Fathers and Sons
Studio album /Live album by Muddy Waters
Released	August 1969 (1969-08)
Recorded	April 21–23, 1969 at Tel Mar Studios inChicago, Illinois[1] April 24, 1969 at the Super Cosmic Joy-Scout Jamboree in Chicago, Illinois[1]
Genre	Chicago blues
Length	64:32
Label	Chess
Producer	Norman Dayron[1]
Muddy Waters chronology
After the Rain (1969) Fathers and Sons (1969) Live at Mr. Kelly's (1971)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings	[4]
Rolling Stone	favorable[3]

Fathers and Sons is the seventh studio album by the Americanblues musicianMuddy Waters, released as adoubleLP byChess Records in August1969.

The album contains both studio and live recordings recorded in April 1969 inChicago, Illinois, with an all-star band, includingMichael Bloomfield andPaul Butterfield of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band,Donald "Duck" Dunn ofBooker T. & the M.G.'s,Otis Spann, andSam Lay.

The album was Waters's biggest mainstream success, reaching #70 on theBillboard 200, which was his only appearance in the top half of the chart. Waters would not make another appearance on the 200 untilHard Again in 1977.^[5]

According toMarshall Chess,Fathers and Sons came about when Mike Bloomfield said that he and Paul Butterfield wanted to do an album with Muddy Waters while in Chicago for a charity concert. Chess rounded up Donald "Duck" Dunn,Otis Spann, and Sam Lay for the studio sessions.^[6]

While some blues purists criticized Waters's "psychedelic" albumElectric Mud,Fathers and Sons was received more favorably since it avoided psychedelia, instead showcasing his "classic" sound of the 1950s. In many ways, the album anticipated his later, critically acclaimed, albums produced byJohnny Winter.

The studio disc of the album was recorded on April 21–23, 1969, at Ter Mar Studios. These sides wereengineered byRon Malo and featured rhythm guitarist Paul Asbell, who did not play on the live songs.

The live songs were recorded on April 24, 1969, at the Super Cosmic Joy-Scout Jamboree. These sides were engineered byReice Hamel. DrummerBuddy Miles played on the second part of "Got My Mojo Working".

The producer on all sessions was Norman Dayron, who would go on to produceThe London Howlin' Wolf Sessions in 1970, among other items.^[1]

The cover illustration forFathers and Sons was created by Don Wilson and was based onMichelangelo's design on theSistine Chapel. The original album's design was by Daily Planet^[1] and was packaged in a foldout sleeve.^[7] The 2001MCA Records expanded reissue featured a reissued design by Mike Fink.

All songs written byMcKinley Morganfield, except where indicated.

Side A (studio)

1. "All Aboard" – 2:50
2. "Mean Disposition" – 5:42
3. "Blow Wind Blow" – 3:35
4. "Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had" – 3:03
5. "Walkin' Thru The Park" – 3:07

Side B (studio)

1. "Forty Days and Forty Nights" (Bernard Roth) – 3:04
2. "Standin' Round Crying" – 4:01
3. "I'm Ready" (Willie Dixon) – 3:33
4. "Twenty Four Hours" (Eddie Boyd) – 4:46
5. "Sugar Sweet" (Mel London) – 2:16

Side C (live)

1. "Long Distance Call" – 6:35
2. "Baby, Please Don't Go" (Big Joe Williams) – 3:05
3. "Honey Bee" – 3:57

Side D (live)

1. "The Same Thing" (Dixon) – 6:00
2. "Got My Mojo Working, Part 1" (Preston Foster, Morganfield) – 3:39
3. "Got My Mojo Working, Part 2" (Foster, Morganfield) – 5:33

1. "All Aboard" – 2:52
2. "Mean Disposition" – 5:42
3. "Blow Wind Blow" – 3:38
4. "Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had" – 3:06
5. "Walkin' Thru The Park" – 3:21
6. "Forty Days And Forty Nights" (Roth) – 3:08
7. "Standin' Round Cryin'" – 4:05
8. "I'm Ready" (Dixon) – 3:39
9. "Twenty Four Hours" (Boyd) – 4:48
10. "Sugar Sweet" – 2:18
11. "Country Boy"* – 3:20 (bonus track)
12. "I Love the Life I Live (I Live the Life I Love)"* (Dixon) – 2:45 (bonus track)
13. "Oh Yeah"* (Dixon) – 3:38 (bonus track)
14. "I Feel So Good"* (Big Bill Broonzy) – 3:00 (bonus track)
15. "Long Distance Call"+ – 6:37 (recorded live)
16. "Baby, Please Don't Go"+ (Williams) – 3:03 (recorded live)
17. "Honey Bee"+ – 3:56 (recorded live)
18. "The Same Thing"+ (Dixon) – 5:59 (recorded live)
19. "Got My Mojo Working, Part 1"+ (Foster, Morganfield) – 3:22 (recorded live)
20. "Got My Mojo Working, Part 2"+ (Foster, Morganfield) – 5:11 (recorded live)

• Muddy Waters –vocals,guitar
• Otis Spann –piano
• Michael Bloomfield – guitar
• Paul Butterfield –harmonica
• Donald Dunn –bass guitar
• Sam Lay –drums
• Paul Asbell –rhythm guitar
• Buddy Miles – drums on "Got My Mojo Working, Part 2"
• Jeff Carp –chromatic harmonica on "All Aboard"
• Phil Upchurch – bass guitar on "All Aboard"

Technical

• Norman Dayron –producer
• Ron Malo –engineer
• Reice Hamel –engineer in Live Sessions

• Fathers and Sons atDiscogs (list of releases)
• Fathers and Sons. Expanded Reissue at Yahoo! Music

• Muddy Waters albums
• 1969 albums
• 1969 live albums
• Chess Records albums
• Chess Records live albums
• MCA Records albums
• MCA Records live albums

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