The Blues Never Die: GA-20 and Charlie Musselwhite Keep a Sacred Tradition Alive

In an era when so much of modern music feels disposable and detached from its roots, the new collaborative album Blues Now from GA-20 and legendary harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite stands as a powerful reminder that true artistry endures. The record, which debuted at number two on the Billboard physical sales charts, is a masterclass in authenticity, recorded live in the studio with no overdubs and no fixing mistakes. What you hear is what happened, and what happened is something special.

The centrepiece of the album is a smouldering rendition of Otis Spann's 1964 classic 'The Blues Never Die'. When Spann wrote that song, the blues was already a century old and at the peak of its cultural influence. Musselwhite was there, blowing his harp alongside Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and Big Joe Williams at Pepper's Lounge on Chicago's South Side. He first recorded the song himself in the late 1960s with Magic Sam and Shakey Jake, though that version went unreleased until 1994.

Sixty years on, the song has never sounded fresher. And the message of its title has never been more relevant.

Why the blues keeps enduring through changing times

Musselwhite, now in his eighties, has seen the music industry change dramatically since he arrived in Chicago in 1962. He recalls people then declaring the blues dead, a familiar refrain that has echoed through every generation since.