Background
Although he was born in Louisiana, Young was raised in Milwaukee.
Although he was born in Louisiana, Young was raised in Milwaukee.
Born Joseph Young in Shreveport, Louisiana, he died in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to his musical career, Young was an active amateur boxer in the 1940s, though Young later confessed "lieutenant was nothing to write home about. I decided that music was the best thing to do." He first began playing in the early 1950s by singing on the Milwaukee nightclub circuit.
In 1955, Young returned to Louisiana to make his recording debut for Jiffy Records.
Young worked as a sidemen in Chicago starting the 1950s. He worked as an occasional sideman with Otis Rush in the 1960s, appearing on Rush"s album Cold Day in Hell, and played on Magic Sam"s albums, West Side Soul and Black Magic.
His album Blues with a Touch of Soul came out on Delmark Records in 1971. Young also worked with Billy Boy Arnold, Jimmy Rogers, and Willie Dixon.
Young"s song, "Turning Point", appeared in the Michael Mann feature film, Thief (1981).
Young died from pneumonia at the age of 71, which developed after he underwent spinal surgery meant to relieve numbness in his fingers that prevented him from playing the guitar.