Legendary blues guitarist Buddy Guy celebrated his 90th birthday on July 30. A star-studded array of musicians gathered to honor this milestone event at Radio City Music Hall on October 1 with a three-hour-plus tribute concert entitled Buddy’s Got the Blues: A 90th Birthday Concert Celebration.
The one-night-only event celebrated Guy’s legacy through performances, once-in-a-lifetime collaborations, and tributes from artists whose music and careers were shaped by his influence.
Born in Louisiana in 1936, George “Buddy” Guy moved to Chicago in 1957 and fell under the influence of Muddy Waters. Guy eventually became a reigning exponent of Chicago blues, later influencing guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Gary Clark Jr., and John Mayer.
In a 1986 interview published in Musician, Clapton said, “Buddy Guy is by far and without a doubt the best guitar player alive… if you see him in person, the way he plays is beyond anyone. Total freedom of spirit, I guess. He really changed the course of rock and roll blues.” Clapton has repeatedly praised Guy throughout his career, including during his speech when he inducted Guy into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.
Guy has won nine Grammy Awards and a Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Medal of Arts, and the Kennedy Center Honors. He ranked 27th in Rolling Stone‘s 2023 list of greatest guitarists of all time. His song “Stone Crazy” was ranked 78th in Rolling Stone’s list of the “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.”
Steve Jordan, drummer in the Rolling Stones, served as the tribute concert’s musical director, leading the Blues Beat House Band. Buddy Guy performed intermittently throughout the program, with invited blues and rock artists celebrating his legacy between his performances. John Mayer, Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark Jr., Shemekia Copeland, Samantha Fish, Eric Gales, Billy F Gibbons, Robert Randolph, Bobby Rush, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jimmie Vaughan and other musicians helped lead the evening’s 30-song repertoire. After “How Blue Can You Get?” Guy announced that Eric Clapton, who was initially advertised to participate, was unable to perform due to illness.
The three-hour-plus concert was livestreamed with a portion of the proceeds from Buddy Guy’s 90th Birthday Concert benefitting the American Cancer Society.
Buddy Guy’s 90th Birthday Concert, Radio City Music Hall, NYC – October 1, 2026
- I’m in the Mood (John Lee Hooker cover, acoustic, with Buddy Guy, Isaiah Shirley and Derek Trucks)
- Juke (Little Walter & His Night Cats cover, with the Blues Beat House Band)
- Early in the Morning (Sonny Boy Williamson cover, with Ivan Neville, Kim Wilson and the Blues Beat House Band)
- Cross Cut Saw Blues (Tommy McClennan cover, with Christone “Kingfish” Ingram and Robert Randolph)
- Shake Your Moneymaker (Elmore James cover, with Robert Randolph, and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram)
- Let Me Love You Baby (Buddy Guy cover, with Kenny Wayne Shepherd)
- Steamroller (James Taylor cover, with Ally Venable and Kenny Wayne Shepherd)
- A Man of Many Words (Buddy Guy & Junior Wells cover, with Joe Bonamassa)
- Baby What You Want Me to Do (Jimmy Reed cover, with Eric Gales and Joe Bonamassa)
- Baby Please Don’t Leave Me (Junior Kimbrough cover, with Samantha Fish and Eric Gales)
- Rock Me Baby (B.B. King cover, with Shemekia Copeland and Buddy Guy)
- I Can’t Quit You Baby (Willie Dixon cover, with Shemekia Copeland and Buddy Guy)
- Lightnin’s Boogie (Lightnin’ Hopkins cover, with Jimmie Vaughan)
- Texas Flood (Larry Davis cover, with Jimmie Vaughan and Billy Gibbons)
- Boogie Chillun (Lightnin’ Hopkins cover, with Billy Gibbons)
- The Thrill Is Gone (Roy Hawkins cover, with Aloe Blacc)
- Born Under a Bad Sign (Booker T. & the MG’s cover, with Doyle Bramhall II)
- All of Your Love (Magic Sam cover, with Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks)
- Messin’ with the Kid (Junior Wells cover, with Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks)
- Catfish Blues (Robert Petway cover, with Gary Clark Jr.)
- If Trouble Was Money (Albert Collins cover, with Gary Clark Jr.)
- Chicken Heads (Bobby Rush cover, with Bobby Rush and Buddy Guy)
- I Just Want to Make Love to You (Willie Dixon cover, with Buddy Guy and Bobby Rush, >)
- Boom Boom (John Lee Hooker cover, with Buddy Guy and Bobby Rush)
- Garbage Man Blues (Phil Guy cover, with Buddy Guy and Bobby Rush)
- How Blue Can You Get? (Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers cover, with Buddy Guy and Bobby Rush,
- I’ve Got Dreams to Remember (Otis Redding cover, with John Mayer and Susan Tedeschi)
- A Real Mother for Ya (Johnny “Guitar” Watson cover, with Buddy Guy and John Mayer)
- I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man (Willie Dixon cover, with the ensemble)
- Got My Mojo Working (Ann Cole with the Suburbans cover, with the ensemble)
All photographs by Sanjay Suchak/Blackbird Presents
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