Boston, New York and London: Little, Brown and Company, 2002.
Memphis author never met Muddy Waters but came up with plenty of material to work with, including a number of interviews done by other researchers and his own conversations with fellow musicians, associates, family members, and consorts. The result was Can’t Be Satisfied, the most in-depth exploration of the blues master’s lifestyle and music ever published. Gordon expands the basics of Muddy’s familiar story, from Mississippi plantation worker to king of Chicago blues to godfather of rock ‘n’ roll, but he goes further, probing Muddy’s personal life both as family man and insatiable womanizer. Gordon illuminates a key aspect of Muddy’s popularity that has often been overlooked: he was more than just a great singer and guitarist who fronted perhaps the best blues band ever assembled — during his prime he was a true sex symbol, a monarch with women at his beck and call. Muddy Waters was not one to openly discuss many of his secrets and deep emotions, but Can’t Be Satisfied guides us closer to understanding the remarkable man behind such exceptional music.
–Jim O’Neal
www.bluesoterica.com