McCracklin ran the Continental Club in San Francisco. He booked blues acts such as T-Bone Walker, Irma Thomas, Big Joe Turner, Big Mama Thornton, and Etta James. In 1967, Otis Redding and Carla Thomas had success with "Tramp", a song credited to McCracklin and Lowell Fulson. Salt-n-Pepa made a hip-hop hit out of the song in 1987. Oakland Blues (1968) was an album arranged and directed by McCracklin, and produced by World Pacific. The California rock-n-roll "roots music" band The Blasters named themselves after McCracklin's backing band The Blues Blasters. Blasters' lead singer Phil Alvin explained the origin of the band's name: "I thought Joe Turner’s backup band on Atlantic records – I had these 78s – I thought they were the Blues Blasters. It ends up it was Jimmy McCracklin's. I just took the 'Blues' off and Joe finally told me, that’s Jimmy McCracklin’s name, but you tell ‘im I gave you permission to steal it." McCracklin continued to tour and produce new albums in the 1980s and 1990s. Bob Dylan has cited McCracklin as a favorite. He played at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1984 and 2007. He was given a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1990, and the Living Legend and Hall of Fame award at the Bay Area Black Music Awards, in 2007. McCracklin continued to write, record, and perform into the 21st century. He died in San Pablo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area, on December 20, 2012, after a long illness, aged 91. Selected discography Quotation "I can watch a guy work, listen to how he pronounce his words," said McCracklin, "and I can tell just how to fit that guy with a song". References External links Jimmy McCracklin photo gallery [ Allmusic] 1921 births 2012 deaths Musicians from St. Louis American male singers Songwriters from Missouri Imperial Records artists Modern Records artists RPM Records (United States) artists Kent Records artists Chess Records artists Ace Records (United States) artists Custom Records artists Minit Records artists West Coast blues musicians Soul-blues musicians Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area Checker Records artists Stax Records artists Songwriters from California 20th-century American pianists Singers from Missouri American male pianists 20th-century American male musicians People from Phillips County, Arkansas American male songwriters