Howard grew up on the famed Stovall Plantation, 70 miles south of Memphis, where he heard no Blues as a child. However, while a student at Yale University he did meet Muddy Waters during his final tour in 1983. That meeting, combined with some time spent with Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top brought home to Howard the unique musical legacy of the Mississippi Delta, and began Howard's love affair with the Blues.

The Blues Foundation [http://www.blues.org/foundation/howardstovall.html]