Michael Bloomfield: The Rise and Fall of an American Guitar Hero

Product Description

This is the definitive biography of the legendary guitarist whom Muddy Waters and B. B. King held in high esteem and who created the prototype for Clapton, Hendrix, Page, and those who followed. Bloomfield was a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, which inspired a generation of white blues players; he played with Bob Dylan in the mid-1960s, when his guitar was a central component of Dylan’s new rock sound on “Like a Rolling Stone.” He then founded the Electric Flag, recorded
Super Session with Al Kooper, backed Janis Joplin, and released at least twenty other albums despite debilitating substance abuse. This book, based on extensive interviews with Bloomfield himself and with those who knew him best, and including an extensive discography and Bloomfield’s memorable 1968
Rolling Stone interview, is an intimate portrait of one of the pioneers of rock guitar.

Review

“A riveting tale of a restless spirit.” —
Rolling Stone

“In this chronicle of a life found and lost, Ed Ward writes with deep empathy, and also with a hard-boiled patience that burns off all sentiment. It is the perfect tone for a story Ward never tries to make bigger than it is, so that finally it makes terrible and final sense.” —Greil Marcus, author of
The History of Rock ‘n’ Roll
in Ten Songs and
Mystery Train

“Michael Bloomfield was brilliant, troubled, flawed, charming, and dauntingly influential, and Ed Ward adeptly balances his strengths and weaknesses, creating a picture of a man who was all too in tune with a complicated time.” —Elijah Wald, author of
Dylan Goes Electric! and
Escaping the Delta

“With all due respect to Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Albert King, Buddy Guy, Johnny Winter, and so many others who are in the pantheon of blues greats, in this white Jew’s opinion, Michael Bloomfield was simply the best blues guitarist I’ve ever heard.” —Rob Reiner, filmmaker and actor

“Michael Bloomfield was such a unique and mercurial character is was like handling hot coals in your mind. You should get to know him because the people that knew him, loved him. His guitar playing was beautiful. His heart and soul were as big as it gets. This remembrance brings to life the amazing story of a young Jewish kid from Chicago’s North Side whose unique style of improvisational guitar led the world into the modern age of blues and rock. Hey, folks, he was historic.” —Nick Gravenites, singer and songwriter

“A brilliant biography of the ethereal Chicago blues guitar giant who shook the walls down in the ’60s and ’70s with his soaring art. There is a mother lode of fresh rock ‘n’ roll history in these pages. The discography alone is worth the price of admission. Highly recommended!” —Douglas Brinkley, author of 
Rightful Heritage and 
The Wilderness Warrior

“[A] terrific book, which charts the course of Bloomfield’s life and career with style, detail and insight.” —
Chicago Tribune

“As a biographer, Ward successfully conveys the complex story of a troubled Jew, who could shake a string like no one else.” —
Tablet Magazine

“This amazing book by Ed Ward is an updated version of his original 1983 tome, but it feels brand new. The breathtaking ride to the top and the crushing fall to the bottom of the musician’s life is captured in full emotional detail.” —The Morton Report

“Ed Ward tells Bloomfield’s story in compelling fashion, often pointing to the great tracks people may not know about.” —Counter Punch

About the Author

Ed Ward has been the “rock ‘n’ roll historian” for NPR’s 
Fresh Air with Terry Gross since its inception, and has contributed over 500 stories to it. He helped found the South by Southwest Music and Media Conference, was on one of the early staffs at
Rolling Stone and has written for
Creem, the
New York Times, and the
Wall Street Journal. He lives in Austin, Texas.
Billy F. Gibbons is the guitarist and lead vocalist of ZZ Top. He lives in Los Angeles.