Revered Guitarist Dies of ‘Cardiac-Related Illness’: Joe Louis Walker Was 75

Blues legend Joe Louis Walker died late last month. He was 75.

The revered electric blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer passed away on the evening of Wednesday, April 30, following a cardiac-related illness, according to Blues Rock Review. He was surrounded by his wife of 16 years, Robin, and two daughters, Leena and Bernice.

Revered as a “musician’s musician” by his peers and once dubbed “The Bluesman” by Aretha Franklin, per Rolling Stone, Walker is remembered for his reflective songwriting and electrifying guitar work. His career spanned over six decades, during which he worked with the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, Mark Knopfler, and Steve Cropper, and opened for others such as Muddy Waters and Thelonious Monk.

Born in San Francisco in 1949, blues was ingrained into his family, Walker once recalling how his “father would come home from work in construction and have his dinner, and he’d have his record player right here. He’d put on Amos Milburn, Rosco Gordon, Howlin’ Wolf. And then, when he wasn’t playin’ it, my mother was – BB King, always BB King.”

Walker was just 8 when he began playing guitar, per World Music Central, and he went on to become a Bay Area regular by the late ‘60s as he gigged throughout the psychedelic rock and blues movement, playing with Mississippi Fred McDowell and befriending Michael Bloomfield.

After his career faltered and he began working odd jobs by the mid-70s, Walker started playing with gospel outfit the Spiritual Corinthians and found his way back to blues following a performance with the group at the 1985 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. He released his debut album, Cold Is the Night, the following year, and followed it with more than 20 others over the next four decades. His album Everybody Wants a Piece earned him his first and only Grammy nomination when it received recognition for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2016. Walker released his final album, Weight of the World, in 2023.

Throughout his career, Walker was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, was named a USA Fellow by United States Artists, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Mississippi Valley Blues Society, and was recognized with San Francisco’s esteemed Bammy Awards. He is survived by his wife, Robin, and his daughters, Leena and Bernice.