Little Walter

Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), known as Little Walter, was an American blues musician, singer, and songwriter. His revolutionary approach to the harmonica had a strong impact on the succeeding generations, earning him comparisons to such seminal artists as Django Reinhardt, Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix. His virtuosity and musical innovations fundamentally altered many listeners' expectations of what was possible on blues harmonica. He was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, the first and, to date, only artist to be inducted specifically as a harmonica player.

Birth and Death Data: Born (Marksville (city in and parish seat of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States)), Died February 15, 1968 (Chicago (city and county seat of Cook County, and largest city in State of Illinois, United States of America) )

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1950 - 1958

Roles Represented in DAHR: harmonica, vocalist, songwriter, guitar, leader

Notes: Little Walter's given name is Marion Walter Jacobs.

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 79 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Chess U7261 10-in. June? 1950 You're gonna need my help I said Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7262 10-in. June? 1950 Sad letter blues Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7263 10-in. June? 1950 Early morning blues Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7269 10-in. 8/15/1950 That's all right Jimmy Rogers Trio instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7270 10-in. 8/15/1950 Ludella Jimmy Rogers Trio instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7275 10-in. 10/23/1950 Louisiana blues Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7276 10-in. 10/23/1950 Evan's shuffle Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7312 10-in. 1/23/1951 Wandering lover Eddy Ware Band instrumentalist, guitar  
Chess U7314 10-in. 1/23/1951 Lima beans Eddie Chamblee instrumentalist, guitar  
Chess U7357 10-in. 7/11/1951 Country boy Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7358 10-in. 7/11/1951 She moves me Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7359 10-in. 7/11/1951 My fault Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica, guitar  
Chess U7360 10-in. 7/11/1951 Still a fool Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica, guitar  
Chess U7363 10-in. 7/11/1951 Chance to love Jimmy Roger's Rocking Four instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7414 10-in. 12/29/1951 All night long Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess 7437 10-in. 5/12/1952 Juke Little Walter ; Night Cats instrumentalist, harmonica, vocalist, songwriter  
Chess 7438 10-in. 5/12/1952 Can't hold on much longer Little Walter ; Night Cats vocalist, instrumentalist, harmonica, songwriter  
Chess U7476 10-in. 9/17/1952 Who's gonna be your sweet man Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7501 10-in. 5/4/1953 Turn the lamp down low Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7502 10-in. 5/4/1953 Loving man Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7589 10-in. 1/7/1954 I'm your hoochie kooche man Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7590 10-in. 1/7/1954 She's so pretty Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7591 10-in. 1/7/1954 Blues all day long Jimmy Rogers instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7592 10-in. 1/7/1954 Chicago bound Jimmy Roger's Rocking Four instrumentalist, harmonica  
Chess U7630 10-in. 4/13/1954 Just make love to me Muddy Waters instrumentalist, harmonica  
(Results 1-25 of 79 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Little Walter," accessed January 3, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/376489.

Little Walter. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 3, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/376489.

"Little Walter." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 3 January 2026.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/376489

External Sources

Discogs: Little Walter

Allmusic: Little Walter

Grove: Little Walter

IMDb: Little Walter

Britannica: Little Walter

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Little Walter, 1930-1968 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n82025127

Wikidata: Little Walter - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q380261

VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/7574546

MusicBrainz: Little Walter - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/5545a012-0977-46ff-9d69-39bf5952616f

Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1954257 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1954257

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