As a child, he swore by rock and jazz. But when, at the age of ten, he discovered the blues, his heart capsized. It was this music that spoke to him, this music that he would play. A young prodigy, he soon moved to Los Angeles, where he worked as a sideman for John Lee Hooker and Percy Mayfield, among others. In 1981, his destiny changed completely when he became lead guitarist with Canned Heat. Then, in 1984, he joined John Mayall's BluesBreakers and was already a legend, following in the footsteps of Peter Green and Eric Clapton.

At 38, the guitarist with the blues running through his veins already has nothing left to prove. So he went his own way, formed the Walter Trout Band and took to the microphone to tell his story. And his fans were immediately hooked. His first album, Life in the Jungle, was followed by a host of others, often with his band but sometimes one-on-one with his guitar, always delivering a blues with a powerfully modern edge.

Although Walter Trout had always been successful, he was mainly active in Northern Europe and the Netherlands. But in 1998, the guitarist wanted to change all that, and released a self-titled debut album in the U.S. under the slightly rebellious name Walter Trout and the Radicals. And it worked! In the years that followed, the bluesman became prolific, releasing one or two albums a year, touring the world and satisfying an ever-growing audience with his positive groove.

Stubborn Walter Trout? Well, maybe a little! When he's told he has cirrhosis of the liver, he sends the doctors packing to continue doing what he loves most of all: playing to his audience. It was only when a transplant became vital that he agreed to stop and undergo the risky operation, which would leave him confined to his hospital bed for 8 months. But the bluesman has seen it all before. He relearned to walk, talk, sing and, above all, to play guitar as if nothing had ever happened. And, of course, he's back on tour.

Just before Covid, Walter Trout had delivered a marvel of introspective blues with Ordinary Madness before being stopped in his tracks. Just after the pandemic, he returned with Ride, a little blues gem and further proof, if any were needed, of his ability to sublimate hardship into songs filled with hope and courage. An album made up of "what I was going through mentally and emotionally", says this maestro, who was only too eager to "get back out on the road, meet people at concerts, give them hugs and pose for a photo with them".