“Messin’ with the Kid” is a 1960 rhythm-and-blues-influenced Chicago blues song by Junior Wells (born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr.), widely regarded as his signature tune and a blues standard. It was released as a single on Chief Records (C-7021), with “Universal Rock” (an instrumental featuring Earl Hooker) as the B-side.
Sessions and Producer
The original version was recorded on October 17, 1960, at Universal Recording Studios in Chicago. Producer Mel London (owner of Chief Records and its related labels Profile and Age) oversaw the session. Chief sessions under London were typically efficient and focused on capturing the spontaneous energy of the West Side blues scene, often in relatively few takes.
Wells later recorded a second studio version in 1966 for the Vanguard compilation Chicago/The Blues/Today! Vol. 1. This take features a different rhythmic arrangement, a prominent harmonica solo by Wells, and guitar work by Buddy Guy, with Jack Myers on bass and Fred Below on drums. Wells and Guy also performed and recorded the song live multiple times over the years, including versions from the 1970s.
Songwriters
The song is officially credited to Mel London as lyricist and composer. According to Wells, the title and concept originated from a real-life incident involving his young daughter Gina. London arrived early at Wells’s home to pick him up for a recording session. When the girl was told to wake her father, she protested that it was not yet the agreed time and that London shouldn’t be “messin’ with the Kid” (Wells’s nickname). In the studio that day, needing another song, the pair quickly developed the number—reportedly in five to ten minutes—turning the anecdote into a swaggering blues warning directed at a two-timing lover.
Although some later credits occasionally list Wells as co-writer, the original single and most authoritative sources credit London alone. The song’s publishing is associated with Downtown DMP Songs in modern listings.
Musicians (Original 1960 Version)
Wells sings lead vocals but does not play harmonica on the original single (a notable departure from many of his early recordings). The lineup is:
- Junior Wells – vocals
- Earl Hooker – electric guitar (the distinctive, repeating guitar riff/hook that drives the song)
- Johnny “Big Moose” Walker – piano (some sources also note organ contributions on related session tracks)
- Jack Myers – bass
- Fred Below – drums
- Jarrett Gibson – tenor saxophone
- Donald Hankins – baritone saxophone
Some accounts mention additional guitar (e.g., Lacey Gibson in certain discographies), but the core credited personnel center on Hooker’s guitar, the dual saxes, Walker’s keys, Myers, and Below. The tight rhythm section and horn punctuation give the track its punchy, R&B-edged shuffle feel.
Other Versions and Covers
The song quickly became a standard. Notable versions and adaptations include:
- Muddy Waters – “Messin’ with the Man” (1961, Chess), an answer song recorded soon after the original.
- Junior Wells with Buddy Guy – 1966 studio version on Chicago/The Blues/Today! Vol. 1, plus numerous live performances; they also used a similar arrangement approach on “Snatch It Back and Hold It” from Hoodoo Man Blues (1965).
- Steppenwolf – “Tighten Up Your Wig” (1968), which borrows the riff; a later live version explicitly acknowledges the source (“We stole this riff from Junior Wells…”).
- Rory Gallagher – energetic live rock adaptation on Live! in Europe (1972); it became one of his signature concert numbers.
- Buddy Guy & Junior Wells – studio version on Play the Blues (1972, produced in part by Eric Clapton and Tom Dowd, with contributions from Clapton, Dr. John, and others).
- The Blues Brothers – high-energy live version on Briefcase Full of Blues (1978), which helped introduce the song to broader rock and pop audiences.
- Johnny Winter – 1978 recording.
- Other covers and adaptations by Luther Allison, John Mayall, Eddie C. Campbell (the Christmas novelty “Santa’s Messin’ with the Kid”), Bill Frisell, Buddy Guy featuring Kid Rock (2013), and many more blues, rock, and jam-band artists. Earl Hooker also cut a related instrumental, “Rockin’ with the Kid.”
The song was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1998 as a Classic of Blues Recording.
Musical Style and Analysis
“Messin’ with the Kid” is an upbeat, mid-tempo Chicago blues shuffle with strong R&B and early soul influences. It sits in a straightforward 12-bar framework but gains its identity from a catchy, repeating guitar riff (played by Earl Hooker) that functions almost like a horn-section hook, punctuating the vocal lines. The dual saxophones provide punchy, unison or call-and-response accents, while the rhythm section (Myers and Below) locks into a driving, danceable groove.
Lyrically, it is a classic blues boast/warning: the singer confronts rumors that his woman is putting him down and frames her behavior as “messin’ with the Kid.” Wells delivers the vocal with characteristic attitude—sassy, streetwise, and full of personality—matching the song’s “fiery” energy. Notably, the absence of harmonica on the original shifts focus to the vocal and the band arrangement; later versions restore Wells’s amplified harp for a more traditional Chicago blues texture.
The track bridges postwar Chicago blues and the emerging West Side sound that incorporated more modern R&B, funk, and soul elements. Hooker’s precise, riff-based guitar work (sometimes noted as echoing the energy of contemporary hits like the Everly Brothers’ “Lucille”) gives it an almost proto-rock accessibility, which helps explain its appeal to later rock interpreters such as Gallagher, Steppenwolf, and the Blues Brothers.
Overall, “Messin’ with the Kid” stands as both a perfect encapsulation of Junior Wells’s swaggering persona and a durable blues standard that has been continually reinvented across decades and genres while remaining instantly recognizable through its infectious riff and attitude.
Suggested Listening
Buy from Amazon Chicago/The Blues/Today! Vol. 1
