Hard Again

***Hard Again*** is a album by Muddy Waters. It was produced by Johnny Winter who also played guitar. The record was his first for Blue Sky Records. It was also the first studio album after he left Chess Records

## Recording

The recordings lasted three days. For the recordings Muddy used his then current touring band of guitarist Bob Margolin, pianist Pinetop Perkins, and drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith. James Cotton played harmonica and Charles Calmeses the bass.

## Songs

Three of the songs on the album – "Mannish Boy", "I Want to Be Loved", and "I Can't Be Satisfied" – were re-recordings of songs for Chess Records. One of the songs recorded, "The Blues Had a Baby and They Named It Rock and Roll, Pt. 2", was co-written by Brownie McGhee and another song, "Bus Driver", was co-written by T. Abrahamson.

An outtake from the recording sessions, "Walking Through the Park", appeared on the 2004 Legacy Recordings reissue CD, while several more unused tracks appeared on _King Bee_ in 1981.

## Reception

The album has been well received by several critics.  Dan Oppenheimer of _Rolling Stone_ magazine said that "Mannish Boy" sounded like it was recorded live while both Oppenheimer and Daniel Gioffre of Allmusic state how powerful Willie "Big Eyes" Smith's drumming is. Oppenheimer, Gioffre, and Robert Christgau all share the opinion that _Hard Again_ is Muddy Waters comeback album.

## Charts and awards

_Hard Again_ peaked at #143 on the _Billboard_ 200, which was his first appearance on the chart since _Fathers and Sons_ in 1969.

## Track listing

All songs written by McKinley Morganfield, except where others are noted.

### Original album

1. "Mannish Boy" (Morganfield, Ellas McDaniel, Mel London) – 5:23
1. "Bus Driver" (Morganfield, Terry Abrahamson) – 7:44
1. "I Want to Be Loved" (Willie Dixon) – 2:20
1. "Jealous Hearted Man" – 4:23
1. "I Can't Be Satisfied" – 3:28
1. "The Blues Had a Baby and They Named It Rock And Roll, Pt. 2" (Morganfield, Brownie McGhee) – 3:35
1. "Deep Down in Florida" – 5:25
1. "Crosseyed Cat" – 5:59
1. "Little Girl" – 7:06

### 2004 bonus track

<ol start="10"><li>"Walking Through the Park" – 3:55</ol>

## Personnel

The following people contributed to _Hard Again_:

- Muddy Waters – vocals, guitar
- Bob Margolin – guitar
- Pinetop Perkins – piano
- James Cotton – harmonica
- Willie "Big Eyes" Smith – drums
- Charles Calmese – bass
- Johnny Winter – guitar, producer
- Dave Still – engineer
- Andy Manganello – assistant engineer
- Joseph M. Palmaccio – mastering
- Al Quaglieri – reissue producer
- Chris Theis – mix engineer

## Release history

|Region|Date|Label|Format|Catalog||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|United States|January 10, 1977|Blue Sky Records|LP|PZ 34449||||
|United Kingdom|1977|Blue Sky Records|LP|SKY 32357||||
|Europe|1977|Blue Sky Records|LP|SKY 81853||||
|Australia|1977|CBS Records|LP|SBP 234953||||
|rowspan="2"|United States|rowspan="2"|1987|rowspan="2"|Blue Sky Records|CD|ZK 34449|
|Cassette|PZT 34449|||||||
|United States|2004|Epic/Legacy Recordings|CD|EK 86817||||
|Europe|2004|Epic/Legacy Recordings|CD|EPC 515161 2||||

## Other websites

- musicbox-online _Hard Again_ album review

## Infobox (album)

- **name**: Hard Again
- **type**: studio
- **artist**: Muddy Waters
- **released**: 10 January 1977
- **recorded**: October 1976
- **genre**: Chicago blues
- **label**: Blue Sky Records, Blue Sky
- **producer**: Johnny Winter
- **prev title**: Live at Jazz Jamboree '76
(1976)
- **next title**: I'm Ready (Muddy Waters album), I'm Ready
(1978)