In the Chicago blues harp club, Bill Lupkin has the chops, the tone, the attitude and the dues paid in full for Real Deal status.

Fort Wayne, Indiana product Lupkin made his way to Chicago at the end of the 1960s in quest of the blues scene, which was then most often found in unpretentious south and west side clubs. There he fell in with the Aces, and when the legendary Jimmy Rogers emerged from retirement and teamed up with Johnny Littlejohn, Lupkin took the harp chair, finding himself on the bandstand backing his idols like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf and Junior Wells, often at Ma Bea’s at Madison and Sacramento. After recording on Rogers’ Gold Tailed Bird album (produced by Freddie King), Bill and his bassist brother Steve organized a band called Slamhammer and made an ill-fated move to Los Angeles. Though Bill’s influence during his stay on then-fledgling harp player Mark Hummel is detailed in Hummel’s liner notes to Where I Come From, the time out west ended badly and Bill returned to Fort Wayne to run his stained glass business and raise a large family. Happily for blues lovers, he never lost his fiery, fat-toned, vibrato-laden harp style or his passion for Chicago blues. Eventually he become more active again, recording his own debut CD live at the Hot Spot in Fort Wayne, and crossed paths with Nick Moss during the recording in 2000 of Big Bill Morganfield’s Ramblin’ Mind CD. Now he and Moss have joined forces with an album which is a credit to both.

For the all-original program on his 2006 release, Where I Come From, Lupkin says “the whole idea was writing songs that I relate to certain artists. It was done with the intent to pay tribute and thanks to people like Junior [Wells], Wolf, Jimmy [Rogers], Johnny Littlejohn, who didn’t have to treat me like they did. It was very easy, it felt good as compared to just doing cover songs or something slicker and more unique. Sometimes on a project the comfort zone goes away and I can tell which songs it was there for, but on this one I like ‘em all!” Thus we can recognize the essence of Howlin’ Wolf and Hubert Sumlin in “Move Out To The Country,” Jimmy Rogers in “Bad Feelin’,” Johnny Young in “What You Gonna Do,” Junior Wells in “What’s With That?” and onward through the song list.

The welcome the Chicago blues community extended to Bill Lupkin when he arrived is understandable. No doubt Bill’s elders (and employers) recognized what is still paramount in his music: not just the honorable motivations of sincerity, genuineness and respect, but a talent and feel for the idiom well worth their time and trust. Those assets make Where I Come From a joy thirty-five years later.


Blues Veteran Bill Lupkin Offers Healthy Dose of Tasty Blues (BB1011)
Harp master Bill Lupkin returns for his second Blue Bella album after getting rave reviews for his first label release, Where I Come From (2006). “This guy is one savvy harp player, and you better know that he’s got the chops that only experience and faith can give you,” said BluesSource.com in its review. “What a CD! This is true talent. If you love harp players, you’re gonna get off on this CD. Raw, energetic and faithful to the max, Lupkin pulls it all off with the strength of a winner.”

On Hard Pill To Swallow, Lupkin continues on the blues path set by his last album with another dose of tasty blues harp, soulful singing and 14 original songs that display his blues pedigree like a badge of courage. And Bill is a true blues veteran, slugging it out in the bars and clubs on Chicago’s west, north and south sides back in the day with true geniuses such as Howlin’ Wolf, The Aces (Little Walter’s band) with Johnny Young, Jimmy Rogers, Willie Dixon, Sunnyland Slim and Eddie Taylor. A later trip to California saw him in a band backing the likes of T-Bone Walker, Pee Wee Crayton, Lowell Fulson and Roy Milton.

Backing Lupkin’s harmonica and vocals on Hard Pill To Swallow are Nick Moss on guitar, Gerry Hundt on guitar and mandolin, Tim Wire on keyboards, brother Steve Lupkin on bass and Mark Fornek on drums.