Little Mack Simmons

b. 25 January 1934, Twist, Arkansas, USA, d. 24 October 2000, Chicago, Illinois, USA. ‘Little’ Mack Simmons was one of the stalwarts of the Chicago club scene; he taught himself harmonica as a youngster and in the early 50s occasionally worked with bluesmen on the St. Louis, Missouri, club circuit, before settling in Chicago in 1954. Since the late 60s he recorded for many small local labels, and sometimes larger companies such as Checker. In 1967 he received a three-year prison sentence for a drugs offence. He ran his own label recording studio and club from time to time and recorded blues, gospel (he was known for a time as Reverend Mac Simmons) and soul. Among his artists were Otis Clay and Sunnyland Slim. His version of ‘Rainy Night In Georgia’, performed as a harmonica instrumental, was a local hit in the early 70s. He made a comeback in the 90s with a series of classic blues albums on the Electro-Fi label. Simmons lost his battle with cancer in October 2000.