About Time: The Unsung Genius of Steve Winwood

SULLIVAN

Copyright © 2018 Chuck Sullivan.

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This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

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ISBN: 978-1-4834-7746-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4834-7745-9 (e)

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Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 01/05/2018

This book is dedicated to Mary Teenie Mom Sullivan who passed on her 99th birthday, living life on her own terms.

Special thanks to Susanna Sullivan for her love and support, and to Lisa and Michael for keeping me young at heart.

Prelude

This book is about Steve Winwood’s legendary musical journey. Steve Winwood has been creating his own form of R&B genres for over 50 years, and is an international star. His muse infuses elements from blues, folk, rock, funk, pop and most recently Latin rhythms.

Start a catalog of his talents and achievements and you will see he really is in a class all his own. First there is his immediately recognizable blue-eyed soulful voice that has been heard by several generations — that alone puts him on the short list of the great singers of our time. His voice came to him at the age of 15, and he still hits that high C today! His singing by itself makes him a superstar but Winwood is also an extremely talented multi-instrumentalist who is an accomplished Hammond B-3 organist, synthesizer keyboardist, guitarist, drummer, percussionist, and bassist.

He has performed and recorded with huge ensembles that feature guest appearances by Eric Clapton, Chaka Khan, Joe Walsh, Nile Rodgers, James Taylor and the Muscle Shoals session players. From the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, Blind Faith, and as a solo artist, Winwood has skillfully reinvented himself multiple times, with his present-day music being a tight percussive Latin R&B quintet.

Consider his whole history of hit songs: Gimme Some Lovin’, I’m A Man, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys, Dear Mr. Fantasy, Can’t Find My Way Home, Higher Love, Back in the Highlife Again, Roll With It and the list goes on.

He is a session player who has played with many of his peers including Clapton, Hendrix, Harrison, Santana and Petty. Winwood has made solo albums where he wrote, played, sang, engineered, and produced the entire recording — by himself. He is a master in the studio.

Within this book you’ll find first hand interviews with some of the most consummate musicians of our time who have performed with Winwood, including Andy Newmark, Russ Kunkel, Michael Rhodes, Dave Pomeroy; and exclusive new question and answers with more recent bandmates Walfredo Reyes, Jr. and Jose Neto; as well as producer Johnson Somerset who worked with Winwood on two albums.

He’s the musician’s musician. He’s the perfect bandmate and band leader. There is no one like him in the history of popular music. It’s about time he was properly recognized for his contributions.

Steve Winwood’s Discography

The following is a list of the major releases and some compilation albums. It does not include Winwood’s every anthology, contributions on other artist’s records, or partial album releases.

✓ 1965 Spencer Davis Group, Their First LP

✓ 1966 Spencer Davis Group, The Second Album

✓ 1966 Spencer Davis Group, Autumn ‘66

✓ 1966 Spencer Davis Group, I’m A Man

✓ 1967 Spencer Davis Group, Gimme Some Lovin’

✓ 1967 Traffic, Mr. Fantasy

✓ 1968 Traffic

✓ 1969 Last Exit, Traffic

✓ 1969 Blind Faith

✓ 1970 John Barleycorn Must Die, Traffic

✓ 1971 The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys, Traffic

✓ 1971 Welcome to the Canteen

✓ 1971 The Best of the Spencer Davis Group

✓ 1972 Shoot Out at the Fantasy Factory, Traffic

✓ 1972 Winwood and Friends

✓ 1974 When the Eagle Flies, Traffic

✓ 1977 Steve Winwood

✓ 1980 Arc of a Diver

✓ 1982 Talking Back to the Night

✓ 1986 Back in the Highlife

✓ 1987 Chronicles

✓ 1988 Winwood, Roll With It

✓ 1990 Refugees of the Heart

✓ 1991 Keep on Running

✓ 1994 Far From Home

✓ 1995 The Finer Things

✓ 1997 Steve Winwood Junction 7

✓ 1999 The Best of Steve Winwood

✓ 2003 Steve Winwood About Time

✓ 2005 The Last Great Traffic Jam

✓ 2008 Steve Winwood Nine Lives

✓ 2009 Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood Live From Madison Square Garden

✓ 2010 Revolutions – The Very Best of Steve Winwood

✓ 2017 Steve Winwood, Greatest Hits Live

Intro

Steve Winwood does not need to be compared to anyone. He is after all Steve Winwood. He’s actually created several genres of music. Within his remarkable musical arc he’s played forms of infused soul that includes blues, folk, rock, psychedelic, funk, fusion, progressive rock, pop and most recently Latin R&B. Yet Steve Winwood is often overlooked as one of the most accomplished musicians in popular music.

Start a catalog of his achievements and you’ll see he really is in a class all his own. First there’s his immediately recognizable voice that has been heard by several generations — that alone puts him on the short list of the great singers of our time. He can evoke a spiritual theme, nail a rhythmic dance groove, or deliver a pensive and thoughtful message. For over 50 years his blue-eyed soulful, soprano voice puts him in a singular register. He still hits that high C today. You’ve danced to his voice. You’ve spaced out on his melodies. You may have been inspired by his gentle uplifting themes of self-awareness. It’s a voice that can do all of these things — and it came to him at the age of 15!

Winwood is an accomplished player of several instruments including the Hammond B-3 organ (one of the most difficult instruments used in pop music), synthesizer (another incredibly hard instrument to master), guitar, bass, and drums. He’s even dabbled with wind instruments. Winwood can play virtually any part he hears in his head, and he continues to improve with age.

Then consider the whole history of hit songs: Gimme Some Lovin’, I’m A Man, Pearly Queen, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys, Dear Mr. Fantasy, Can’t Find My Way Home, Glad, Empty Pages, Higher Love, Back in the Highlife Again, While You See a Chance, Don’t You Know What the Night Can Do?, Roll With It — and the list goes on. What makes this achievement more remarkable is he collaborated with several lyricists, all of which resulted in hits.

From the Spencer Davis Group, through Traffic, Blind Faith, and his incredible solo career, Winwood has written iconic hit songs over five decades with every band. Each group he’s assembled includes a wide range of instrumentation, grooves, and influences, allowing him to create different sounds and styles of music. While stylistically he has a solid underlying blues/R&B foundation, Winwood also explores atypical genres. From progressive-rock to trippy music and fat down in the middle of funk, Winwood combines instruments and tones, especially synthesizers, never before or since used in popular music.

For a single musician to be a world class singer, a hit song writer, be proficient on multiple instruments, and the mainstay of numerous bands puts Winwood in a select group of great artists… though mysteriously Winwood isn’t typically brought up in the same conversation as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, or The Who, or even the same level of acclaim as Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton or Elton John. Yet he’s more than achieved equal skills as a musician.

Winwood’s expertise does not stop in absorbing instruments. He’s used his talents to learn how to be a brilliant studio visionary, and is a proven recording engineer and producer — which is an art in itself. It’s rare indeed to excel on both sides of the recording booth with such skill and imagination. At one point in his career he created albums by himself, playing all the instruments, engineering all the recording, and producing the final product. At other times he’s used a huge ensemble of guest artists, managed different rhythm sections and incorporated featured instruments. He’s done it all.

He’s also an experienced session player who has recorded with many of his peers including: George Harrison, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Robert Palmer, Joe Cocker, Lou Reed, Billy Joel, Leon Russell, and Muddy Waters. Winwood’s inspired organ question and response jam on Jimi Hendrix’s (arguably the most influential guitarist in the history of rock music) Voodoo Chile, is especially amazing. It’s understandable why anyone would want Winwood on their record because he makes them sound better.

His skills in the studio led him to Japanese fusion, Latin salsa, and African rhythms. Winwood is one of those rare players who feels at home with any musical style, can sit down at his keyboard and just play along; creating a part that fits perfectly in any genre.

And he’s still touring, playing songs from the past 50 years to a widely diverse fan base. He enjoys performing in front of an audience so much that he’ll put up with the challenges of being on tour, playing his hits but with a new interpretation. Only a true musician who loves creating a live music connection can endure being on the road for so long.

To top it off he has balanced a musician’s life with being a husband and father of four — that may be unprecedented given the amount of money and fame involved. Not every legendary musician of Winwood’s caliber comes home to Nashville or Gloucestershire to eat dinner with his family. To this day he still plays organ for his church choir in England every week when he’s in town.

Winwood has never been the bad boy of rock, or the tempestuous artist, or even made the gossip column much and perhaps this explains his relative lack of fame. Whatever drug experimentation he tried did not draw headlines. He doesn’t take on the role as a spokesperson for the latest cause. Winwood believes music reflects the times rather than acting as a catalyst for change, though ironically some of his songs provided a backdrop for many social movements. He remains focused on channeling his talents, exploring the nuances of music, and continuing to improve on piano, Hammond B-3, synthesizer, guitar, percussion and bass — as well as songwriting. And his voice is as strong as ever.

Traffic was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. Dave Mathews was the presenter, from one prog-rock musician to another. Chris Wood had passed on but Jim Capaldi, Dave Mason, and Steve Winwood accepted the award.

The Recording Academy awarded Winwood four Grammys. His album Back in the Highlife won three Grammys: Record of the Year, Best Pop Male Vocal, and Best Engineered Recording. Two years later in 1988, his album Roll With It, earned another Grammy for Best Engineered Recording.

Winwood’s accomplishments make this book read like a Dicken’s novel, each chapter has a cliff hanger as we consider Winwood’s next move. It’s amazing how in retrospect his album titles casually describe the next chapter of his life: within the fantasy culture of musical traffic, Winwood had blind faith in his talents, transcending with grace like the arc of a diver; finding himself time and again back in the highlife of his career, rolling with it, finding refuge in his heart, and aware of time — he used all of his nine lives to brilliantly perform for over five decades in the public eye.

As Steuart Smith (guitarist, producer and songwriter for the Eagles, Rodney Crowell, and Rosanne Cash among many others) told me: "One of the things that’s so impressive to me has been the way that Winwood has reinvented himself so many times — I mean, the guy’s had like five or six separate careers — Spencer Davis, Traffic, Blind Faith, Traffic again, solo, Traffic again, Arc of a Diver, Higher Love — all of these phases had years in between them where you might have said, ‘Whatever happened to Steve Winwood?’ and, next thing you know, there he was again. Always distinctively himself and always great."

So what hasn’t he done? Although he’s had numerous offers, he hasn’t done a Motown retrospective album or a duet singing old standards — that would be certain to make big bucks. He hasn’t recorded a holiday album or paired up with another well-known artist to re-energize his image. Even at this point in his career he would rather control the direction of his music than be forced into commercialism. He’s still writing songs. He’s got something to say.

Johnson Somerset (Winwood’s associate producer on About Time and Nine Lives) told me in an interview: "Winwood’s single greatest asset is his ability to push the envelope. He’s been approached by business executives to do duets or other money making ventures, but Winwood won’t do it."

Despite all his achievements, his name is probably not on the tip of your tongue when you consider the most accomplished musicians of our time. Though he’s financially successful, has mastered several instruments, is a hit maker, and sings his heart out — he’s still a hidden gem — but that doesn’t seem to bother him. In fact, that’s the way he wants it. He’s deliberately a player — not a pop star. I suspect he’s confident in his musicianship because he already feels loved by his family and respected by his peers — fame would be a poor substitute. Winwood has often noted he was always keen on being a musician rather than being a music star.

Russ Kunkel (drummer for Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young and Carol King among many others) said to me with admiration: Steve Winwood is the best band leader that I’ve ever worked with in my entire career. He’s a tremendous drummer. He knows exactly what kind of feel and what he wants from drums and if you’re not doing it he can sit down and show it to you. He’s a guitar player extraordinaire. Just absolutely brilliant guitar player. His keyboard prowess is really second to none. I mean he wrote the book on so many of those organ parts. As a pianist he’s soulful and sensual. And he probably has one of the best rock and roll voices of all time.

Jon Carroll (singer, keyboardist, guitarist with The Starland Vocal Band, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and his own band) told me: Steve Winwood takes that even farther with his tracks, including his rather under-appreciated guitar playing (I know more than a few Nashville first-call guitarists who swoon over his fretwork) and he manages to keep it loose while filling out the arrangements thoughtfully.

Andy Newmark (drummer for John Lennon, Sly and the Family Stone, Roxy Music and many others) summed it up to me this way: The nice thing about talking about Steve Winwood is there is nothing negative that one can say about him. He’s a beautiful human being and a monster talent. If I could be around people like him all the time life would be wonderful.

As with every firsthand interview in this book, Winwood appears to be the consummate musician and drama-free bandleader who everyone admires.

Winwood walks the walk. He’s a player who took control of his career because of his remarkable vocal and instrumental skills, combined with his confidence and his humble ambitions. This should be the goal of every true musician but all too frequently players get caught up in the business or the image and forget what inspired them to spend hours a day learning an instrument. Of course it helped (and comes as no surprise) that Winwood has almost always been signed to a record deal, allowing him to focus on his music instead of selling himself.

He’s the musician’s musician. He’s the perfect bandmate and band leader. There’s no one like him in the history of rock music. This book is about Steve Winwood’s amazing and evolving musical journey. He should receive proper acknowledgement for his contributions to popular music. It’s about time.

About this book

When I started this book I was very familiar with the music of Traffic, Blind Faith, and half of Winwood’s solo efforts. Like many of his fans I’m drawn to the early bands because that’s when I was of the age to begin to feel the power of music. Since those days I’ve explored drumming, percussion, teaching, songwriting, and producing shows.

Similar to Winwood’s time spent in a rural English cottage, my musician friends and I would gather in a suburban basement to jam on Traffic, Blind Faith, and Spencer Davis songs for hours. To this day the bands I’m in often play the party pleaser Gimme Some Lovin’ to close a gig because it’s a sure fire hit on the dance floor. That song was written 50 years ago!

Like Traffic drummer Jim Capaldi, I’m a drummer/percussionist who writes songs for someone else to sing. I can play both guitar and piano enough to compose. I’ve played this role in numerous bands for several different great vocalists including John Jennings, Tom Lofgren, and Tommy Lepson. They all have engaging and emotive voices but they have different abilities with tonality and range which required me to write to each singer’s strengths. So I understand Capaldi’s role within the songwriting process and can relate to how this type of collaboration impacted the songs. Capaldi only had Winwood’s voice to consider when writing, which over time may have made his job a little easier as he came to understand his tendencies. It helps when the singer can basically sing any note you can think up. Though one big difference is Capaldi had a strong voice, something I don’t share but envy.

I continued to be a Winwood fan without even realizing it. I bought Arc of a Diver, Back in the Highlife, and Junction Seven because I liked the songs — not because I was following Winwood’s career. I also really like the Traffic reunion album Far From Home. Winwood has always connected with my musical mind.

I heard Winwood at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. in 1997. It wasn’t sold out even though just a short time before he had his mega-hits Higher Love, Back in the Highlife, and Roll With It among others. It was an inspired show, and Winwood pleased the audience by performing several songs from all phases of his illustrious career… but I couldn’t help think that maybe his star was fading.

As I dug deeper into Winwood’s career I became familiar with his other solo efforts but I wasn’t as impressed with certain albums that, while played well, seemed to be trying for commercial success with no heart. I’d hoped that my research would discover some new Winwood music I hadn’t previously heard that would show how he’d evolved in his playing and his songwriting. However, several of the songs from the 80’s and 90’s were mediocre, almost cliché, and I began to wonder if his best music was prior to 1994.

BandHouse Gigs Tribute Poster

Artwork by Gina Cocco, Photo by Chuck Sullivan

I’m co-founder of a Washington D.C.-based production company called BandHouse Gigs. After 10 years and 20 tributes to iconic stars and musical movements we paid homage to the music of Steve Winwood and Traffic at The Barns at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia on April 3, 2015. I wrote the liner notes for the program and became educated and impressed with how unique Winwood is in the history of modern music. We performed 28 Winwood songs including a medley I musically arranged of three instrumental sections — Glad, Mozambique, and Night Train — that brought on a standing ovation.

I wanted to learn more about the man and his music but there are only two books written about him and both of them were published in 1989. Searching the Internet, I became more intrigued with each interview and article. I purchased all his albums I could find to read the cover notes. I thought this would make an interesting book for a deserving and somewhat under-appreciated artist.

I had the breakthrough I was searching for when I discovered the album About Time released in 2003. This release did not have any huge hits so it stayed under the radar unless you were following Winwood’s career.

About Time is inspired, unique and the performances are superb. Winwood had reinvented himself again by combining different genres into his own Latin R&B sound. He surrounded himself with incredibly talented international musicians and producers creating (now) one of my favorite Winwood albums. By combining great players with his voice, Winwood went outside his comfort zone to integrate rhythms and grooves from South America and Africa — the result is a new sound from an artist who had already created numerous new sounds.

Just as important, my research helped me realize that Winwood is a musician first and foremost. Of course he needs to release product to stay in the public eye, but that was always a means to an end. From his beginnings, Winwood just wanted to play music in front of an audience and record in the studio. He’s never been interested in fame or pop stardom and stayed true to his destiny by learning the art of performance in all its many forms. As he has stated many times, he was grateful life had given him the skills and the opportunity to live out his dream.

As great as About Time and the next album Nine Lives are in showing how his music has evolved over 50 years, the real story here is Winwood’s personal evolution as a musician. His voice was enough to make him a superstar — there is no one like him — but he offers so much more. He started on guitar and piano but went on to explore the complicated Hammond B-3 organ, which requires the dexterity of all four appendages. Using the foot pedals and keyboard he wrote integrated and funky bass lines. He could have stopped at being a singer/keyboardist and been considered a brilliant musician. But he’s also become a great guitarist who matches all the other American blues-based guitar players who influenced him. He understands drums and percussion enough to play them or provide direction without micromanaging. And Winwood’s prowess at playing synthesizers is second to none, creating brand new sounds that are now considered iconic.

I heard him perform at the Jiffy Lube Center in Virginia on July 12th, 2016. Winwood was opening up for Steely Dan so his 5-piece band set up in front of the 17-piece headliner. He set up on the floor of the stage with no risers and none of this deterred him from playing like a headliner. He performed songs from over 50 years of making albums, and almost every song received a standing ovation. It was nice to see that the audience knew they were being treated to two headliners and Winwood again made a personal, musical connection with a huge audience.

Over the years Winwood has consented to numerous radio, TV and video interviews making it possible for me to consider the many aspects of his career from multiple viewpoints over time. Occasionally the interviewer seemed not to understand the importance of Winwood’s contributions to music. Watching the interview I was amazed at how calm and collected Winwood always appears. He never loses his head whether it’s leading a band, producing a record, or dealing with an uninformed critic. As relaxed as Winwood appears, he’s an observer of people and always a gentleman. Having listened to numerous interviews I’ve noticed Winwood is extremely polite and unassuming. No matter how obnoxious the interviewer might be, he just lets it go: That’s a good point but… As Russ Kunkel pointed out to me: Make no mistake, he’s making mental notes to never see that person again.

I met Steve Winwood on May 1, 2017. He was performing at The Warner Theater in Washington D.C. I provide a more detailed description of our meeting at the end of the book. Winwood was as gracious as had been described to me by so many people. While he is supportive of this book, he declined to comment as he believes the book is more credible without his input. As Andy Newmark told me: It’s all about the music for him, and he doesn’t blow his own horn, ever. I of course respect his preference.

Although Winwood was always involved in the lyrics, and sometimes was the sole author, he’s also worked with several lyricists. Collaboration is his forte and his preference. It’s clear that as the song evolved Winwood would make the final lyric edits to fit the melody and in that process the message would sometimes change. Since most people relate to songs via the lyrics, and because Winwood is ultimately the creator of the composition, I decided to single out songs Winwood is credited with writing and provide some critical analysis. It’s fascinating to decipher the words and consider how they are integrated with the music to create a mood or a theme. I hope the reader enjoys my interpretations. Obviously any good song can inspire multiple interpretations that are all valid.

During my research I found numerous factual errors on the Internet and in the media which I have attempted to clarify here, though that is a daunting task due to his over 50-year career. The lyrics are from multiple listenings and articles, and were verified from the actual album cover if possible. The acknowledgements for the musicians and production staff on each record were determined by cross-referencing multiple sources including the album, the Internet, print media, and from firsthand interviews. If all else failed I used All-Music for album credits and Discogs.com for noting the first release of each album.

My intent was to write a book that includes all the information about Winwood’s career in one place. When you see all of his accomplishments in this way it really shows how remarkable the arc of his musical journey has been. He truly is one of a kind.

CHAPTER 1

Winwood’s Early Years

Winwood’s family discovered Stevie was a child prodigy before he did. Born in 1948 in Birmingham, England, Winwood was encouraged to perform at the age of 8. His father Lawrence played sax and clarinet and his brother Mervyn ‘Muff’ played guitar. Together the family performed at local social events. Lawrence was a practical man. Winwood’s father believed if you learned how to play an instrument you would never be broke, something he learned from surviving the Great Depression.

There was a rich family history of music but the next generation didn’t initially seem interested. There were always instruments in the house making it easier for the boys to learn how to carry a tune. Muff and Steve performed regularly, forming the Woody Muff Jazz Band, and it eventually became clear that Steve would be the heir to the family throne of musical tradition. Winwood tried on drums and piano before settling on guitar — which he quickly learned, along with bass.

Although Muff had been playing for years, Winwood picked up his guitar and intuitively figured it out. Muff groans in Vintage Guitar Magazine in 2008 written by Dan Forte: Steve was about seven, I think, when he picked up my guitar and said, ‘all you have to do is this’ and started playing. I thought, ‘this is ridiculous.’ I remember throwing it down and saying to my mum, ‘I’m not going to play; it’s a waste of time. Every time I try to play anything, he just picks it up and does it a hundred times better. What chance have I got?’

This story not only chronicles Winwood’s prodigious talents, it also demonstrates the support he received from his brother at an early age when often a competitive relationship between siblings may have led to suppressing the younger kid. This was not the case between Muff and Steve. Muff was impressed and encouraging because he recognized the remarkable talents of his brother. Muff’s ability to see talent would continue to serve him well in other future musical endeavors.

Steve Winwood told Timothy White in 1982 Musician Magazine: My father’s a very sensible man, a very hard-working man — and strict. Neither he nor my mother nor even my grandparents ever drank or smoked. As a result, I think I was much better brought up than most of my friends. Frankly, a big part of my development was the Boy Scouts. I was both a Cub and a Boy Scout. I went straight from the Boy Scouts into rock ‘n’ roll. Fancy that!

Young Winwood studied Elgar and Vaughan Williams in music classes at Great Barr Comprehensive School. Victimized for his forbidden R&B musical leanings, the classically trained Winwood was first expelled from Great Barr Comprehensive and then from the Birmingham and Midland Institute, for the sin of playing rock ‘n’ roll.

Winwood in 1982 Musician Magazine: The headmaster summoned me to his office for a one-sided discussion. I stood before him in my uniform of grey slacks, black blazer with the school crest on the pocket, and green, white and black striped tie, and he sacked me on the spot for playing rock ‘n’ roll. Being sixteen, my attitude was, ‘Well screw you too, geezer!’ But what was most important was that my father and mother backed me up and were not upset that I’d been kicked out. They regarded the whole matter as being thoroughly ridiculous, which I’ve always deeply appreciated.

Photos of Winwood at the time show him in a school sweater with a collared shirt, with hair above his ears and an intelligent expression — hardly a rebellious teenager much less a threat to the integrity of Great Barr. Fortunately for the musical world, the professors at the school saw him differently and promptly eliminated the infection.

So with a character foundation derived from the Boy Scouts and a supportive family, Winwood was able to get expelled without punishment allowing him to follow his muse. He already had classical piano chops but sometimes that can impede an innate feel for the blues or R&B. The incredible voice of the Hammond B-3 organ later helped him make this transition in a very unique way.

Winwood in 2010 English Soul: "I told myself at age 14, ‘In the next year I want to be able to sing like Ray Charles, play harmonica like Little Walter, play guitar like BB King and play keyboards like Oscar Peterson.’ Needless to say, I didn’t really achieve any of those things. But that’s what drove me — self-improvement. There was no other way to do it. You couldn’t go to a man to teach you how to sing like Ray Charles. You probably could now, though. You can probably do a degree in it."

Muff from the same article: So now I had a little brother who could play the guitar better than any of us, play piano better than any of us, and now we had to bring him out front because he could sing better than any of us. So he became quite useful really.

The brothers performed with numerous local jazz, skiffle and blues bands. In 1963 at the age of 15, Winwood met Spencer Davis, a local guitarist, singer, and band leader — 9 years older than Steve Winwood, a huge age difference at that phase of life which shows the impression Winwood could make even on a ‘seasoned’ professional of 24. Davis smartly offered him a job in his band.

Lawrence Winwood allowed his two sons to join the band providing Muff would watch out for his younger brother. That was the end of Winwood’s public school days and the beginning of his professional musical journey. Together with Spencer Davis on guitar and vocals, Pete York on drums and Muff on bass guitar they formed the Spencer Davis Group, a tight R&B band with Winwood now splitting time between guitar and the Hammond organ. During the early 60’s, England had a thriving music scene and the Spencer Davis Group became the band to hear.

CHAPTER 2

The Spencer Davis Group 1963 — 1967

The Spencer Davis Group had a driving blues-based sound and were making a splash on the local music scene as early as 1963. They released four albums while the Winwood brothers were in the band: 1965 Their First LP; 1966 The Second Album; 1966 Autumn ’66; and in 1967 I’m A Man. In addition they recorded a greatest hits album Gimme Some Lovin’ before breaking up. These albums were recorded using a 4-track machine, over-dubbing sub-mixes, and pumping out an incredible song an hour. They needed to be efficient because in spite of the media support and plenty of gigs, the band initially had little backing. Winwood would change all that.

Winwood’s blue-eyed soulful voice had an incredible range. It’s a voice that can be heartwarming, uplifting, and fun — and the amazing part is Winwood’s voice came to him at the age of 15!

Davis told Barbar Charone in a 1977 Crawdaddy interview: "I had been doing a lot of the singing myself, but when Steve sat down at the piano and sang ‘Georgia on My Mind’, I realized I should not be singing around Steve Winwood. His voice used to chill me."

Some critics tried to dismiss Winwood as a Ray Charles wanna-be. They did not understand that he grew up in the world of English soul music and American blues.

Winwood admits in a 2013 radio interview with Laura Duncan on WTTS: Ray Charles influenced me musically by combining rock, jazz, blues, R&B, and gospel.

It was remarkable that Winwood’s voice was so complete at such a young age — he