Hooked on blues

If John Lee Hooker Jr. had stuck with his first career aspiration, he would be studying for the bar instead of playing in them.Luckily for blues lovers he passed on life as an attorney and instead became a musician performing at clubs around the world and most recently, securing a Grammy nomination. A second for Hooker, who moved to Roseville five years ago, the Grammy nomination comes a short four months after the release of his third album, "All Odds Against Me." "I was surprised because it was so soon," Hooker said about the news of the nomination upon returning to the states after touring overseas. "I was at home checking e-mail and when I read (about the nomination). I didn't know if it was true or not or even how to check and I knew John was on his way back," said Magda Tondera, Hooker's wife and business manager. "So I had all this excitement and I just had to jump around because it was all too much."Born and raised in Detroit, Hooker was exposed to music legends like the Temptations, Diana Ross and of course, his own father, the late John Lee Hooker."It's like you've got a parent who's a chef and you live next door to the restaurant," Hooker said. "You're inspired by the chef and the elaborate way they fix a meal."On tour with his father, Hooker Jr. was inspired by the people he rubbed elbows with backstage and the countries they traveled to. Hooker also found inspiration in musicians like BB King, Big Mama Thornton and Van Morrison who he met while on tour with his father."You're inspired by the things you see or something you hear," Hooker said. "So I was inspired by looking through the curtain."Many of Hooker's life experiences have found their way into the recording studio and served as a therapeutic release from memories of his past, namely a history with drugs and alcohol. His first album "Blues with a Vengeance" he calls a "celebratory redemption" as it is a result of his overcoming his troubles and generated his first Grammy nomination."It was such a dark part of my life and we often hold those memories and they haunt us," Hooker said. "So to minimize the impact I wrote songs and added humor and when you write to make people feel good, the darkness of your past doesn't have the impact that it used to."Hooker said nearly every song on his new album relates back to something he has personally experienced or witnessed. "Payday"is a song that Hooker witnessed, while "Extramarital affair" is about a band member's relationship. This new album, released in the U.S. on Hooker's Steppin' Stone Records label is also the first one that does not directly pay homage to his father, containing only original tracks. "His sound is completely different from my granddaddy," said Jeremiah Hooker, Hooker Jr.'s son. "He has R&B mixed with blues, and has more of an edge. It's modern."Although the influence from his father can be heard, Hooker Jr. calls his music "current event blues" while his father's sound he said was more "down-home blues."A mix of jazz, funk and hip-hop, Hooker has found a way to include the down-home sound of his father yet maintain a sound all his own. Hooker and his wife will attend the Grammys in February and say they feel blessed to be nominated for a second time."The second time they can't say I got lucky," Hooker said. "I'm very thankful and feel very blessed. It's an honor."