Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon

| image =

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| birth_date = {{birth date|1926|04|12|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Delhi, Louisiana, United States

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1984|02|17|1926|04|12|mf=y}}

| death_place = Monroe, Louisiana, United States

| instrument = Bass guitar, vocals

| genre = Chicago blues

| occupation = Guitarist, singer, songwriter

| years_active = Early 1950s–1984

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Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon (April 12, 1926 – February 17, 1984) was an American Chicago blues bass guitarist, singer and songwriter.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-w-uGwm_LhcC&q=Andrew+%22Blueblood%22+McMahon&pg=PA672|title=Encyclopedia of the Blues|first=Edward M.|last=Komara|page=672|date=December 9, 2006|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=9780415926997|via=Google Books}} McMahon played bass guitar in Howlin' Wolf's backing ensemble for over a decade. He also backed a number of other Chicago-based blues musicians on record. His own best known tracks are "Lost in the Jungle", "Special Agent", "Potato Diggin' Man", and "Worried All the Time", which have appeared on several compilation albums.

Biography

Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon was born in Delhi, Louisiana, United States. He relocated to Chicago, Illinois, in 1949, and commenced performing in the blues clubs across that city from the early 1950s.{{cite book|title=The Guinness Who's Who of Blues|editor=Colin Larkin|publisher=Guinness Publishing|date=1995|edition=Second|isbn=0-85112-673-1|page=263}}

McMahon first started playing in Howlin' Wolf's backing band in 1960, and his recording career with Wolf ran between 1964 and 1973. That tenure saw McMahon play bass on Wolf's single, "Killing Floor" (1964),{{cite web| url = https://blues.org/blues_hof_inductee/killing-floor-howlin-wolf-chess-1964/| author = | title = 1991 Hall of Fame Inductees: Killing Floor – Howlin' Wolf (Chess, 1964)| website = The Blues Foundation| date = November 10, 2016| access-date = June 30, 2012}} and on his albums, The Real Folk Blues (1966) and The Back Door Wolf (1973).{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/andrew-mcmahon-mn0000031783/credits|title=Andrew McMahon | Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=December 9, 2019}}

In 1960, McMahon supplied bass guitar to Morris Pejoe's single release "She Walked Right In". Another early recording outside of Wolf's tutelage was playing bass guitar on Freddy Young's single, "Someday Baby" (1964).{{Cite web|url=https://www.wirz.de/music/mcmahon.htm|title=Illustrated Andrew 'Blueblood' McMahon discography|website=Wirz.de|access-date=December 9, 2019}}

In 1973, McMahon recorded his debut solo album, Blueblood,{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/blueblood-mw0000852546/credits|title=Blueblood - Andrew McMahon | Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=December 9, 2019}} in Chicago, which was released by Dharma Records. His backing musicians on the recording included Homesick James, Hubert Sumlin, and Sunnyland Slim.{{Cite web|url=https://coblues.org/don-t-ask-me-i-don-t-know|title=Andrew McMahon - Blueblood|website=Coblues.org|access-date=December 9, 2019}} He released the accompanying single, "Guitar King" / "Short Mini Dress", also on Dharma.{{Cite web|url=https://dontaskmeidontknow.blogspot.com/2015/04/andrew-mcmahon-blueblood.html|title=Don't Ask Me ... I Don't Know: Andrew McMahon - Blueblood|website=Dontaskmeidontknow.blogspot.com|date=April 18, 2015}} However, his subsequent solo career did not take off.

In 1977, his second album release, Go Get My Baby, a live recording, was issued on the French record label MCM Records. It had been recorded the previous November, over two nights, three days apart, at a couple of Chicago blues clubs. Aron Burton played the bass guitar on a number of tracks, to allow McMahon to concentrate on his singing. Other musicians who performed on the recordings were the guitarists Jimmy Dawkins and John Littlejohn.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/go-get-my-baby-mw0000233308/credits|title=Go Get My Baby - Andrew McMahon | Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=December 9, 2019}} McMahon wrote five of the fourteen tracks on the recording, which also had blues standards such as "It Hurts Me Too", "Got My Mojo Working", and "Little Red Rooster".{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/go-get-my-baby-mw0000233308|title=Go Get My Baby - Andrew McMahon | Songs, Reviews, Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=December 9, 2019}}

Some of his live work appeared in the compilation album, The Chicago Blues Box 2, issued by Storyville Records,{{Cite web|url=https://www.storyvillerecords.com/artists/andrew-blueblood-mcmahon|title=McMahon, Andrew "Blueblood" - Storyville Records - The Best in Jazz since 1952|website=Storyvillerecords.com|access-date=December 9, 2019}} plus four of his studio recordings were incorporated on another compilation, Cadillac Baby's Bea & Baby Records: The Definitive Collection.{{Cite web|url=http://blog.bluespowr.com/earwig-music-relays-important-part-of-chicago-music-history-through-cadillac-babys-bea-baby-records-the-definitive-collection/|title=Earwig Music relays important part of Chicago music history through Cadillac Baby's Bea & Baby Records: The Definitive Collection|website=Blogs.bluespowr.com|date=September 24, 2019}}

McMahon died in Monroe, Louisiana, in February 1984, at the age of 57.{{Cite web|url=http://www.offbeat.com/news/louisiana-music-timeline-february-17/|title=Louisiana Music Timeline: February 17|first=Joseph|last=Irrera|website=OffBeat Magazine|date=February 17, 2013 |access-date=December 9, 2019}}

An obituary appeared in Living Blues magazine (issue No. 59) later that year.{{cite magazine|magazine=Living Blues|title=Obituary : Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=immRAgAAQBAJ&q=%22Willie+James+Lyons%22&pg=PA673|author=Jim O'Neal|author-link=Jim O'Neal|date=March 31, 2008|page=40|isbn=9781135865085}}