In all her travels over the past four decades, Zora Young – the whole lotta blues mama from Chicago – had never played Sonoma County. She’d done San Francisco a few times, but nothing north of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Sonoma County Blues Festival impresario Bill Bowker changed that on Saturday, bringing in the underrated, underappreciated singer for a workout of blues classics and love anthems with the Volker Strifler Band.

Legend has it she’s a distant relative of Howlin’ Wolf, but she seemed more interested in Muddy Waters and “Got My Mojo Working” – the highlight of her hour-long afternoon set at the SoCo Fairgrounds. Later, she added a simple request for the howling crowd to ponder: “I want you to love me, baby, oh yeah, make my hair stand up on my head.”