YEAR
1991
INDUCTED BY
ZZ Top
CATEGORY
Performers
Simple. Accessible. Jimmy Reed seemed to pull his songs of thin air.
Reed has been covered by the likes of the Rolling Stones, Van Morrison and the Grateful Dead. His easygoing style inspired superstars and amateurs alike to take up the blues.
Jimmy Reed
HALL OF FAME
ESSAY
By Andrew Schwartz
Jimmy Reed was one of those purely American, so-called “primitive” artists who created a style so perfect in conception and execution that it could never really be improved upon.
He was also a prolific hitmaker whose music acted as a kind of down-home touchstone for his African-American audience during the years when R&B turned into soul.
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