Jimmy Dawkins

James Henry "Jimmy" Dawkins (October 24, 1936 – April 10, 2013) was an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer.  He was generally considered a part of the "West Side Sound" of Chicago blues.  He was born in Tchula, Mississippi in 1936.

He moved to Chicago in 1955 and worked in a box factory, and started to play in local blues clubs, gaining a reputation as a session musician.

In 1969, thanks to the efforts of his friend Magic Sam, he released his first album "Fast Fingers" on Delmark Records, winning the "Grand Prix du Disque" from the Hot Club de France.  In 1971 Delmark released his second album "All For Business" with singer, Andrew "Big Voice" Odom, and guitarist, Otis Rush.  Dawkins also toured in the late 1970s backed up by James Solberg (of Luther Allison and The Nighthawks fame) on guitar and Jon Preizler (The Lamont Cranston Band, The Drifters), a Seattle-based Hammond B-3 player known for his soulful jazz-influenced style. With this combination of musicians Dawkins also toured Europe.

Dawkins began to tour in Europe and Japan and recorded more albums in the United States and Europe.  Dawkins also contributed a column to the blues magazine Living Blues.  In the 1980s, he released few recordings but began his record label, Leric Records, and was more interested in promoting other artists, including Taildragger, Queen Sylvia Embry, Little Johnny Christian, and Nora Jean Wallace.

Dawkins died of undisclosed causes on April 10, 2013.

(Jimmy Dawkins at 13th Annual Poconos Blues Festival 2004)