<back - BONNIE RAITT - Born to a musical family, Bonnie Raitt is the daughter of celebrated Broadway singer John Raitt and accomplished pianist/singer Marge Goddard. She was raised in Los Angeles, in a climate of respect for the arts, Quaker traditions, and a commitment to social activism. A Stella guitar given to her as a Christmas present launched Bonnie on her creative journey at the age of eight. While growing up, though passionate about music from the start, she never considered that it would play a greater role than as one of her many growing interests. She was already deeply involved with Folk music and the Blues at that time, listening to the Blues Masters.

Exposure to the album Blues at Newport 1963 at age 14 had kindled her interest in the Blues and slide guitar, and between classes at Harvard she explored these and other styles in local coffeehouse gigs, nightclubs and college pubs. Three years after entering college, Bonnie left to commit herself full-time to music, and shortly afterward found herself opening for surviving giants of the Blues. From Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker she learned first-hand lessons in Blues and created her style. "I'm certain that it was an incredible gift for me to not only be friends with some of the greatest Blues people who've ever lived, but to learn how they played, how they sang, how they lived their lives, ran their marriages, and talked to their kids, I was especially lucky as so many of them are no longer with us." states Bonnie. Over the next 7 years she would record 6 albums. Give It Up, Takin' My Time, and Home Plate were followed in 1977 by Sweet Forgiveness, which featured her first hit single, a gritty Memphis arrangement of Del Shannon's 'Runaway'. 3 Grammy nominations followed in the 1980s, as she released The Glow, Green Light, and Nine Lives. In 1989, she achieved new levels of popular and critical acclaim for her work. She won 4 Grammy Awards in 1990, 3 for her Nick of Time album and 1 for her duet with John Lee Hooker for his breakthrough album, The Healer. Within weeks, the album shot to #1. Luck of the Draw (1991) brought even more success, firing 2 hit singles, Something to Talk About and I Can't Make You Love Me up the charts, and adding 3 more Grammys onto her shelf. She has also featured Blues artists such as Kim Wilson, Jimmie Vaughan, Ruth Brown, and BB King on her recordings. On March 6, 2000, Bonnie was inducted into the Rock&Roll Hall of Fame. This was followed by her welcome, along with her father, into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame in June 2002. Bonnie Raitt continues to use her growing influence to affect the way Blues music is perceived and appreciated in the world.  MP3 - Love Me like a Man |