Imagine helping to invent a musical genre, then a few years later driving a taxi and running a clothing store because the industry has moved on without you. That was the reality for Jimmy Rogers, the guitarist who anchored Muddy Waters' first Chicago band. Born James A. Lane on June 3, 1924 near Ruleville, Mississippi, Rogers grew up moving through Atlanta and Memphis, started on harmonica alongside childhood friend Snooky Pryor, picked up guitar as a teenager, played with Robert Lockwood Jr. in East St. Louis and reached Chicago in the mid-1940s, where his 1946 debut recording was released with no credit under Memphis Slim's name.

This episode traces how Rogers, Muddy Waters and Little Walter formed the trio that engineered the South Side Chicago blues style, earning the nickname the Headhunters for stealing gigs from house bands. We cover ...