He’s Staying in the Game

“I’m at a point where I’m calling the shots. I do things only when I want to. . . . I’ve earned that much.”

Sound a little cocky? Maybe, but who can argue with blues man John Lee Hooker, who has left the kind of lasting impression that only a handful of others can lay claim to?

The 80-year-old legend from Clarksdale, Miss., was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991, and he’s won numerous industry awards, including two new Grammys for last year’s “Don’t Look Back” album. His menacing style of folk-blues--a mix of thumping rhythms and gravelly vocals--has also influenced scores of blues and rock artists, from Eric Burdon, the Rolling Stones and Canned Heat to Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt and Robert Cray.

Retire? Forget it; Hooker continues to rock onstage. Sure, he’s cut back on the live performances, and his voice is more of a gruff warble than anything else. But he can still rumble, and the self-described “King of the Boogie” still wants that rush of adrenaline. Or as he puts it: “To be in the game.”

“I never, ever imagined I’d have a career last this long . . . but here I am,” Hooker said by phone from his Northern California home in Redwood City. “If I stopped playing the blues, I’d be miserable. I’ve been given a gift from the good Lord. . . . I think doing what I do is just in my blood.”

Hooker, who will headline Saturday’s lineup at this weekend’s Doheny Blues Festival in Dana Point, said he invented that rockin’ beat called boogie back in 1932. He had to wait, though, until 1948 for his first hit record, the million-selling “Boogie Chillen.’ ”

In 1951 was an even bigger hit: “I’m in the Mood.” Working with such greats as Jimmy Reed and Eddie Taylor, Hooker’s recordings for the Vee-Jay label in the ‘50s and ‘60s--including “Boom Boom,” Dimples,” “Frisco Blues” and “She’s Mine (Keep Your Hands to Yourself)”--proved to be some of his most enduring works. (Rhino Records’ “John Lee Hooker, the Ultimate Collection: 1948-1990,” provides a solid overview of his career.)

Though Hooker has since played or sung on nearly 200 records, he prefers looking ahead, not behind.

“That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout with my new record--don’t look back. You can’t relive the past, uh-uh. Yessir, I’ve got most everything . . . money, cars, women . . . but what I’m enjoying now is playin’ with friends, both new and old.”

Hooker talked somewhat reluctantly--and rather briefly--about himself. But when the subject turned to others, he became practically chatty.

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One “old friend” he admires is Irish soul singer Van Morrison, who has collaborated with Hooker several times, beginning in 1972 with Hooker’s “Never Get Out of These Blues Alive.” Among other projects, the two have also teamed for a remake of Morrison’s classic “Gloria.”

Morrison returns to sing on a few tracks on and produce “Don’t Look Back.” Of their enduring friendship and musical collaborations, Hooker said, “He loves me, and I love him. Shoot, we’re like two little kids playin’ together in a playpen. Some people say he’s uptight and moody, but he’s just kinda shy, really. He tends to freak out around a lot of people he doesn’t know, that’s all.”

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Others guest stars on “Don’t Look Back” include blues singer-pianist Charles Brown and various members of Los Lobos, the Dirty Dozen and Cray’s band. Over the years, Hooker has jammed with countless notables, including Carlos Santana, Keith Richards, Johnny Winter, Raitt, Canned Heat, Ry Cooder, Charlie Musselwhite and the late Luther Allison.

Still, one duet has proved elusive.

“I would really like to get together with Eric Clapton, and I heard him say on the radio that he feels the same way,” Hooker said. “I played with him and the rest of [John Mayall’s] Bluesbreakers back a spell--but not just the two of us. You never know; it could happen.”

And if it does, any preference for what they’ll play?

“I’d like to play ‘Red House,’ ” Hooker said without hesitation. “I’d just sing it and let Clapton play [the guitar]. It would be a killer.” (Hooker performs a gritty, spooky version of the classic Jimi Hendrix tune on “Don’t Look Back.”)

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Hooker is one of the last links to the pure, pre-rock days of the blues. And with the recent death of Chicago blues ace Allison, he is in a class by himself. Almost.

“Me and B.B. [King]--we’re the only two left now,” Hooker said. “I know I ain’t gonna live forever, but I don’t think about when we’re gonna be gone. But someday, I hope I’m remembered for the music I’ve left behind, and for thrillin’ some people. It means everything to me that all these real nice folks . . . Van and Bonnie and all the rest . . . look up to me. I hope they know I look up to them too.”

* John Lee Hooker performs Saturday at the Doheny Blues Festival at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point. (See accompanying schedule for complete list of bands and show times.) Recorded information: (949) 262-2262.

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Newport Beach Jazz Festival

Doheny Blues Festival

Saturday’s Schedule:

Doheny Stage

12:15 p.m.: Blue by Nature

1:45: Kris Wiley Band

3:30: Robben Ford Band

5:45: Tower of Power

8:30: John Lee Hooker

Hennessey’s Stage

11:45 a.m.: Jesse Hughes Blues Groove

1 p.m.: 2000 Lbs. of Blues

2:45: Walter Trout

4:45: Coco Montoya

7:15: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

Sunday’s Schedule:

Doheny Stage

12:15 p.m.: Miller Time Boogie Blues

1:30: Maria Muldaur

3:15: Rod Piazza & the Mighty Flyers

5:30: Jimmie Vaughan

8: Robert Cray Band

Hennessey’s Stage

11:45 a.m.: Rod & the Pistons

12:45 p.m.: Steve Copeland & Raging Sun

2:30: Eric Sardinas

4:30: Anson Funderburgh & Sam Myers

6:45: Fabulous Thunderbirds

The Doheny Blues Festival, Doheny State Beach, Dana Point Harbor. 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Rain or shine. Adults: $22 per day (advance), $25 day of show; $35 for a two-day pass. Children 3-12: $10. (Partial proceeds to benefit the Surfrider Foundation, San Clemente Chapter.) Tickets may be charged through Omega Events, (714) 258-0333, or Ticketmaster, (714) 740-2000.

Los Angeles Times