Blues Hall of Fame Names 2020 Inductees

The Blues Foundation’s Blues Hall of Fame has announced its 2020 inductees.

Among the 14 honorees of the 41st class are: Piano-man Eddie Boyd, who scored several hits in the early ’50s (most notably “Five Long Years”) for Chess Records; Harmonica ace Billy Branch, part of the “New Generation of Chicago Blues”; Powerhouse singer Bettye LaVette; Victoria Spivey, best known to general music fans for including a young Bob Dylan on a 1962 recording session as well as for her breakout hit “Black Snake Blues”; Guitarist Syl Johnson, whose politically charged songs “Different Strokes” and “Is It Because I’m Black” have made him a favorite for sampling among hip-hop artists; And the enigmatic George “Harmonica” Smith, who played with legends like Muddy Waters, Big Mama Thornton and Big Joe Turner.

Additionally, revolutionary producer Ralph Peer, who is best known for his formative recordings in the country music field, but first did pioneering work in the blues world (including co-producing the Mamie Smith historic 1920 “Crazy Blues” session), is 2020’s honoree in the Individual (Business, Media & Academic) category, while biography Earl Hooker, Blues Master, written by French writer/producer/translator, and American roots music authority, Sebastian Danchin, will be inducted as a Classic of Blues Literature.

Howlin’ Wolf: The Chess Box is 2020’s Classic of Blues Recording: Album, while the five Classic of Blues Recording: Singles are: Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s original recording of “That’s All Right (Mama),” later made famous by Elvis Presley; Bertha “Chippie” Hill’s 1926 hit version of the oft-recorded “Trouble in Mind”; “Future Blues,” an exemplary example of Pattonesque blues by early-Delta bluesman Willie Brown, and two tunes from the early ’50s — “3 O’Clock Blues,” B.B. King’s first breakout song and No. 1 R&B hit in 1952, and Ruth Brown’s remarkable rendition of “Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean,” 1953’s best-selling R&B record. 

The Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, held in conjunction with Blues Music Awards Week, will take place on Wednesday, May 6, 2020, a,t the Halloran Centre at the Orpheum (225 S. Main St., Memphis). A cocktail reception honoring the BHOF inductees and Blue Music Awards nominees will begin at 5:30 p.m., with the formal inductions commencing at 6:30 p.m. in the Halloran Theater.

Tickets, which include the ceremony and reception admission, are $75 each and will be available starting on Tuesday, January 7, as will Blues Music Awards tickets.

Coinciding with the Induction Ceremony, the Blues Hall of Fame Museum will showcase a number of special items representing each of the Hall’s new inductees. These artifacts will be on display for public viewing beginning the week of the BHOF inductions and will remain enshrined in the museum throughout the next 12 months. The museum (421 S. Main St.) is open 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays and 1–5 p.m. on Sundays. Admission is $10 for adults and $8 for students with ID; free for children 12 and younger and for Blues Foundation members. Membership is available for as a little as $25 per person; to join visit www.blues.org/