The common thread? "It is the music, I think - rock, folk, jazz, R&B and world music. They are things I have been comfortable with since I first started."

That was at 15, when he and his brother Muff joined the Spencer Davis Group, co-writing "Gimme Some Lovin' " and "I'm a Man." He left to form Traffic, and in 1969, he met Eric Clapton and a connection clicked. They formed the supergroup Blind Faith, and the bond has endured to this day, with Clapton appearing on the compelling "Dirty City" track on "Nine Lives."

Steve Winwood -- Recently Named One of Rolling Stone's '100 Greatest Singers of All Time' - Celebrating the New Year with Select East Coast Concert Performances in January 2009

NEW YORK, Dec. 1 -- Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Steve Winwood, recently named one of Rolling Stone magazine's "100 Greatest Singers of All Time," will ring in the New Year with a series of East Coast concert performances in January. Winwood's upcoming East Coast concert dates mark the first U.S. headline tour since 2007 for the legendary rock superstar, who last toured the states with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers in the summer of 2008.