The Healer (album)

The Healer is a blues album by John Lee Hooker, released in 1989 by Chameleon. The album features collaborations with Bonnie Raitt, Charlie Musselwhite, Los Lobos and Carlos Santana, among others. The album was a critical and commercial success and was important for Hooker's later career.

The Healer
A photo of Hooker with his hands outstretched
Studio album by
John Lee Hooker
ReleasedSeptember 1989 (1989-09)
Studio
  • Russian Hill Recording Studios, San Francisco, California (most tracks)
  • The Plant, Sausalito, California ("The Healer")
  • Leon Haywood Studios, Los Angeles, California ("Think Twice Before You Go")
GenreBlues
Length41:43
LabelChameleon
ProducerRoy Rogers
John Lee Hooker chronology
Jealous
(1986)		 The Healer
(1989)		 Lonesome Road
(1990)

Background

The Healer peaked at number 62 on the Billboard 200 and "I'm in the Mood" won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Performance. The album was produced by Roy Rogers of the Delta Rhythm Kings,[1] and executive produced by Mike Kappus,[2] who conceived the idea for the project pairing Hooker with a variety of guest musicians.[3]

The video for "The Healer" featuring Carlos Santana and John Lee Hooker was filmed in the Chameleon warehouse in Hawthorne, CA amidst stacks of Hooker's old vinyl LPs, and live on stage at "The Palace," a Hollywood nightclub across from Capitol Records on Vine St. A video for "In the Mood" that featured footage of Bonnie Raitt was in rotation at MTV and VH-1, along with a video that Robert Cray appeared in for "Baby Lee".[3]

John Lee Hooker was 73 years old when the album was released. It was his first Grammy win and was the album that had placed highest on the Billboard charts in his forty-year career.[3] The album had such success that it "permitted John Lee Hooker to live out the end of his life in comfort".[4] Powers recounts with joy sending a large royalty check to Hooker, and the deep gratitude he felt for the opportunity to help him to finally achieve the recognition he deserved.

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[6]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings[7]
Rolling Stone[1]
The Village VoiceB+[8]

In a 2023 overview of Hooker's life and career, Tony Russell of Mojo considers this new recording of "In the Mood" a key song in Hooker's catalogue, calling it a "steamiliy erotic dialogue" with guest artist Bonnie Raitt.[3] It was voted number 424 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).[9]

Track listing

All tracks are written by John Lee Hooker, except where noted

The Healer track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Guest musician(s)Length
1."The Healer"Hooker, Roy Rogers, Carlos Santana, Chester D. ThompsonCarlos Santana and the Santana Band5:36
2."I'm in the Mood"Hooker, Bernard BesmanBonnie Raitt4:30
3."Baby Lee"Hooker, James BrackenRobert Cray3:43
4."Cuttin' Out" Canned Heat4:35
5."Think Twice Before You Go" Los Lobos2:58
6."Sally Mae"Hooker, BrackenGeorge Thorogood3:15
7."That's Alright" Charlie Musselwhite4:23
8."Rockin' Chair"  4:09
9."My Dream"  4:02
10."No Substitute"  4:07
Total length:41:18

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album liner notes:

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (1990) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[10] 17

Year-end charts
Chart (1990) Rank
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[10] 78

Certifications
Certifications for The Healer
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[11] Gold 35,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[12] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. "John Lee Hooker: The Healer : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. 23 November 2007. Archived from the original on 23 November 2007. Retrieved 24 January 2018.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. "Mike Kappus :The Rosebud Agency" (PDF). Pollstarpro.com. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  3. DiMartino, Dave (March 2023). "Born to Boogie". Mojo. No. 352. p. 48. ISSN 1351-0193.
  4. According to Walter de Paduwa speaking (in French at minute 14'45") on the Dr Boogie Radio Show, January 31, 2014.
  5. Owens, Thom. The Healer at AllMusic
  6. Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
  7. Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
  8. Christgau, Robert (October 31, 1989). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  9. Colin Larkin, ed. (2006). All Time Top 1000 Albums (3rd ed.). Virgin Books. p. 156. ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
  10. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 131.
  11. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1990 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  12. "Dutch album certifications – John Lee Hooker – The Healer" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved July 16, 2022. Enter The Healer in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1990 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
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