Muddy Waters with James Cotton; 1971

McKinley Morganfield was born on April 4, 1913 –  known as Muddy Waters, he was an American blues musician, generally considered the “father of modern Chicago blues”. He was a major inspiration for the British blues explosion in the 1960s and was ranked No. 17 in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
He started out on harmonica but by age seventeen he was playing the guitar at parties emulating two blues artists who were extremely popular in the southern USA, Son House and Robert Johnson
McKinley conceived of the name Muddy Waters from his attempt to describe the aftermath of the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
As a result of hearing a completed recording of himself in 1941, Muddy Waters became motivated to pursue a professional career. Receiving his first break from Big Bill Bronzy, Waters over the years has enjoyed the membership in his band of such notable talents in the name of Little Walter Jacobs,  Jimmy Rogers, Otis Spann, Howlin’ Wolf, Bob Margolin, Pinetop Perkins, and Luther Johnson
Muddy headed to England in 1958 and shocked audiences (whose only previous exposure to blues had come via the acoustic folk/blues sounds of acts such as Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee and Big Bill Broonzy) with his loud, amplified electric guitar and thunderous beat.
His 1958 tour of England marked possibly the first time amplified, modern urban blues was heard in the UK.
The Rolling Stones named themselves after his 1950 song “Rollin’ Stone” (also known as “Catfish Blues”) British Band Cream covered “Rollin’ and Tumblin'” on their 1966 debut album Fresh Cream, as Eric Clapton was a big fan of Muddy Waters
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed four songs of Muddy Waters among the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll
Between 1971 and 1979 Muddy Waters received  six Grammy Awards and in 1992 posthumously was honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and in 1994 his likeness was transformed into a stamp issued by the US Postal Service
Due to declining health his last public performance took place when he sat in with Eric Clapton’s band at a concert in Florida in the autumn of 1982.
On April 30, 1983 Muddy Waters died in his sleep from heart failure, at his home in Illinois.

Source: Wikipedia