All language subtitles for Johnny.Winter.Down.Dirty.2014.1080p.WEBRip.x264-RARBG.srt-en

[engine running]

[knocking]

[man] Yo, it's
appointment only.

[interviewer]
How are you feeling?

Not as good
as you look.

Jeez.

[Johnny] You look like
Lex Luthor.

It's about 11:45.

[interviewer] Johnny,
we have a goal today.

-What's that?
-Before the trip is over,

-Yep.
-We're gonna come up
with a title for your film.

Wow, that's gonna
be hard.

That's gonna be fun.

[Johnny] Well, I don't
fucking have any idea.

No idea at all.

[interviewer] Say that again?

"Down and Dirty."
Isn't it all that?

" Johnny Winter:
Down and Dirty?"

Yes. That's
a great name.

Hey, Billy!

-We're leaving pretty soon?
-Yep.

What, half an hour?

...told you already.
I know that. He told me.

I said 12:30.

That's right. He said
about 20 minutes,
right?

What's up, rockers?

Hey.

Hi, Johnny,
how're you doing?

What was one
of the suggestions
for the title of the movie?

I thought,"Down and Dirty"
was a good title.

"Down and Dirty:
The Johnny Winter story."

-Yeah.
-That'll be cool.

It describes
your life.

Yeah. It sure does.
[laughing]

-It's pretty cool.
-"Down and Dirty"...

[laughing]

No.
Down and Dirty.

Let's hear
your version.

Down and Dirty.

Down and Dirty!

[ Highway 61 Revisitedplaying]

[birds chirping]

[coughing]

[interviewer] Is it working?

[Johnny]
Yeah, it is.

[ Cross Road Bluesplaying]

[Johnny] That is so good.

I couldn't believe it
when I first heard
Robert Johnson.

Nobody could play
slide that good.

I learned a lot of stuff
listening to his records.

[record playing]

[singing along to record]
♪ Save poor Bob
if you please ♪

♪

♪ Tried to flag a ride

Cream did a version
of this, but it wasn't
near as good. [laughs]

Wasn't even close.

♪

Every blues player in
the world does
Robert Johnson songs.

He's just the best.

Eric Clapton loves him.

You can't not love
Robert Johnson.

If you like blues,
you're gonna like Robert.

♪

Come on out here.
I got something
to show you.

Be right out!

Oh, ain't that nice?

Mike got one
for you too.

He didn't get me nothing. I bought a whole bag...

[engine running]

Oh! Oh, great.

Hello.

Hi, how are you?

-This.
-Yep.

And do this.

And do this.

Is it possible or...

-Yeah, sure.
-Yes?

-Yes.
-This.

This, and do this.

And do this.

-Cheese?
-Cheese. [laughing]

[speaking French]

-Maybe see you again.
-Okay.

Great.

[interviewer] You think
sometimes, people bring
too many things to get signed?

Damn right, they do.

-Okay, Johnny, for this hand,
you can do it...
-Okay.

Um, with one hand
or both hands, how...

did you feel better?

Okay, can you stand up
please, and we do walks?

Okay, I go with you.

One...

Two...

Three...

Four...

Five...

Okay.

Perfect.

-You have to stand
upright much as you can.
-Yep.

Perfect.

Well done.

That's not too bad.

If you try it
everyday, so it's getting
better everyday.

Your muscles
are too short

from standing
on the...

wrong position.

Also much better
for your lungs,

to get more air inside.

[Paul] Your arms
are bigger already.
You see that?

Look at the muscles.
Look at the arm,
the right arm.

It's great.

[Paul] This job
is more difficult
then most, obviously,

because there's the health
issue, and the age issue,
and all that, you know.

I've had a crystal ball
into everyone's future.

And what they're gonna
deal with in life,

and insurance, and health,
way before my time.

But it's very educating.

The results of helping
someone that's given you
so much musically

is priceless.

To play with an artist
that you've admired
is priceless.

And to just help out,
as corny as it sounds,

to help out... a friend.

Want me to fix
that for you?

Yeah, come
here, buddy.

Here, hold
those pliers.

Okay, here,
just grab that
with a plier.

Okay.

Wait a minute.
I can't get it.

There you go.
Okay, you hold
that thing there.

All right.

Just stand there.

[laughing] I'm not
standing here for long
with this thing out here.

[Scott] I've never been
a manager, but I could
never manage Johnny.

I really couldn't.
I couldn't do it
because

I don't have the,uh,
the wherewithal

or the patience
in the beginning,

to get things started
to where they are now.

All right,
that should do it.

-Get back in the bus.
-All right.

Thank you.

[laughing]

That's my boss.

[Scott] When we first
saw Johnny, when I
started playing with Johnny,

the drummer wanted
to know if he was okay
to tour.

Would that be okay
to go out and do a gig?
Because...

He didn't look
so good.

Johnny's weight was,
I'd say it was 90 pounds.

You know, he was...
He was not good.

Uh, he was still
smoking cigarettes,
still drinking.

Still on his legal
medication, and all
that stuff.

It was hard to see him
like that because
you liked the guy.

But we hoped
if he could be brought
out of that,

and slowly taken off
all that stuff,

he'd be the guy
he used to be.

Can we get Archie
back on?

Oh yeah,
you want some more
Archie Bunker?

Yes.

I used to like
that show so much,

if it was on when I had
to play, I wouldn't play
till it was over.

[Tommy] I met Johnny back
in 1996, when he was with
his old manager,

and it was...
It was heartbreaking.

Johnny was a walking
skeleton, he... Incoherent,
couldn't speak.

So, to be on the road
with Johnny now,
is just...

I missed out on a lot
of the bad stuff. I came in
at a great time.

♪[Johnny] Far across
The deep blue water ♪

♪ Lived an old
German's daughter ♪

♪ On the banks
Of the old River Rhine ♪

♪ Where I loved her
And left her
But I can't forget her ♪

♪ She is my pretty Fraulein

A lot of peoples wonder,
"What is the blues?"

I hear a lot
of people saying,
"The blues, the blues..."

but I'm gonna tell you
what the blues is.

When you ain't
got no money,

you got the blues.

When you ain't got no money
to pay your house rent,
you still got the blues.

A lot of people
holler about,
"I don't like no blues,"

but when you ain't
got no money,

and can't pay your house rent,
and can't buy you no food,

you damn sure
got the blues.

[blues music playing]

[Johnny] My grandmother,
she had a guy that
worked in her yard

and a maid that worked
in her kitchen

and they played
the black station
in Beaumont,

KJAT.

And so I started listening
to KJAT all the time.

[interviewer]
What did it sound like?

That was great music.
I'd never heard anything
like that before.

I loved it.

[interviewer] So, what do you
think attracted you to it?

I don't know what it was
I was feeling.
Just the emotions.

It was just great music.

Really made me feel good
listening to it.

[ Hoochie Coochie Manplaying]

[Warren] I can't imagine
what it was like,
to hear that stuff

before the rock music
that I grew up on existed,
you know.

I've often thought
what it would be like

to hear Smokestack Lightning
coming over the radio,

and Howlin' Wolf's voice
just scaring the hell out
of everybody, you know?

[ Smokestack Lightning
playing]

[Edgar] People have a tendency
to look at the blues

as something old, archaic,
something that, you know,
started long time ago,

and has already happened,
you know, forgetting
that blues always had,

and continues to exert
this profound influence,

over all the pop music
that we hear today.

[Joe Perry] Most of our music is based directly in the blues,

where you can hear
the actual influences.

And then, there are other songs that you don't really hear the familiar chord changes.

Um, but I know
where they came from,
you know.

I know who
I'm stealing from.

[ Death Letter Blues
playing]

[Billy] Blues has been
pigeonholed into different
kinds of expressions.

There's the country blues,

Chicago blues is when all
the Mississippi guys

and Louisiana guys,
Texas guys, wound up
in Chicago.

The Texas blues
was not necessarily
electric.

You had Mance Lipscomb,
you had Lightnin' Hopkins,

You had so many guys
that were minstrels
from way, way back.

And then, of course,
when you had the opportunity
to plug things in,

it was just
more hot rod.

[ Let's Boogieplaying]

[Susan Tedeschi]
When I was going
to college,

I started going
to this record store,
called "The Stereo Jacks".

And I'd spend like $200
at a time.

Come out with
all these records like,

T-Bone Walker,
Big Mama Thornton,
and Koko Taylor,

and Etta James,
and Freddie King,
and Otis Rush.

I was like,
"Why did I never
know these people,

"and why aren't they playing
on the radio everyday?"

'Cause to me,
that is powerful music.

[tuning guitar]

Damn, this is hard
to tune.

Son of a bitch!

That's good enough.

Oh, this is not as hard
as it seemed like
it was gonna be.

-Oh, it's gonna be a pain-
-Oh, it's gonna be hard.

Okay, where's my...

Where's my stuff?

-Here's your pick,
here's your slide.
-Okay.

Do your thing.

[ Death Letterplaying]

[Edgar] Johnny and I
started out as kids,

playing ukuleles and singing
Everly Brothers' songs,

like, Wake Up Little Susie
and Hey, Bird Dog.

[Johnny] My father was very
musical. He sang, and played
the banjo and the saxophone.

They'd teach me songs
from the 20's and 30's.

[Edgar] They quickly realized that Johnny and I were special.

And they encouraged us.

[Johnny] I was in
the church choir.

I got kicked out
'cause I was singing
too loud,

and I said, "I'm not singing
too loud, those other fuckers
are singing way too quiet

"that you can't
even hear 'em."

I quit.

[interviewer] How would you
describe your vision when you
were a kid?

What would you...
what could you see?

Well, I was legally blind.

I had 2400 in one eye,
and 2600 in the other eye.

That was 20/20.

[interviewer] Did you feel like
the music was something
where vision didn't matter?

Of course not.
It helps, actually.

Your hearing's better.

[Edgar] I think,
if it had been the situation
in either of our cases,

where we had been
able to see,

and then suddenly
we're deprived
of vision,

that would be
a harder thing
to adjust to,

but when you're born
a particular way,

you learn to see
what you can't see.

[interviewer] When was
the first time you realized
that you were different?

Well, I suppose,
probably, seven
or eight.

Somebody in the neighborhood
said, "You're not blind?"
and I said, "No, I'm not."

Then I went home
and asked my mother,
"Hey, Mom, am I blind?"

She said, "Yes.
Yeah, you are."

I'd never heard
the word till then.

I knew that I didn't
look like anybody else.

I just didn't know
there was a word for it.

[interviewer]
How were you treated?

Some kids didn't like it.
Some kids just didn't like it
'cause I was different.

I got in fights.

In elementary school,
I got in a lot of fights.

Somebody would tease me,
and I'd hit them.

[interviewer] What made them
pick on you, do you think?

Ah, it's just nuts.
It's stupid.

Just 'cause you're
a different color,
they don't like it.

They don't like
black people
'cause they're black.

They didn't like me
'cause I was too white.

It's just stupid.

Never could figure it out.

[blues music playing]

[TV host] All right,
let's get back
to our story.

Where were we?

You were in a black club,
in where?

In Beaumont, Texas.

-Beaumont, Texas.
-Club Raven.

Johnny and a few of his friends
came in and said,"Let me play,
let me play."

That's true. Johnny,
he sent someone up
and...

So, he's kinda shy,
he stayed in the background,
and the guy said,

"Johnny would like to play."
So, I said to myself,
"No... Wouldn't like this."

And then I started
thinking about it.

First I asked,
"Can he play?"

He said, "Oh yeah,
he can play."

And I started thinking
about it, I said, "I really
don't want him to sit in,"

'cause normally
I don't let nobody
sit in

unless I really know them
and know what they do.

Then I started thinking
to myself,"Now here's a guy
that's white.

"If I was in a white club
and I wanted to sit in,
and they don't let me sit in,

"I might think that
they're doing it
because I'm black."

And I said, "Now, he'll
think I'm doing it
because he's white."

So, then I finally
reasoned with myself,

and I told the guys,
well,

"Got a guy, gonna let him
sit in, man" but I said,
"You can play one number."

[all laughing]

[TV host] How'd he do?

Fantastic. He came in,
and people gave him
a standing ovation.

-A standing ovation?
-They never gave me one.

-All the more reason
not to let him play.
-So I said, "Play some more."

[both laughing]

-How old were you?
-I was about 17.

-In fact, I might
have a picture.
-There it is.

-[B.B. King] There we are!
-[TV host] Can you believe it?

[Billy Gibbons]
I remember him when he was
Johnny "Cool Daddy" Winter.

Some of the early records
that were regional hits
around the gulf coast...

Johnny was a giant.

[ Hey Hey Hey Heyplaying]

[Billy] For those that
may not know,

of pre-Colombia
release record days,

Johnny had coined a string
of very popular numbers,

that you can still find,
uh...

Gotta dig deep
in the record box,

and you'll find
a Johnny "Cool Daddy" Winter
record in there.

[ That's What Love Does
playing]

[radio jockey] All right,
Johnny, why don't you
gimme some songs?

Let's see if we throw in
some songs up here, and then
we can start talking.

[Johnny] How about,
Tu Le Ton Son Ton
Clifton Chenier.

Groaning the Blues,
Otis Rush.

Loving Man
by Muddy Waters.

Got This Time I'm Through
by Memphis Slim.

Uh... Travelin' Mood,
Wee Willie Wayne.

Johnny, you win
on Wee Willie Wayne.
W-E-E?

-Yeah.
-Yeah. You win.

[laughing]

No Wee Willie.

No Wee Willie Wayne.

I'm not even sure
I've ever heard Wee Willie.

It must have been
one of those
Texas things.

♪ Feelin' kinda sad
And lonely

♪ Lost my sweet
One and only ♪

Oh, I do know
that tune.

All right, we're recording.
Let's see if we can make
this magic happen, brother.

All right.

Good day.
My name's Bill Wax,

and my guest with me
today, is the fabulous
Johnny Winter.

Johnny, how are you today?

Really good, Bill.

It's good
to see you again.

Yeah, it's great
to be back in DC.

And you're looking...
Every time you come in,

it looks like you've
gotten younger
and getting better.

I don't understand
how you're doing it.

Everyone else I know,
we're getting older
and we're lookin' like prunes.

-What are you doin'?
-Got a picture in my closet.

Picture that gets older
and I get younger.

I see. Well, you know,
as long as no one gets
their hands on that picture.

Well, you're looking great,
and you sound great.

So, we got a bunch
of tunes,
some of your favorites.

You're a big fan
of Lazy Lester.

Been listening to him.
Did you know Lazy at all?

Yeah, I was gonna tell you
the story about
when we went to Crawley,

Jay Miller's studio,
where they recorded
Lightnin' Slim,

Slim Harpo,
and Lonesome Sundown,
and all those people.

And Lester was gonna play
on one of my records.
I was about 17.

And he was in jail
for being drunk.

We had to bail him
out of jail.

And as soon as he came
to the studio, he said,
"You wanna see a trick?

"Gimme a quarter."

I gave him a quarter.
He put it in the Coke machine
and bought himself a Coke.

The trick was to trick me
into buying him a Coke.

It was fun playing
with him?

It was a lot of fun.
I've always liked Lester.

And then you got
an Otis Rush cut? You wanna
play Double Trouble?

-That was...
-Did you ever play
with Otis?

I think I played
with him once.

I wanted to produce
Otis,

but I talked to him,
and he was very
uncooperative.

He said,"I don't care
what it sounds like,
I just want the money."

Ah well,
we'll just skip that.

[all laughing]

[Bill] The first interview
I ever did with Johnny,

which is now,
six years ago...
seven years ago,

Johnny was just coming out
of his old management.

Paul had just
sort of taken over,
working with him.

So, he brought Johnny in,
and really,

Johnny was still
pretty much, doped up,
and all the other things,

and so, we did this interview
where every answer
was one word.

Yes. No.
Yes. No.

I went home,
and said to my wife,

"Boy, I don't know. That was
a little scary, this interview
with Johnny Winter, because,

"I couldn't even tell
whether Johnny understood

"what I was saying
to him, or anything."

So, I called Paul, and I said, "Paul, I had a great time. Johnny's always welcome, but

"I can't put this interview
on the air, because Johnny's
just too far out of it."

But lo and behold,
the second year
he came in,

Johnny was answering
in sentences.

The third year he came in,
Johnny was answering
in paragraphs.

By the fourth year he came in,
Johnny was telling stories,

and he had full memory,
and he was telling lies,
and having fun.

And it is amazing
to see Johnny today.

[ Double Troubleplaying]

♪

There you go.

[interviewer] You pick up
the guitar because of what?
You heard what?

Chuck Berry.

Pretty much. He made me
wanna play the guitar.

[interviewer]
How do you think
you got so damn good?

Lot of practice.

Even practiced like six hours
a day sometimes,
when I first started.

It was something I really
wanted to do, too.

I was really
obsessed with it
when I first started.

[interviewer] How about
the thumb pick?
Where'd that come from?

Well, Luther Nallie
taught me how to play
with a thumb pick.

He played with
a thumb pick.

So, I just,
when he taught me
how to play.

I can't even play
with a flat pick.

[Luther] When uh...

Johnny was undertaking
lessons, I'd show him
things like...

[playing the guitar]

You know, honky-tonk,
and stuff like that.

They used a thumb pick,
uh,...

[playing the guitar]

You play the rhythm
and the melody
at the same time.

Johnny could do that.

[Johnny] Edgar was playing
guitar too.

And for a while,
I had 'em both
at the same time.

And I'd show him things
we could play together.

Music was all...
what Johnny was,
you know.

He just lived
and breathed
that guitar.

In fact, at one point,
I ran out of things
to show him.

'Cause, you know,
he would just
suck up everything.

Just like a sponge.

That I would show him,
and I was like, "My gosh,
what do I...

"What am I going
to do with him today?"

[interviewer]
Where did the
Firebird come from?

Ah, it came from Ed Seelig
in Saint Louis.

[interviewer]
No, I mean, for you.

In general, like,
how did you get hooked
on the Firebird?

Well, from Ed Seelig
in Saint Louis.
[laughing]

He brought one out to me,
and I thought it looked cool,
it sounded cool, played good.

So I bought it.
$225.

[interviewer]
Which one was that?

This one.

-You bought
this one for $225?
-Yep.

Sure did.

That's all it cost me
back then.

First-hand.
It was the 1970.

Though that's
the coolest-looking guitar
I've ever seen.

[ Murdering Bluesplaying]

I love playing guitar.

It's the only thing
I've ever really
been great at. [laughing]

[ Tribute to Muddyplaying]

I found another there,
with the Cohens.

I wrote that
in 1976.

When I bought those coins
for Edwina.

And I paid $6,650
for 'em.

And today, they're worth
$87,000.

[Johnny] Whoa! That's
a very good return.

That's pretty good.

How are you?

[all talking]

[ Tribute to Muddy
continues playing]

♪

Is it like
it used to be?

No.

No, it's not.

It looks like one of those
roped off communities now.

This was always
nice for a job.

That's your house?

-Wow.
-Where?

Right there.
The porch with
the swing still on it.

-Oh, it does look different.
-I'll knock on the door.
Hold on.

No. I don't
wanna go in.

[Johnny] That looks definitely
different. I wouldn't
even recognize it.

[man] What color
did it use to be?

[Johnny] White.
The color was white first.

Almost makes me
wanna cry.

Did it seem a lot
to ask I don't wanna
do it.

It's very sad.

[women talking]

[dog barking]

I spent all my whole
first part of my life here.

It don't even
look the same.

Yeah, the fence is not up
anymore, it's all open.

[dog barking]

The owner wants
to say hi to you.
She's been dying to meet you.

-She's coming right over here.
-Okay, sure.

Seems like a nice lady.

-Hi, how are you?
-Hey, how're you doing?

-Nice to meet you.
-Nice to meet you too.

Nice to meet you.

I mean, you are more
than welcome if you'd like
to come in.

I think it'll be too sad.

You think it would?
I totally understand.

-I just can't...
-Aww.

Well, thank you
for offering
to let me in.

No problem.
I am really just
thrilled to meet you.

I have two kids.
I have a 12-year old son,

and a 9-year old daughter,

and we've got a game room,
and things that
we have upstairs,

-And, but we...
-That's where we used
to practice.

That's all where
your music was, and we said
if these walls could talk,

what they could tell us
about you and your brother,
and all the music.

-So...
-There's been some great times
in that house.

Well, I am just thrilled
to meet you, and I would
love to get a picture.

-Sure.
-Is it okay if I went in
to get my camera?

Turn around.

I'm just so excited.
I can't wait to tell
my husband.

Look over here, Johnny.

Yeah!

Perfect.

It was nice
meeting everybody.
Thank you.

[Johnny] Oh, that was so sad,
I hated it.
I fucking hated it.

Well, you know...

Oh, that was so sad.

You didn't even
go inside.

No, it was so sad
just looking at it.

Hey, but it's nice to know
there are some nice people
living there.

Oh, yeah.
That's nice.

At least
they like it there.

Made me wanna cry.
I almost did cry.

That's okay.

Sometimes that helps.

-What high school
did you go to?
-Beaumont High.

-Central High?
-It's called Central High now.

It's not even Beaumont
High School anymore?

It's called Central High.

Weird.

We had assembly there.
I sang Cherry Pie.

I sang, "Gimme, gimme,
gimme some, I want some
cherry pie."

and they pulled
the curtain.

[laughter]

They pulled the
curtain on us.
[laughing]

[ Rock and Rollplaying]

♪

♪

[Johnny] I think it was
the December of '68,

the Rolling Stone article
came out.

And all of a sudden,
everything just
completely changed.

I felt I must have read it
a thousand times.

Everyone had been making
about 50 bucks a week
at that time.

And I'd been making,
like $150, $200 a week,
playing in night clubs.

But when we started
doing the blues thing,

we couldn't make
nearly as much money at it.

[Tommy] Uncle John and I
were sleeping on floors,

and we weren't making
any money at all.

I remember Uncle John and I
used to go down to the
fried chicken place,

and get the fried batter.

They put it in paper bags
for us.

And we'd take that home
and eat it.

That's all we had.

The article came out,
and everything
completely changed.

People were calling me
from both coasts,

Steve Paul called me
from New York,

and wanted to come down
and meet me.

And I said,"Sure."

Electric wanted us,
Atlantic wanted us,
Colombia wanted us.

Steve just decided that
Colombia would be
the best deal.

[Clive] I would say that
Johnny got a real good deal,

higher than the norm at that time, without question.

Definitely believed from me
that he would not be
a one-hit wonder.

There was no hits
to speak of.

The hit... The criterion
of hits was not applicable
in this case.

What we had here
was a dazzling virtuoso
of guitars,

with a unique story
to tell.

Certainly a unique look.

I was very proud,
I remember,
to sign Johnny.

He said it was
the biggest deal
of that point,

that anybody had.

I hated to be publicized
in that,

'cause it just put
more pressure on me
to sell records.

Uncle John and I
stuffed everything
in a foot locker.

Everything we owned.

And moved to New York.

One day we were sleeping on the floors, the next day, we were in this gigantic house

in upstate New York.
But it was literally
overnight.

[interviewer] Did you ever
get a chance to meet

those writers
of the article, afterwards?

You know, I don't even know
if I met Larry or not.
I hope I did.

I hope I thanked him
for it.

[interviewer] Feel like you
owe him a drink.

I owe him a case.

[ Mean Town Bluesplaying]

♪

[Edgar] When Johnny
became famous,

although we had spent
virtually our whole lives
preparing ourselves,

it still seemed that
it had happened
almost instantaneously.

[ Mean Town Blues
continues playing]

[Edgar] Had it not
been for Johnny,

I would probably have been
either a teacher,

I might have been
a scientist.

It was really Woodstock
that changed my life.

And of course, I wouldn't
have been there,
had it not been for Johnny.

[Johnny] Woodstock really
was a good show, but it was
all muddy and nasty.

Nobody knew
who was going on when.

I went to sleep
on a bag of garbage.

And I got up
at about midnight
to see what was going on,

and somebody said,
"Well, you guys
are all here, play."

I had just woken up.

I'm surprised it was
as good as it was.

[ Mean Town Blues
continues playing]

It was still on of
the coolest things
I've ever done.

This is how we
fatten up Johnny.

The reason being,
when they don't serve
the gigantic croissants

that we used to get,
trying to get some meat
on Johnny's bones,

we have to take these
smaller croissants.

Breaking off the left side
of one croissant,

shoving the...

right side of one croissant.
Shoving the left side
of the other croissant,

into the broken piece
of croissant, creating
one giant croissant

which he then consumes.

Johnny only eats
one thing at once.

So, when you connect the two,
you have a bigger croissant.

Meaning more weight gain
for Johnny.

And a healthier Johnny
all around.

[ WKRP in Cincinnati
theme song playing]

Sing it!

♪ Wondered whatever
Became of me ♪

♪ The air in Cincinnati

♪ WKRP

[singing along]

[Nick] Since the days
when you were a kid

in Beaumont,

did you ever imagine that
loving the music
that you love,

playing the guitar, and singing,
that would carry you out
into this world-

-Oh, I was always
almost sure it would.
-Really?

I was sure
I was gonna
be successful.

You had a lot
of confidence.

Yes, I did.
I always did.

And that was in a tough town,
where you were made fun of,
and had a hard time.

And you had
that confidence?

It made me try harder.

Yeah.

It was a good thing.

Made me try harder.
I just wanted to show
people I could make it.

In the time that
you were using heroin,

did it affect
your music skills?

No, I wasn't as good.

First, I thought
I was just using it,

but I realized
I was addicted.

I couldn't function
without it.

I wanted to stop.

Real bad.

I put myself
in rehab.

Here in New Orleans.

What made you
able to do that?

How could you do that,
how did you have the strength
to do that?

I would have died
if I hadn't.

-And you knew that?
-I knew that.

Some people can keep
using it for years.

Dr. John did,
Ray Charles did.
I couldn't.

I don't think Dr. John
would advocate it now, though.

No, he wouldn't.
He did it for 35 years,
though.

It didn't seem to affect
his creativity.
It affected mine.

[interviewer]
Do you remember
the first time you tried it?

Yeah.

Yeah, I first got it
at a press, uh,

press party
in Los Angeles.

This guy said,
"Do you do drugs?"
and I said,"Sure."

"You ever done heroin?"
I said,"No, I haven't."

He said "Take some of this."
It was the only time anybody
gave me any free heroin.

I kept it
three or four months.

Then, we were supposed
to do a show
in New Jersey.

I couldn't...
didn't get there. We were
all kinds of depressed.

And I said,
"Seems like a good time
to try that heroin."

We all sniffed it.

I couldn't believe it.

You just don't worry
about anything.

Nothing bothers you.

Well, I really thought
I could just use it,

and just do it
when I want to,
and not get addicted.

Thought only stupid people
get addicted.

And I thought
I was cool enough
to be able to just use it.

[interviewer]
Now what do we do?

[Johnny] Well,
I hope we're gonna drink.

What do you need?
Stoli?

I'll have four shots
on the rocks.

Four shots
on the rocks.

Four shots
on the rocks.

[yelling]

[ Leland Mississippi Blues
playing]

♪

♪

[laughing]

I don't like it.

I don't like it.

-[mumbling]
-What?

What the hell's
going on?

[laughing]

Where are you going?

One step down.

[laughing]

Now, step up.

Step up.

[laughing]

Oh, good God.

Oh, good God!

Oh, good God!

[laughing]

I'm so drunk.

Oh, fuck, I'm really drunk.

I'm really drunk.

Oh, shit.

I wanna go home.

I really wanna go home.

I wanna go home.

[laughing]

I really wanna go home.

I'm so fucked up.

[laughing]

Oh, I'm really...

[Paul] Wait a minute.
Who wanted to go drinking?

I did.

[Paul] Well, there we are!

I did.

♪ I just wanna go home

♪ I'm tired and I want
To go to bed ♪

♪ I had a little drink
About an hour ago ♪

♪ And it went
Right to my head ♪

♪ Everywhere that I roam
Over land or sea or foam ♪

♪ You can always hear me Singing this song God, I wanna go home ♪

One more time!

♪ I wanna go home!

♪ I'm tired and I want
To go to bed ♪

♪ I had a little drink
About an hour ago ♪

♪ And it went
Right to my head ♪

♪ No matter where I go
Over land or sea or foam ♪

♪ You can always hear me
Singing this song
God, I just wanna go home ♪

[TV blaring]

[Susan] I was a hippie
down in Miami,
and I met a girl, Barbara,

who knew that
I'm gonna go up,
back up

to New York and
marry Edgar Winter, and

"I'll give you a call
when we come down."

So, a year later,
she called me.

And Edgar and Johnny
were playing in town.

Over the couple
of years, I...

Went to a few shows
and some.

Then I came up
to New York and started
working for Steve Paul.

And then he...
came up...

and that's...
We've been together
ever since.

[interviewer] You weren't
doing heroin at that point,
were you?

Uh, yeah.

[interviewer] Did you know
what you were
getting yourself into?

Not really, no.

I wanted to be, kind of,
on the same plane he was.

So if he was doing something,
I wanted to do it too.

But it did get overwhelming,
and I can...

I bet a few times, go to
the bath and cry my eyes out
because it was too much,

and I didn't wanna do it...

[interviewer] What else
was there besides
heroin and drinking?

Pot and cocaine,
I guess.

Downs. Seconals.

I don't remember doing
that much with you.

I did plenty of Seconals.
Quaaludes.

I did a lot of that.

I loved downers.

It was like drinking
without having
to drink.

We were doing so much coke,
this guy says, "You guys
must know you're gonna die."

"You're gonna die,
if you keep doing this."

Stop, he said
you know you're doing too much.

He just wasn't
used to us.

[Tommy] Back then,
we got high all the time.

I used to do
a lot of LSD,

speed, and downers,
and just about anything
we can think of.

As a band...

Like, the goal was
to ingest as many

different... substances
as possible.

And then see
if we could still
get up there and play.

I remember playing
at the Spectrum, Philadelphia,

and all three of us
tripped on acid.

We got so high,
it didn't sound
like music anymore.

It sounded like...
[humming]

These sounds.

And finally when
the end of the show happened,

we got off stage
and started walking
right up the aisle, you know,

with the people,
instead of backstage.

We just took off,
and...

Crew guys had to come,
run out there and get us
and turn us around.

We were the three stooges.

The Scene was the Club, Steve Pauls, our manager at that time...

It was his club.
I remember the first night
I walked in there.

Jimi Hendrix was there,
John Bonham,
Jerry Lee Lewis was there.

Total asshole.

Johnny, you know,
Johnny and myself,
we were playing.

Somebody tapped me
on the shoulder.

I turned around
and it was Jimi Hendrix.

He asked if he
could play my bass.

And I just took it off
right in the middle of a song,
and handed it to him.

[interviewer]
What would be
the first moment

where you really felt like
this is where you wanted to be?

Making the first record
was great 'cause it turned out
just the way I wanted it to.

That's still one
of my favorite records.

I knew this is exactly
what I want to be doing.

[ I'm Yours and I'm Hers
playing]

♪

♪

[interviewer] Didn't you meet
Salvador Dali?

[Johnny] Yeah, he told me
I should put a mike
up my ass,

and broadcast
my inner workings.

[laughing]

He was a very
strange guy.

[interviewer] When did
Janis Joplin come
into your life?

[Johnny] We played
a show in Florida
and I was on acid.

And she got me to drink
Southern Comfort.

And it tasted like Kool-Aid,
it wasn't strong at all.

And I got really sick
and we were going back
in a helicopter

after this show,
and I threw up
all over her.

I don't think she even
remembered it. She was
so drunk too.

I didn't even have
a Kleenex to wipe
the vomit off.

[ I'm Yours and I'm Hers
continues playing]

[Johnny] All those people
died around the same time.
Jimi Hendrix, her,

Jim Morrison.

[interviewer] What did
that tell you?

That it was scary.
I was wondering
if I was next.

All the J's.

Jim, Janice, Jimi.

I thought I'm Johnny,
I'm next to die here.

[interviewer] How'd you manage
to make it through that?

Just lucky.
Just very lucky.

I'm so lucky
to control it.

Didn't know I could
control heroin.

I was over
at Austin once,
and...

Usually I let somebody else
shoot up first to see
what it did to them.

But I really
wanted to get high then.

I overdosed. They threw me
in a cold tub of water.

I was turning blue.
Ed was hitting me,

slapping me,
trying to wake me up.

That's the only time
I overdosed.

But he was afraid
I was gonna die.

I didn't even know
that I was...
all messed up.

When I woke up,
I was just pissed off

'cause it got
my velvet shirt wet.

I said I was okay, and he said,
"No, you weren't okay, man.
You were gonna die."

And that kinda scared me.

[laughter]

That's irritating
as hell.

Quit doing that shit.

-No, it's fun.
-It's not fun.

All right, come on
right over here.

[speaking Cantonese]

I wanna get this.

Thumbs up.

Thumbs up, guys.

[ Who Do You Loveplaying]

♪

[Johnny]
How's the audience
doing out there?

Well, that's not going
to be no fun to play.

Oh, ZZ Top played
for one person.

-There you go.
-If they can play to one person,
I can play to two rows.

It happens all too often,
where somebody goes
through their life,

and it's just...
because they're always there,
it's just inevitable.

They're always around,
so you wait to see them
next year.

You put it off, and...

And then they're gone.
And then everyone
holds them up,

and they say,"Hero."
And you're like, "You know,
they were a hero,

"one year ago today,
when they were playing
in a club down the street."

All right, guys,
let's go.

Let's go.
No shit.

[Derek] I hear people
now like, "B.B. talks
a lot on stage."

I was like, "I don't
give a shit. You go.
You pay your ticket,

"and you cheer for him,
and shut the fuck up."

Yeah, it's B.B. King,
damn it.

It's Johnny Winter.

Go.

[crowd cheering]

Hello, Hong Kong!

Are you ready?

[crowd cheering]

Ladies and gentlemen,
make some noise

for Johnny Winter!

[ Mojo Boogieplaying]

♪

Yeah, Muddy Waters.

[crowd cheering]

[crowd continues cheering]

One... Two...

Two... Three... Four...

[ Dust My Broomplaying]

[Derek] When you see Johnny
with the Firebird,
when that guitar comes out,

it's like thinking of
Duane Allman's Goldtop,

or Hendrix with
a certain guitar.

It's iconic.

[ Dust My Broom
continues playing]

The way that guitar looks
and sounds, it's very much
his spirit, musically.

It's just, kind of,
in your face, and it's nasty
in the most beautiful way.

Thank you!

So many people
got pissed off

when they started rushing
the stage 'cause they couldn't
see anymore.

No, but I still loved it.

-Yeah, I know.
-It was very cool.

Yeah, I didn't think
it was over until the very last
two, three songs there.

They... I thought,
"Well, this ain't fun at all."

-They finally went nuts.
-Yep.

[Paul] That's great.

How long before
we get out of here?

[laughing]

Oh, that's over.

Now that we're done playing,
let's go home,
watch a movie.

You may ask,
"What is the purpose
of music?"

And I may answer,
"To turn people on
and make them happy."

[ Prodigal Sonplaying]

Steve thought that the blues
had been so big in the 60's,
he said if I didn't

start doing more
rock and roll, then

my career was gonna...

maybe just end.

And it wasn't really
what I wanted to do.

I didn't want to do
more rock and roll.

But... I thought
he was probably right.

I still think
he's probably right, so...

I decided to go ahead
and do it.

And it really hurt me
because I loved Tommy and Ed.
They had...

Helped me make it.

But... uh...

I was sad to go ahead
and do the thing
with the McCoys.

[Tommy] They were living
in a house, Upstate New York,

I guess about 100 yards
from us.

We got to be friends
with them.

One day we went for rehearsal,
you know,

and we couldn't come up
with any material.

And Johnny started
kinda freaking out.

And the McCoys,
they had material.

And it gradually happened,
you know, he...

He said he was gonna
stick with them.

♪

[Johnny] God, I really felt
like I was selling out.

I started doing a lot
of heroin, I didn't
really like it.

Didn't like
what I was doing.

Started doing way more drugs
than I should have been doing.

That really...
Really messed me up.

[Johnny] Oh, are we on yet?

-Yeah, we're on, yeah.
-We're on?

-We're on TV?
-Here. Yeah.

-I mean, we're really good?
-Yeah.

Oh, no.

I know you like
playing with the new band.

What do you think
is one of the big changes
that you've noticed

since the old band.
You've been with that one
for about two years?

For about two years. Right.
I love playing in the new band.

-You liked the old band too.
-I loved it.

I love the old band,
and when it got
to be... not as cool,

we got tired of doing it,
then almost immediately,
we decided to change.

We were beginning to stagnate.
There was nowhere
we could go.

We played straight
and loose for two years,

and I just... I wasn't
giving up blues,

or selling out
or anything, I just wanted
to do some other thing.

[Johnny] That was my biggest
selling record.
"Johnny Winter And- Live"

That's the record
I liked the least.

[Tommy] He sold
a lot of records
doing that.

But he was becoming
more miserable.

That's when he eventually
went back, playing blues.

'Cause that's what
he loved.

When I really got back
in the blues was when
I got to play with Muddy.

I finally felt like
I was doing what I wanted to do
once I played with Muddy.

[Mike] Together
for the first time
on a new album, you two.

Yeah, not really for
the first time, but
the first time on this album.

We've known each other
for years.

And admired each other,
obviously.

Well, Muddy has been
an idol of mine since
I have been...

And I really admire him.
When I first heard him,
I said,

"He's one of the greatest
blues player in the business."

Oh, wow.

[Johnny] We made our
first record in 1977.

[interviewer]
How'd that happen?

[Johnny] His manager
called up my manager,

and asked if I'd be willing
to play on and produce records
with Muddy,

and I said I'd love
to do that.

There's nothing
I'd rather do.

It was a lot of fun.

Muddy said,"This music
is so good, it makes
my pee-pee hard again."

That's why we called
the record Hard Again.

[Derek] I mean, those are
my favorite Muddy Waters
records as a kid.

There was just
something about

the sound and the way
they were recorded.

I remember even when we started building our studio,

those were the records
I had in my head.

I was like...
It's still a goal for me
to try and make a record

that sounds like that
or feels like that.

Hearing him, on Mannish Boy
just went hollering
in the background...

[laughing]
I felt, yeah...

Woo!

[ Mannish Boyplaying]

[Joe] There's something
about the electricity going on
in the room,

when they're playing,
that just naturally
comes to the surface.

And that's one
of my touchdowns,
that record.

[Derek] Johnny was that bridge. He was fully current at that time,

but he fully knew
the history of it.

And he was
the right age,
the right skill set,

the right knowledge,
the right humility.

The right fearlessness.

[ Mannish Boy
continues playing]

It's still the most fun
I ever had playing music.
I just loved Muddy.

Loved him.
Loved his music.

[ Got My Mojo Workingplaying]

[Johnny] It was just great.
I'll never forget it.

Damn, he should have lived
another 10 or 20 years.

[interviewer] Yeah.
Was that a big loss for you
when he passed?

I hated it.
It really hurt me.

We were extremely close.

I went over to his house,
couple of time, he...

made gumbo for me.

Called me his son.

Yeah, we were very close.

[ Got My Mojo Working
continues playing]

I remember somewhere
around '90 or '91,

we were all doing this
John Lee Hooker tribute concert
at Madison Square Garden.

And, uh...

There were a couple
of days' rehearsal.

And I remember...
uh...

Johnny was a little
out of it.

In the 90's,
he was still standing,

but he started
doing his wobbling thing
in place.

[Paul] And then, eventually,
he fell and broke his hip
the first time.

And then he was just
chair-ridden.

He was playing, but his voice
started getting
very nasally and very weak.

We went and saw him
at Antone's, and...

Kinda broke my heart,
you know, 'cause

he was just barely there.

And he was in...
such bad shape that...

You know, I was worried
he might die.

I just had
a lot of concern.

'Cause, you know,
I loved Johnny.

He's been my friend
for a long time.

[Johnny] 90's was
a bad decade for me.

I knew I wasn't
playing good.

That was embarrassing.

I was taking
antidepressants then.

That was more antidepressants
than methadone.

[interviewer] Okay,
can you tell me what that
would do to you?

It just puts you
to sleep.

I slept like 14 hours
a day.

You were out, just out of it.
You didn't know where you were,

I hardly even remember
those days.

I was taking it way too much
for way too long.

Johnny, I would say, was on,
through research, was on heroin
for two years, tops.

But methadone for like,
30, 35 years.
It's insane.

You're supposed to be
on that and off it,
or just do a low dosage.

When I first started
playing with Johnny,

Teddy Slatus
was his manager,

and I kinda knew Teddy
from back in the old days.

The Edgar days,
but we didn't realize
till we got to Johnny,

how bad this guy really was.

He manipulated Johnny
by keeping him...
medicated.

I guess that'll
be the word.

He was enabling him,
making sure that if Johnny
asked a couple of questions,

'What's going on?"
"Where's the money?"
"What's going on..."

Teddy would make sure
he was medicated

to the point
where he stopped
asking questions.

And he had been good
in the past.

But the last four, five years,
he was just horrible.

And Paul was working...

Everybody was telling me
how bad Teddy was.

I just didn't want
to believe it.

Everybody knew he was
screwing things up.

His manager actually
wanted to manage me
as an artist.

And I was...
I was flattered,

but the same point...
time, I was saying,

'What's wrong with Johnny?
I mean, you have Johnny Winter!"

And then, I'm looking,
and I'm listening to the voice,
and listening to the playing,

and I'm like,
"Something's wrong."

I kinda stepped forward,
I risked everything I had

to tell him,
while his other manager
was still alive,

"There's something
going on here,
and it's a mess."

So he said,
"Will you manage me?"

Suddenly I realized
they were right.

And I just, uh...

wrote Teddy a letter
and said, "You're fired."

Then I learned,
in a couple of months
that he was dead.

He fell down the stairs
and broke his neck.

He didn't have
anything to live for.

Nobody else would have
ever hired him.

He was in way too bad
a shape to be
a manager anymore.

So, dying was the best thing
he could have done.

It was horrible
having him for a manager.

Boy, my career would've
been non-existent
in another few months.

[Edgar] I think that's why
Paul was so effective.

He was there,
and he could see
the entire situation.

And, uh... And he really
brought Johnny back.

He helped, uh, get him
off drugs.

And, you know,
that's an amazing feat
in itself.

You gotta understand,
we're on the tour bus
100-140 times a year.

And we're family.

And one of our family members
is falling asleep
in his mashed potatoes.

He's lighting a cigarette
and his hat's caught in fire,
and he doesn't even know it.

I had to get him
off the methadone,
but I had read that...

The withdrawals
were insane.

So, I had to devise a way
to get him off the methadone
without letting him know,

but at the same time,
without killing him.

So, for three years,
I sat and whittled
the pills.

Smaller, and smaller,
every day,
for three years.

And saw the change,
and talked to doctors.

"Okay, there's no
upset stomach,

"there's no problem,
there's no change."

And he didn't know
it was happening.

But then, the tablets
started getting so small,

I couldn't hide it anymore.

How do I say,
"Well, it used to be
this big, here's your..."

So, I went online,
and I ordered
empty capsules.

So, for one year, we went.
His wife knew.

And the changes
were astronomical.

The alcohol
was already gone,

the antidepressants were gone,
and the methadone was gone.

So, we went a year,
and then on Christmas

when we
were exchanging gifts,

we gave him a box,
with the box,
with the little box,

with the little pill...
That joke.

And he opened the pill,
and he goes,

"What's this?"

[Susan] Looks like methadone.
Open it up.

[Paul] Open up the pill.

[Paul] Open up the pill.

[TV blaring]

How do you
open the pill?

[Paul] Just pull it apart,
and tell us what's in there?

[Susan] Honey, you've been
off methadone for two years.

That's... huh?

[Susan] You've been
off methadone for two years.

What?

[Susan] Yeah. You've been
off methadone for two years.

No...

[Paul] Yes.

What have I been taking?

[Paul] Nothing.
Empty pills and rice.

[Paul] You've been methadone free.

So, I don't have
to take anything anymore?

No.[laughing]

-I've been taking empty pills?
-Empty pills.

That's great.
I'm off methadone
and I didn't even know it.

[interviewer] How did you feel?

I felt so good.

Didn't have to go
to any more
methadone clinics.

I'd been off of it
for months.

He just didn't want to tell me
until he was sure I was okay.

Got to admit,
the best present
I could have ever had,

was him helping me
get off methadone.

But he didn't
just help me.
He did it.

He did it all by himself.

He changed completely
form there.
It was...

The weight gain,
the playing,
the alertness,

the... just eating...
just came back.

[ Long Tall Sallyplaying]

♪

Johnny Winter!

I love you so much,
Johnny Winter.

I love Johnny!

Johnny, you're great!

I love you, Johnny!

The Johnny Winter Band!

[ Long Tall Sally
continues playing]

[crowd cheering]

♪

[crowd cheering]

Thank you!

[ Can't You Feel Itplaying]

♪

[Paul] ...onions,
just throw it all in there.

Spin that around.

[Paul on mic] Chef Boy Winter.

[Johnny] I need more vodka.

[Paul] Don't touch that glass.

-I'm touching it.
-Give me that! Give, give!

[laughter]

[growling] I'm having
a really good time.

[laughter]

You just love the mic.

♪ If I knew
If I knew

♪ Yes I could
If I knew ♪

[laughter]

[Johnny] I wanna give it, but you don't want it.

I don't know
what to do with it.

But I'm gonna
do it anyway.

Oh I'd die
before we get home.

[laughter]

Oh, crap.

All right,
here we go.

[Paul] You got this one, right?

I love Georgia.

I love everything
right now.

[laughter]

♪ I'm say Georgia

♪ Georgia

♪ A song of you
A song of you

♪ Just an old sweet song

♪ Keeps Georgia
On my mind

♪ On my mind

♪ Whoa, Georgia

♪ Whoa, Georgia

♪ The whole day through

♪ Just oh, so sweet and clear

♪ Like moonlight
Through the pines

Yeah, get it.

♪ Whoa, Georgia

♪ Georgia

♪ No, no peace

♪ No peace I find

[laughing heartily]

♪ Just an old sweet song

♪ Keeps Georgia
On my mind

♪ Georgia on my mind

[cheering]

Yeah!

Yeah, I'm good.

I'm really fucking good.

[laughing]

[Paul] What'd you say?

[Johnny] I said I'm really
damn good!

[laughter]

Oh, man.

-You guys ready?
-Yeah.

[blues music playing]

It's ready to go, right?

[talking together]

Damn, I thought
we were ready to play.

Why the fuck
did I get ready?

-It's gonna be late
for half an hour.
-Oh, no.

It's gonna be 15-20 minutes
before we play, probably.

Paul said five or 10 minutes.
It's already been five minutes.

Just fucking play, god!

It's already been
three or four minutes.

Well, it's been 10 minutes,
and we're still
not fucking playing.

What the fuck
are we waiting for?
God!

I'm talking about
it probably might close
if we had five minutes.

[Ansgar] Why don't you
just enjoy yourself?

Because I can't.
I'm not enjoying
just sitting here.

What is there
to even fucking enjoy?

Nothing.

I've always had anger problems.

[Nicholas]
Since when?

Since I can't remember.

Well, give me an idea
of how early you remember.

Well, somebody would
fuck with me about
being different.

Yeah?

I get very angry.

What was the earliest
time you remember
somebody fucking with you?

Well, a lot
of different times.

Said, "Why do you
look so weird?"

"What's wrong with you?"

"'Cause I can't help it.
I don't know."

Do you think
there's anything
wrong with you now?

No.

Well, my OCD,
which is not good.

I wish
I didn't have it.

Did you use to wish
you didn't have
other things?

No.

No.

No, I never wanted to
look like everybody else.

I was completely happy
with that.

[Paul] It was pretty immediate
when the drugs went away.

'Cause the drugs
were definitely used
to mask this problem.

And the finger twiddling
was the first to start.

These little rituals
started happening,
and then...

You know,
things with water bottles,

or timing, or getting
very nervous and anxious.

So, I'm like,
"Something's going on here."

Chug, chug, chug...

When he had his watch on,
he would sip,
look at his watch,

sip, look at the watch.
Every 10 seconds.

Sip, sip, sip...
'cause some doctor said he was dehydrated or something.

So, actually it's a good thing
to stay hydrated, but he
took it to the extreme.

I gotta get
a new bottle.

We would notice
that he would drink it
half way down in sips,

and then after the half way, he would have to finish it the minute he'll get a new one.

So, I devised a plan.

"All right, if he can't
see the level going down,
let's put some duct tape on it

and then he'll relax
and be able to focus
on other things.

And we'd broken another
chain of things.

Then the timing things. Like,
we have to be there, to
our hotel destination at 2:00.

2:00, 2:00, 2:00.

And then things like
if you got there at 1:59,

you lied.

It's about 11:45.

Now, to his credit,

a lot of people
have some form of it.

Especially people
that are successful,
because it's what drives you.

So, is it a good thing
or a bad thing?

It's how, I mean, you know,
a lot of people said,

if you take heroin,
it makes you
a better musician.

Miles Davis and all,
they experimented with it
and they became great.

What happened afterwards?

[interviewer] How does
that OCD fit in your life?

Well, it's just a problem
I gotta deal with.

They say that drugs
can help cause it.

Then you get off the drugs
and you start to hallucinate.

[interviewer] Are you aware
of it when that's happening?

Yes.

[interviewer] But it's not
something you can control,
or would you say...

I try to control it.

Yeah.

I don't know if
I'm getting better at it,

but I still have fears
of pissing people off.

[interviewer] That's okay
though. You're a rock star,
right?

[David Letterman]
Our next guest
is a legendary guitarist,

whose most recent
Grammy-nominated album

pays tribute to
the great blues players
of the last century.

Please welcome
Johnny Winter.

[applause]

One, two...
One, two, three, four.

[ Dust My Broomplaying]

♪

[Jay Sieleman]
In 1988,

the Blues Foundation
inducted Johnny Winter
into the Blues Hall of Fame.

[cheering]

Now, neither Johnny
nor the Blues Foundation

know exactly where either
one of us were at that time.

It is a great pleasure,
a great honor,
and great respect

to present to you,
Johnny,

the plaque, from 1988,

inducting you into the Blues Hall of Fame.

[cheering]

[ Dust My Broom
continues playing]

God almighty!

Thank you!

Wow!

That was fantastic.
Very nice.

Johnny, good to see you.

You know,
here's what
we're gonna do.

-Paul, get us a van.
-Okay.

Uh, and I'll get
some cheap speed...

Right.

[laughter]

-Some coffee and some donuts...
-Yep.

And we'll just
drive all night.

What do you say?

My God, let's do it!

Thanks so much,
and good night, everybody.

Just to get a trailer,
and some cheap speed,

and donuts,
and drive all night.

I heard the donuts
and drive all night part.

The last thing
I'd fucking do
is take any speed.

Maybe heroin.

All right, all right.

No speed.

[Edgar] I think that Johnny,
now, is really coming back
to being himself.

I gotta see it again.

That's so good.

[Paul] 1988,
you finally get it.

About time.

Whoa, that's so cool.

[Edgar] I hope that he
is going to find happiness
and fulfillment

in his personal life.

And to be able to continue
to play the music

that he loves,
and has always
cared about.

And has always remained
true to, you know,
throughout his career.

1988.

I had tears in my eyes,
I really did.

Man, I love that.

Get a picture of it.

Do you wanna
get a picture of it
or what?

Hold it up
and smile, brother.

Oh, I'm smiling.

I'm smiling all right.

[interviewer] You're
coming up on 70 years, right?

[Johnny] Yep.

[interviewer] How long
have you been doing this?
Like literally,

playing music
and traveling...

Since I was 15.

Started playing
and made my first record
when I was 15.

Started playing in clubs
when I was 15.

Started drinking and smoking
when I was 15.

Sex when I was 15.

Fifteen was a big year
for me. [laughing]

But it was fun.
I wouldn't take anything back
except heroin.

I wouldn't do that
if I had to do it over.

But...

All the drinking and sex,
I wouldn't take that back.
[chuckling]

I've been wanting
to do this ever since
I was like 12 years old,

I was pretty sure...

That's what I wanted to do.

I never wanted to do
anything else.
I didn't have a Plan B.

"If I don't make it
in music, then I'll do this."

I knew. I always knew
I was gonna make it
in music.

I just was sure of it.

[interviewer] Do you think
that makes you lucky that
you knew what you wanted to do?

Oh, very lucky.

I've had one of the best lives
anybody could ever have.

I've been able to do
exactly what I wanted to do.

Get paid for it
and have people
love me for it.

It's great.
It's been a great life.

[interviewer]
What do you think your life
would have been like

had there been no heroin?

It would have been better.
Definitely, been better.

I had to try it,
though. There was
all that mystique and

Janis Joplin said that,

"Anything that makes you
fell that good,
can't be all bad."

She was wrong.

It can be all that bad.

It's a terrible drug.

[interviewer]
Why should people
watch this film?

I've been through
a lot of shit. [laughing]

You know, it's interesting,
all these life stories
about people that...

Drank and had
drug problems and...

Women problems.
It's just interesting.

[interviewer]
And usually those
don't end well.

Yeah, but mine has.
[laughing]

One, two...
One, two, three.

[ Highway 61 Revisitedplaying]