Born James A. Lane at Dougherty Bayou just west of Ruleville, guitarist and vocalist Jimmy Rogers (1924-1997) played a pioneering role in the post-World War II Chicago blues scene and was a key figure in the evolution of electric Chicago blues from its roots in acoustic Delta traditions. Raised by his grandmother in Vance after taking the surname of his stepfather, he played in a harmonica quartet with Snooky Pryor, took up guitar in his early teens while living in Charleston, and worked his first gigs in Minter City with Little Arthur Johnson. He performed in the Delta with Sonny Boy Williamson No. 2 (Rice Miller) and in the Memphis area with Howlin’ Wolf and guitarist Joe Willie Wilkins before living with relatives in Atlanta, Memphis, St. Louis, and South Bend, Indiana, and settling permanently in Chicago in the mid-1940s. There he associated with Memphis Minnie, Tampa Red, Big Bill Broonzy, and John Lee “Sonny Boy” Williamson (No. 1), played for tips on Maxwell Street with other newly arrived Southern musicians including Pryor and Little Walter Jacobs, and introduced Jacobs to Muddy Waters. Rogers, Waters, and Jacobs soon performed together as the informal “Headhunters,” developing a powerful ensemble sound. A member of Muddy Waters first band in Chicago, Rogers recorded “That's All Right,” “Chicago Bound,” and “Walking By Myself.” His first solo recording, made in 1946 for the Harlem label, was mistakenly credited to Memphis Slim, and the first single under his own name appeared on Chess in 1950. He recorded a dozen singles for Chess; although only “Walking By Myself” reached the charts in 1957, songs including “Ludella,” “Sloppy Drunk,” and especially “That's All Right” became widely covered blues standards. He continued to play and record with Waters in the 1950s while at times leading his own band, and also appeared as a sideman on recordings by Little Walter, Memphis Minnie, Sonny Boy Williamson No. 2, Sunnyland Slim, Floyd Jones, Johnny Shines, T-Bone Walker, and Howlin’ Wolf. After about a year in Wolf’s band, he retired from music for eight years and ran a clothing store and taxi business, then returned to performing in 1969 and remained active until his death on December 19, 1997. His influence was reflected in the guest artists on his final album, Blues, Blues Blues, and he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1995. Ruleville itself, with Front Street’s row of juke joints known as “Greasy Street,” was a longtime center of blues activity, and other Ruleville-born blues artists who moved to Chicago included Jeanne Carroll and Hayes Ware.