Bonnie Raitt

Raitt got her start in the folk clubs of Cambridge, Mass., in the 1960s, playing Country Blues and bottleneck guitar. She learned directly from many of her heroes, such as Fred McDowell and Sippie Wallace, working as a combination chauffeur/babysitter to them when they passed through town on tour. Raitt got her own record deal in the '70s and developed a large and devoted following with her beautiful, soulful singing and spot-on slide guitar prowess. Although Raitt is a songwriter, she's always had a great ear for others' material, making John Prine's "Angel From Montgomery" virtually her own. In the late '80s Raitt made a record with producer Don Was that completely reignited what was a flagging career. The presciently titled Nick of Time won a slew of Grammy Awards and sold millions. In typically cool fashion, Raitt took blues pioneer Charles Brown and a group of other veteran performers on the road with her, spreading the wealth of her newfound success.