Freddy Robinson was born Fred Leroy Robinson on February 24, 1939 in Memphis, Tennessee but was raised in Arkansas and by 1956 was in Chicago. That year he first recorded backing harmonica player Birmingham Jones. In 1958, he began touring with Little Walter and after seeing a jazz band performance was inspired to formally learn music at the Chicago School of Music.

Freddy soon was working and recording with Howlin’ Wolf, and by the mid-1960s was playing with Jerry Butler and Syl Johnson before joining Ray Charles in Los Angeles. While there, he recorded…