’s, and soon their group was known as the Goldberg-Miller Blues Band.

During the Goldberg-Miller engagement, Wettlaufer decided it was time for the club to showcase the older black blues bands as well. The main question was whether these groups would want to play before predominantly white audiences. Wettlaufer thought they would, and he found that the black blues bands were eager to perform at Big John’s. So he invited Muddy Waters, Otis Spann (his pianist), and James Cotton (his harmonica player) to see how well the Goldberg-Miller Blues Band performed and went over with the audience. They were so impressed that they sat in -- and Muddy Waters agreed to a month’s engagement beginning in early September.

Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield) at the 1981 Chicago Jazz Festival. Photo courtesy of Stanford Bonner

The night Muddy Waters opened at Big John’s had been anticipated for several weeks. Every seat was taken and people were standing six abreast at the bar long before the first set began. At Pepper’s Lounge on the South Side, Muddy only accompanied his band for two or three numbers each set. But at Big John’s, he played almost the entire set each time the band went onstage.

The audience loved Muddy, and he loved them. In fact, his band broke all attendance and sales records at Big John’s-and convinced Wettlaufer that the time had come for Big John’s to alternate black and white blues bands.By the end of Muddy’s engagement, Otis Rush was appearing on Mondays and Howlin’ Wolf on Tuesdays. On any night of the week, Chicagoans could hear the best in Chicago blues at Big John’s.

Otis Rush played soft, rippling guitar beneath the lyrics of his ballads, singing in a manner reflecting his quiet, gentle personality. Howlin’ Wolf was something else. He cried, wailed, and snarled about legends and superstitions. A tall, powerfully built man with a stare that made Benny Goodman’s ray seem like a friendly wink, Wolf's glance sent chills down the spines of his musicians whenever they made mistakes. Wolf’s force resounded through every number he performed. Both Rush and Wolf included saxophonists in their bands, adding another driving tonal dimension to their sound.

The Paul Butterfield Blues Band's first album for Elektra (1965) is available on CD. Click here to order Paul's CD from Amazon.com. This photo was taken on Chicago's Maxwell Street. From left: Mike Bloomfield, Paul Butterfield, Sammy Lay, Elvin Bishop, and Jerome Arnold. Born in Chicago is on this album.	Nick "The Greek" Gravenites' 1999 album "Kill My Brain" shows he is still going strong today. Nick is a widely respected blues song writer, musician, and singer, known for his early work with The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and The Electric Flag. Click here to order Nick's CD from Amazon.com.

Butterfield and Bloomfield returned with their band to Big John’s for the month of October. Elektra had just released their first album (see cover photo above). They perfected the band during the October engagement, developing their fusion of blues and rock. The band continued to play familiar blues numbers, but they introduced us to something new, less of departure, more of a transition.

Elvin Bishop, guitar, Sammy Lay, drums.

What Big John’s customers heard from Butterfield and Bloomfield in October 1965 was the wave of the future.

During the first four months of 1966, the Butterfield-Bloomfield Blues Band toured the West Coast, introducing Chicago blues to the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco and to The Trip in Los Angeles, both psychedelic emporiums featuring light shows and multimedia projections. Big John’s never went that route; it was always pure funk. Butterfield and Bloomfield inspired many of the acid rock groups on the West Coast, including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Mothers of Invention, and Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company.

Bloomfield really dug the West Coast and stayed there to form the Electric Flag with Buddy Miles and Nick "The Greek" Gravenites, who had written a number of songs for Butterfield, including "Born in Chicago."

The author and his friend, Chris, about 5:30 a.m. at the Lincoln Hotel Restaurant early Sunday morning after a long, long Saturday night in 1965. Big John's was open until 4 a.m. on weekdays and 5 a.m. on Saturdays (Sunday mornings).

Big John’s continued presenting the best of Chicago’s blues bands. Engagements varied between two and four weeks. Joining the impressive roster of Chicago blues legends appearing at Big John’s was a new group led by two music majors from Roosevelt University, Corky Siegel and Jim Schwall, which became Seiji Ozawa’s personal favorite. The Siegel-Schwall band’s musicianship was so impressive that Ozawa later recorded them with the San Francisco Symphony after he became its musical director.

When these Chicago blues groups weren’t appearing at Big John’s, they followed Butterfield and Bloomfield to Café Au Go-Go or the Village Gate in New York or to the Fillmore in San Francisco. But Big John’s was home. By the summer of 1966, people were talking about Big John’s from coast to coast. Club owners, record producers, talent agents, and television producers came to Chicago to see what Big John’s had. What they found was simply a small, crowded, friendly bar without any glitter or pretense offering the most exciting music in the nation every night of the week.

Then it ended. Fast. Big John's liquor license was suddenly revoked in September 1966. Its owners, its employees, its musicians, and its customers knew something wrong had been done to Big John's. But no one knew precisely why or by whom. Charges were leveled against Big John's for serving minors, for allowing gambling in the poolroom, and for soliciting on behalf of a known Old Town prostitute whom we had barred since the club opened. Chicago police from the 18th District had always been "friendly" to Big John's, but now that was over.

Big John's and three neighboring taverns just north of Big John’s -- Second Chance, the Witchburner's, and O’Rourke’s (the original one) -- were housed in buildings that were condemned within a few months after Big John’s was closed. Within a short time, Americana Towers, a 42-story high-rise apartment (and later condominium) building was constructed on the adjacent lots of the former clubs.

Americana Towers has always reminded me, that Chicago, the city that works, had worked again.

George Spink
Los Angeles
Email Me

I want to thank the late Arturo"Art" McCreary for providing most of the links below. Art visited Big John's almost every night with our northside buddies Kurt Teich, Gerry Proctor, Matt "The Rat" Berman, and "Moustache Jack" Beckley. Art and I renewed our friendship online in 2001. Sadly, Art died in December 2005. I'll always be grateful that Art and I met again online and shared our memories via email.

I'd also like to mention some of my female friends during those wonderful days in the mid-1960s: the waitresses at Big John's -- Becky, Britt, Donna, Franca, Karla, Kathy, Lois, Margo, Roz, and Sally; and the women I dated while I worked at Big John's -- especially Corky, Dori, Karen, Linda 1, Linda 2, Pam, and Rose.

Mike Bloomfield - This web site is an ongoing project by family, friends and fans of Michael Bloomfield. Whether you are a long time fan of Michael's or just discovering his tremendous catalog of music for the first time, you'll find something on this web site that you will enjoy.

Corky Siegel - A musicians' musician, blues pianist and singer Corky Siegel earned the respect and admiration of all who knew him at Big John's, including Chicago Symphony Orchestra Conductor Seiji Ozawa, who often came by the club to hear the Siegal-Schwall Blues Band. Seiji later recorded them with the San Francisco Symphony after he became its conductor. Corky and Jim are still playing, now with my favorite blues drummer Sammy Lay and bassist Rollo Radford. They go on tour every year and often perform at Fitzgerald's in my hometown, Berwyn, just west of Chicago. Corky's web site offers many sound samples of this legendary blues band.

Nick "The Greek" Gravenites - Not many knew the 1960s blues scene in Chicago as well as Nick "The Greek" Gravenites. In this online article, Bad Talkin' Bluesman, Nick recalls growing up on the southside, his days at the University of Chicago, his introduction to blues clubs in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and his friendship with Paul Butterfield, Big John's, and the blues scene as it spread across the nation. Nick's recollections offer a loving memoir of this period. Be sure to read it!

For another look at the Paul Butterfield band in the early days, see this excellent article by Tom Ellis III.

Ken Nordine - Ken Nordine is a genius, as you'll hear when you visit Ken's web site, Word Jazz. And, you'll recognize his voice, because Ken has made many radio and TV commercials over the years. Like many of Chicago's creative community, Ken visited Big John's often. You would always find him rackin'em up in the pool room.

Judy Roberts - A marvelous pianist and singer, Judy Roberts is a vibrant, innovative jazz performer. She is well known in Chicago and elsewhere, but not as well as she deserves to be.Visit her site and buy her CDs to hear this fine performer.

Earl "The Earl of Old Town" Pionke - Earl Pionke is a Chicago legend, a real dyed-in-the-wool, red-blooded, tough guy who has been a fine friend to many over the years, including me. In November 1966, Earl decided to feature folk music at his club, The Earl of Old Town, located across Wells Street and down the block from where Big John's had been. The Earl focused on up-and-coming performers, beginning a long tradition. Visit this site to learn about some of the folk music greats who had their start at The Earl. Bonnie Koloc, Steve Goodman, Fred and Ed Holstein, and John Prine are a few of the many performers whose careers Earl helped along. Chicago, and the world, have been a much better place because of Earl Pionke.

Lorraine "Mother Blues" Blue - Before Earl offered folk music, Mother Blues often featured it. But when Big John's closed, Bobbie Wettalufer persuaded Lorraine to feature some of the blues bands who had done so well at Big John's. Among those who appeared at her club in Old Town were Peter, Paul & Mary, John Denver, Oscar Brown Jr., Janis Joplin, George Carlin, Jose Feliciano, Sergio Mendez, Spanky and Our Gang, Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, Buddy Guy, Jefferson Airplane, Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Lorraine died in 2000, leaving behind a circle of friends that will never be broken.

Del Close - One of the guiding forces behind Second City, the late Del Close and his talented improvisationalists spent many hours after work at Big John's. His web bio is a journey through the best of American comedy during the last half of the 20th Century.

Joe's Corner - Take a look at some photos of the Chicago blues scene today.

Marc Pokempner - Mark is a Chicago photographer who has been chronicling the blues scene for many year.

Jeff Dunas - Another fine photographer covering the blues scene today. His web site offers a magnificent example of portrait photography featuring blues musicians as they looked near the end of the 20th Century.

Old Town Today - This web page offers plenty of photos of Old Town today. A few years ago, Old Town was featured on the HBO's series, The Mind of the Married Man. The fictional couple live in a brownstone on Wisconsin Avenue, about two blocks from where Big John's was located, and only a block west from where I lived at Kennelly Square on Wells Street before moving to California in 1986.

Mark Naftalin - Mark played piano with the Butterfield-Bloomfield Blues Band.

Barry Goldberg - This site offers a glimpse of blues organist Barry Goldberg, who often performed at Big John's with Steve "Fly Like An Eagle" Miller.

Muddy Waters - Read about one of the most influential musicians in the history of the blues.

Norman photographed Michael and Paul by the service bar near the bandstand at Big John's in November 1964.

We normally did not allow photographers to take pictures at Big John's, unless they worked for a publication or record company, to protect the privacy of our customers. I took my interior photos during the first set of a weekday evening. Business was unusually slow, thanks to lousy weather that night. I took the photo of Vince Azzarro and John Haas during Old Town Art Fair Weekend in 1965 -- seems like yesterday!