Elvin Bishop

Elvin Richard Bishop (born October 21, 1942) is an American blues and rock music singer, guitarist, bandleader, and songwriter. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in 2015, and in the Blues Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2016.

Early life and education Bishop was born in Glendale, California, the son of Mylda (nee Kleege) and Elvin Bishop Sr. He grew up on a farm near Elliott, Iowa. His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, when he was 10. There, he attended Will Rogers High School, winning a full scholarship to the University of Chicago as a National Merit Scholar. He moved to Chicago in 1960 to attend the university, where he majored in physics.

Career In 1963, Bishop met harmonica player Paul Butterfield in the neighborhood of Hyde Park, joined Butterfield's blues band, and remained with them for five years. Bishop was originally Butterfield's only guitarist, but was later joined by Mike Bloomfield, who largely assumed the lead guitar role for the band's first two albums. After Bloomfield departed, the Butterfield Band's third album, The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw, took its name from Bishop's nickname and his renewed role as lead guitarist.

In 1968, he went solo and formed the Elvin Bishop Group, also performing with Bloomfield and Al Kooper on their album titled The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper. The group signed with Fillmore Records, which was owned by Bill Graham, who also owned the Fillmore music venues.

Bishop sat in with the Grateful Dead on June 8, 1969, at the Fillmore West in San Francisco. He opened the second set with the lengthy blues jam "Turn on Your Lovelight" without Pigpen or Jerry. He played two more songs with the Dead, "The Things I Used to Do" and "Who's Lovin' You Tonight."

In March 1971, the Elvin Bishop Group and the Allman Brothers Band co-billed a series of concerts at the Fillmore East. Bishop joined the Allman Brothers Band onstage for a rendition of his own song, "Drunken-Hearted Boy". Over the years, Bishop has recorded with many other blues artists, such as John Lee Hooker, and with Zydeco artist Clifton Chenier. In late 1975, he played guitar for a few tracks on Bo Diddley's The 20th Anniversary of Rock 'n' Roll album and, in 1995, he toured with B.B. King. In 1976, he released his most memorable single, "Fooled Around and Fell in Love", which peaked at number three in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart

During the 1960s and 1970s, he recorded for the Fillmore, Epic, and Capricorn labels. In 2008, Bishop released The Blues Rolls On, on September 23, 2008, switching labels to Delta Groove Music. He was supported by Tommy Castro, James Cotton, Warren Haynes, B.B. King, Derek Trucks, George Thorogood, Kim Wilson, John Németh, and Angela Strehli. The album was nominated for Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album. In 2010, Bishop released Red Dog Speaks.

His first live concert DVD, That's My Thing: Elvin Bishop Live in Concert, was recorded live at the Club Fox in Redwood City, California, on December 17, 2011. It was released on the Delta Groove label in October 2012. The DVD was nominated for Best Blues DVD of 2012 by the Blues Foundation. The same organization announced that Bishop had six nominations for the 36th Blues Music Awards held in May 2015. He triumphed in three of them.

In April 2015, Bishop was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an original member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.

In November 2017, his album Elvin Bishop's Big Fun Trio received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album. The Grammy was won by the Rolling Stones for Blue and Lonesome.

In November 2021, his album with Charlie Musselwhite, 100 Years of Blues, received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album. Bishop lost to Cedric Burnside for his album I Be Trying.

Personal life Bishop's daughter Selina and ex-wife Jennifer Villarin were murdered along with three other victims in an August 2000 crime spree. The perpetrators were later identified as Selina's then-boyfriend Glen Helzer, Helzer's brother Justin Helzer, and accomplice Dawn Godman. The murders reportedly occurred as part of a scheme to extort money from an elderly couple from Concord, California. Both killers were sentenced to death for the murders; Justin Helzer, blind and partially paralyzed from an attempt on his own life while incarcerated, subsequently committed suicide in San Quentin prison.

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums YearAlbumUS UK Certification 1974 "Travelin' Shoes" 61 — 1975 "Sure Feels Good" 83 — 1976 "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" 3 34 US: Gold "Struttin' My Stuff" 68 — "Spend Some Time" 93 —