Eddie ‘The Chief’ Clearwater: Revival.

The WC Handy Allstars play the East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival on Friday and Sunday.

He struts around the stage like an Indian chief, a feathered headdress reaching down his back, flamboyantly screaming the blues with an unmatched conviction. His head wear is an affectation but his distinctive blues voice and fretwork are not. Eddie ‘the Chief’ Clearwater is the genuine article, a blues man down to his boots.

Eddie laughs when I ask about the significance of his headdress: “It was an idea I kind of dreamed up in my head. I saw a friend of mine with it and I said, ‘I would like to wear that.’ I tried to buy it but she said no, that she would give it to me as a gift. I’ve been stuck with it ever since, but I have a good time with it.”

Eddie Clearwater was born some 67 years ago in Mississippi as Eddie Harrington. At 13 his family moved to Birmingham Alabama where he began playing guitar backing gospel groups. At 15, he arrived in Chicago’s West Side, with Magic Sam soon becoming a friend and major influence. Performing as Guitar Eddy, he and his band played around Chicago’s South and West Side taverns.

Playing his guitar left-handed and upside-down, Eddie has a distinctive and flavoursome style. He earned the name ‘Clearwater’ as a wordplay on Muddy Waters by drummer and agent Jump Jackson.

Eddie explains the appeal of his music: “It’s a combination of things. I consider it high energy. Sometimes I’m in a real somber mood but usually I’m pretty jovial. I enjoy the music and I love people. I love to be around people and I love to entertain. It may have changed, it may have modernised to a point but I like to keep the basic foundation of it, so not only can you hear it, you can feel the presence of what it’s supposed to be about. I want it to be recognisable.”

His talents have been recognised in the wider blues community. Eddie’s song from Mean Case of the Blues, Don’t Take My Blues, received a 1998 WC Handy Award nomination for Best Song. Cool Blues Walk earned Clearwater two nominations in the 1999 Awards. Eddie finally hit the payload in 2001.

“I won the Contemporary Blues Artist Of The Year. It was quite a thrill. I was nominated in four categories but I was really surprised when I won. It’s a good feeling. I thought that well I was nominated and I thought that was as far as it was going to go. When they named me as the winner, oh boy, it was like a nice dream.”

As much as Eddie shines in the studio, his reputation is firmly grounded in his live performances. Fans are in for a treat at his upcoming Australian shows.

“Tell them to expect a show that’s filled with a lot of life and energy. Tell them to prepared for the energy because I like to put out plenty. I like to give it my best shot. Bring your dancing shoes because I intend to be energetic.”