Joe Louis Walker

Joe Louis Walker, also known as JLW (born December 25, 1949) is an American musician, best known as an electric blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. His knowledge of blues history is revealed by his use of older material and playing styles. 

Joe Louis Walker was born in San Francisco, California, He came from a musical family picking up the guitar at the age of eight, and became a known quantity within the Bay Area music scene by the age of 16. While publicly performing through his teens, Walker's musical pupilage saw him playing with John Lee Hooker, J.J. Malone, Buddy Miles, Otis Rush, Thelonious Monk, The Soul Stirrers, Willie Dixon, Charlie Musselwhite, Steve Miller, Nick Lowe, John Mayall, Earl Hooker, Muddy Waters, and Jimi Hendrix. By 1968, he had forged a friendship with Mike Bloomfield, and were roommates for many years until Bloomfield's untimely death. 

This event was the catalyst that placed Walker into a lifestyle change. He left the world of the blues and enrolled himself at San Francisco State University, achieving a degree in Music and English. Throughout this time, Walker was regularly performing with The Spiritual Corinthians Gospel Quartet.  After a 1985 performance at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, he was inspired to return to his blues roots whereupon he formed the "Bosstalkers" and signed to the HighTone label. 

After the long partnership with HighTone, Walker was signed by Polygram to their Verve/Gitanes record label. His first of many Polygram releases ensued with Blues Survivor in 1993. This marked the beginning of an eclectic era that merged many of his gospel, jazz, soul, funk, and rock influences with his trademark blues sensibilities. 1993 also saw the release of B.B. King's Grammy Award-winning Blues Summit album, which featured a duet with Walker (a Walker original, "Everybody's Had the Blues"). 

Blues Of The Month Club was released in 1995 and was the first of three Walker albums that were co-produced with Steve Cropper. This was followed up by the release of Great Guitars in 1997. Walker's guest musicians on this release, included Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy, Taj Mahal, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Otis Rush, Scotty Moore, Robert Lockwood, Jr., Matt "Guitar" Murphy, Steve Cropper, Tower Of Power, and Ike Turner.

Also in 1996, Walker played guitar on James Cotton's, Deep in the Blues, a Grammy Award winner for "Best Traditional Blues Album". In addition, Walker won his third Blues Music Award for Band of the Year (1996) which was preceded by two similar awards for "Contemporary Male Artist of the Year" (1988 and 1991). Walker also won the 1995 Bammy (Bay Area Music Award) for "Blues Musician of the Year". He then released Preacher and the President in 1998 and Silvertone Blues in 1999 (his sixth album for Polygram

In 2002, he featured on the Bo Diddley tribute album, Hey Bo Diddley - A Tribute!, performing the song "Who Do You Love?".

In March 2008, Walker signed to Stony Plain Records and recorded his first album for the label in April (produced by Duke Robillard). His second album for the label was released in September 2009 entitled, Between A Rock and The Blues. This album garnered five nominations at the 2010 Blues Music Awards.

In 2013, Walker was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.  In addition that year, Walker was nominated in four categories for a Blues Music Award

(Joe Louis Walker at 6th annual Poconos Blues Festival 1997)