I recently purchased the companion 5 CD set to Martin Scorsese's "The Blues". I am now hooked. Any of you guys aficionados of the blues? I need some suggestions as to what CD's I should target for future acquisition.
What are the essential CD's to get of old time blues masters such as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Son House, Bo Diddly, etc? Who are some good contemporary blues artists?
I've already targeted CD's by The Bluesbreakers, the original Jeff Beck Group, Buddy Guy, Albert King, the original Allman Bros., Robert Cray, and the Peter Green Fleetwood Mac. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Mark
I like Johnnie Johnson and Jimmy Vaughn a lot.
I'm not a blues aficionado but do love the blues. Rober Cray's Shame + a sin just knocks my socks off. Especially track 5.
You might try Doug MacLoud. And you being a blues lover, I'm sure you already have many Ray Charles and Otis Redding recordings. And don't forget Taj Mahal (I met him once). Keb' Mo' is a must also.
I'm a huge Allman Bros. fan. But it's kind of sad that so many of thier recordings are so sonicly poor (come to think of it, many of the old blues recordings are). Its' sometimes hard to listen to on a hi resoultion play back system (damn recording engineers). If you know of any Allman Bros. albums that are well recorded(engineered), please let me know.
Forgot to mention Johnny Lang.
Stevie Ray Vaughan!!!! Johnny Winter,Kenny Wayne Sheppard,Bonnie Rait,All of BB King.Theres a few.And do'nt forget Robert Johnson.
Some good ones:
Eric Clapton -- From the Cradle
Mississippi John Hurt -- Best of
Chet Baker -- Best of
Robert Lockwood Jr. -- Delta Crossroads
In reply to:
And you being a blues lover, I'm sure you already have many Ray Charles and Otis Redding recordings.
Don't assume anything. I'm basically starting from scratch. I have a few BB King records, and a couple by Stevie Ray Vaughn, but that's all.
Mark
T. Bone Walker, Freddie King, Albert Collins, Lucky Peterson, Jimmie Thackery, Cocoa Montoya, Tab Benoit, Sweetman, and with respect to the females, Etta James and Koko Taylor.
Alright! Another convert!
You might want to try searching online for some of the Chess Records compilations done some years ago. They had a whole series of 2-album sets done by Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and others, which are all excellent. I have no idea if these have been re-released on CD, as I have the vinyls.
More modern artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan are readily available. There's one CD by Albert King and Stevie Ray which was released on CD by Stax which is outstanding!
I was lucky enough to get introduced to the blues when I was 16 (I'm now 55!), and I've never looked back!
More great stuff:
Duke Robillard: start with Duke's Blues, try more if you like it. And you will like it!
Roomful Of Blues: try The First Album, move on from there. A truly swingin' outfit! In business for about 30 years, through many personnel changes (including Duke Robillard and Jimmie Vaughan, therefore the sound of the band varies from disc to disc. Also highly recommend Hot Little Mamma!
Charles Brown: on the jazzier side. Try Honeydripper. Fabulous song selection, and wonderfully warm production.
More: Delbert McClinton comfortably, and in a most satisfying fashion, straddles blues and country. Clapton's From The Cradle is a dynamite contemporary tribute to the old masters. Jonny Lang's first cd is a plenty impressive blues-pop hybrid, 'tho a touch too polished for my taste. Almost anything by Albert Collins (his ruminations on male-female relations are pretty funny). Even funnier, try Elvin Bishop (amusing, and a hot guitar player, too). Buddy Guy, natch. And Colin James' two Little Big Band discs are not to be missed. Purists might call for my lynching, but the origianal soundtrack to the Blues Brothers movie has been getting steady rotation in my house for better than 20 years.
You're just beginning a journey of musical joy, and I envy you your discovery. The blues is a pretty big world (and jazz is just a step away), so enjoy it, my friend! Cheers.
DS.
Thanks to everybody who has replied. Right now I am enjoying the remastered "Layla", and the 2 CD version of the Allman Bros at the Fillmore. I have some more CD's coming from Amazon tomorrow.
Again, thanks for the suggestions...feel free to keep them coming!
Mark
When I do something, I never do it halfway. Today I received the following CD's: Albert Collins/Robert Cray/Johnny Copeland "Showdown"; Jeff Beck Group "Truth"; Albert King "King of the Blues Guitar"; John Mayall w/Clapton "Bluesbreakers"; Martin Scorsese Presents (various) "The Soul of a Man"; Buddy Guy "Damn Right, I've Got The Blues"; and (various) "Chicago/The Blues/Today!".
So far I've listened to everything but the Scorsese collection, and I'm in the middle of disc 2 (of 3) of the Chicago/The Blues/Today! collection. I must say I'm really enjoying this discovery process. I just got off Amazon and ordered myself some Taj Mahal, Paul Butterfield, Son House, Johnny Winter, John Lee Hooker, Koko Taylor, Howlin' Wolf, Duke Robillard, and Colin James.
Feel free to keep your suggestions coming. I'm really enjoying discovering this great music with my a
Axioms, as well as re-discovering my old music collection.
Mark
Ok, just few quick hidden gems you should definitely pick up:
1. Super Sessions w/ Mike Bloomfield, Al Kooper, and Steven Stills. This CD is amazing and has great repeat playability.
2. Hot Tuna [live] It's actually the one that comes up first when you search on Amazon. It's got a blue and red cover. Some great acoustic blues. The guitar playing is exceptional.
3. Pinetop Perkins Any album. I don't really know which album to suggest, I just have a bunch of mp3's. But its some of the best blues piano playing I've ever been able to find. Mostly of the early Chicago blues variety.
That's about all I can think of right now that hasn't already been mentioned. Enjoy!
-Josh
Here's you some more Mark,
Bad Influence-Live at the Bad Habits Cafe
Sonny Landreth-The Road Were On
Dave Hole-Short Fuse Blues
Robben Ford-Paul Butterfield Tribute,Handfull of Blues
Omar & the Howlers-Courts of Lulu,Blues Bag
Smokin' Joe Kubek-Texas Cadillac, Roadhouse Research
Elmore James-any of them!
Fred McDowell-ditto!
Anson Funderburgh- Change in my Pocket
and if you like Clapton, you have to give Jimmie Thackery a shot. Enjoy
Mark, you got yerself a bunch of 1st-class "classics" there!
Just off the top of my head, you've got wht I consider to be THE best version of "Mustang Sally" (Buddy Guy w/J. Beck on guitar), best version of "Hideaway" (Clapton + Mayall), the best version of "Born Under A Bad Sign (Big Albert), and all the rest are strong!
You are definitely off to a great start!
Blooz1;
Thanks! I did a lot of research before buying. That's one of the good things about Amazon...there are so many editorial and listener reviews.
I've been very pleasantly surprised by a compilation CD I got called "The Best Blues Album in the World Ever!". Here's the link to it on Amazon...
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00004LMKJ/qid%3D1073244917/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/002-5215708-6164814
It was worth what I paid for it just for Colin James' "No More Doggin'", and John Mayall's "Spinning Coin".
And thanks to everyone who made suggestions, I considered them all, and put many on my Wish List at Amazon.
Mark
I can't add much value to this thread - you guys have done a great job compiling this list. It gets a big thumbs-up from me! I own so many of the albums mentioned here!
There is a Portland, OR local guy named Lloyd Jones that I really really like. And don't forget about Dr. John!
"The Blues had a baby and they named it Rock and Roll." -- Muddy Waters
My daughter is a sound engineer who graduated from Indiana University. She mixed sound at some of the local pubs for experience and a little extra money while she was in college. One night she had a gig where Keb' Mo' was performing. She "mic'd" his foot to do something creative. Now every time I listen to Keb' Mo', I swear I can hear his foot tapping. I would recommend anything by Keb' Mo'.
Bob
You really can't miss with these recordings from two essential blues masters: Muddy Waters His Best 1947-1955, Muddy Waters His Best 1956-1964 and John Lee Hooker - The Very Best Of (Rhino Records).
I wanted to bump this thread, and to use it to recommend a local band I discovered recently.
The Randy Oxford Band is an electric guitar blues band that plays primarily original compositions and is led by ... a trombone player. Like most bands, the live experience far outshines the recorded one, but I've found the disk to be very well produced, especially for a independent label.
Great stuff. Highly recommended.
as ya'll can tell, i am new to this board, but had to chime in on this subject. there is a new tejano/blues band coming out of san angelo, tx name the LOS LONELY BOYS. their new cd is currently being released world wide, and they are currently on a north american tour to promote the album. its a 3 man band, all brothers, all hispanic, and all full of talent. their music is of the stevie ray style, with some latin influence. but make no mistake, these guys are all original, and can lay a riff that will stick to your bones. if you want to experiement with some new blues, with a tejano twist, i highly recommend this band.. you will not be disappointed. and if you have the chance to see them live on their tour, dont miss it. these guys are fixing to explode.
Hey if u wanna Hear Sum Good Blues i got 2 Peeps for ya an they are both on the Audioquest Label , Mighty Sam McClain an Doug Macleoud
Mighty Sam has a few Cd's out an Sacd too his CD's the Keep on Movin is good Here a Linky
http://www.thestore24.com/Music/Album.aspx?p_id=P+++103338&a_id=R+++210038&prodid=AQ1031.2 an then his CD SledgehammerSoul an Down Home Blues
http://www.thestore24.com/Music/Album.aspx?p_id=P+++103338&a_id=R+++248454&prodid=AQ1042.2 an then onto Doug Macleod his 2 Cd's that i have listened too is Unmarked Roads an Who's Truth an Who's Lie's but the Audioquest label is really recorded Well so u can get the Volume up there an jus Chill an Jam Hope that this Helps
You may want to try Pat Travers-Best of the Blues Plus Live.
A little more southern rock-blues sound.
Especially track 4- Too much is never enough.
Looks like Los Lonely Boys drummer Ringo Garza is fixing to inhale. There was a little home-invasion
pot bust in bigjohn's hometown. Nuts.
John! You been hangin' out with Ringo? (cough, cough)
Anyone know what happened to mhorgel (Mark)???
I miss his posts.
HOLY CRAP.. that story made national news? hilarious.. yea, its all over the newspapers and TV here in little 'ole san angelo.. in fact, the whole LOS LONELY BOYS rise to stardom was voted the TOP local story of 2004 in the local paper.. so, everyone knows whos those guys are.
i have met ringo, the whole band actually, several times, and they are all really cool dudes. but as the story goes, he did a stupid thing. he had some ladies that he didnt know, back to his house, and yada-yada-yada, they called the cops on him.. i would think that if i was in his position, that i would surround myself with people that i knew and trusted..? maybe thats just me.. but, he already had a history of pot use, so no one is really surprised. casual use of pot is pretty much accepted around here.. that is to say, its not considered a big deal. in fact, in that same article, it mentions the chief of police, tim vasquez.. he is one year older than me, and we went to school together since the 7th grade.. he was a big doper at one time, so, it goes to show that that type of history isnt necessarily a bad thing..
but, two puffs and a peace sign for my brotha ringo.. i sure hope it dont screw up their careers.
bigjohn
Its weird to me how the pot laws in Texas differ so much from county to county. In Dallas you get a citation for a 1/4 ounce and not even that for a joint. If you go down by Austin in Comal county they'll put you in jail and charge you with a felony for a roach in your ashtray.
Not that I would know personally,but I have this friend.....
Dallas, you say? Hmmmmmm........
In reply to:
If you go down by Austin in Comal county they'll put you in jail and charge you with a felony for a roach in your ashtray.
In Tarrant county, any amount=arrest(taken to jail, bond, court date, lawyers...the whole nine yards).
Possession U/2 is a class B misdemeanor here. The person that I know that got arrested had just enough to roll a skinny. It's pathetic!
And Tarrant county is right next to Dallas county.
I'm not sure exactly what the laws are in Dallas, but I think alot of it depends on the officer.
I've been to a party in Dallas, where some people were doing bong hits on the front porch with at least an ounce in plain site when a cop walked up, and all he said is, "you need to put that away and keep the noise down".
In reply to:
a cop walked up, and all he said is, "you need to put that away and keep the noise down".
Seems reasonable to me.
If they were really serious about their music careers, they would have moved on to cocaine or heroin by now. Sheesh! Amateurs!
Legalize it!
(there. I said it.)
Or, more aptly, "Re-legalize it!"
Sorry to go back on topic
Layla is one of my favourite tracks too.
2 versions are a must:
1. version from the MTV Eric Clapton Unplugged.
2. version from the DVD Live in Hydepark.
2 different but wonderful versions. I listed to each every now and then and have been for a long time.
Mark, I'm a little late to post but here are a few suggestions that are a little more off the beaten path.
The following three artists are in the same blues genre (I heard Keb Mo call it gut bucket blues).
Junior Kimbrough
R. L Burnside
The North Mississippi All-Stars
For classic old country style blues:
Lightning Hopkins
Mississippi John Hurt
An incredible one man band:
Richard Johnston, "Foot Hill Stomp"
If you're liking the Allman Bros give Blind Willie McTell a listen-Duane and Gregg were huge fans and you can hear a lot of McTell in much of their recordings. Gov't Mule and The Derek Trucks Band are also pretty fine.
OK, all you Keb Mo fans, whats the preferred disc for starters?
The SACD version of The Door.
Cool! That's one of the discs I've seen locally!
Thanx!
Hey Mark
Although I like everything Keb Mo has put out so far, The Door is my least favorite. "Just Like You" and his first "Keb'Mo' " are probably my favorites and "Just Like You" is also available in SACD. I prefer the CD version of "Just Like You" more. In my opinion I dont think the SACD was mixed well for SACD.
Other really good Keb Mo cds include "Slow Down" (title track is great!) and "Keep It Simple"
Thanks for the input!
According to Amazon reviews, it seems that a fair number of others thought The Door was not his strongest. I wanted to ask here though, because I know you Axiomites will not only jusge a recording by the passion of the music, but whether or not it's a crappy recording as well!
I find that all his cds are recorded pretty well ands its not that the" Just Like You' isnt recorded well, I just dont think it was mastered for SACD well.
BUMP!
How about some new suggestions for the blues.
Mine is
Rita Chiarelli !!!!I was turned on to only one song by her, "Tupelo", and all I can say is WOW.
After hearing that cut I did a little research and found she has 4-5 cds out.
I listened to some snippits and promptly ordered 3 CDs.
Before I knew she was an Italian from Canada, I could have sworn she was a 60 year old African American lady from Mississippi.
And for those of you who love the blues and dont remember reading this thread, I would recommend reading it all the way through.
There are some GREAT suggestions here.
One of the best blues CDs in my collection is Muddy Waters "The Folksinger" recorded with a young Buddy Guy and Willie Dixon on bass. Its country acoustic blues at its best and an excellent sounding recording. Highly recommended if you like the blues. Many standout songs but my favourite is "Country Boy".
I don’t listen to the Blues enough to have many favorite artists, but I’ve got two CD’s that I’ve been enjoying quite a bit.
Kirk Fletcher – Shades of Blue
Kenny Wayne – 10 Days Out
Both are an assortment of different artists with Fletcher and KWS playing guitar with them. The KWS cd has some great stuff on it, and the DVD that comes with the CD was a real treat as well. I watched the DVD and couldn’t believe some of the old timers that can still get it on. Heck, some are over 90 and playing as strong as ever.
Rita Chiarelli: What a night - Live!
SQ is good for a live recording.
Susan Tedechi: Just won't burn
She has a deep, husky voice and plays wicked lead.
Dave Hole: Ticket to Chicago
Screaming, wailing slide riffs from Australia. Play it loud.
Anthony Gomes - Blues in Technicolor. Opened up for B.B King
Wolfe (Todd Wolfe) Delaware Crossing. Seen him with KWS
Danny Click - Night of Living Guitars
here's a few excellent ones:
junior well & buddy guy- hoodoo man blues
john lee hooker- the healer
jimmy reed- live at carnegie hall
johnnie johnson- johnnie b bad
lightnin hopkins- last night blues
Looks like just about all of the blues greats have been mentioned but here's a couple I enjoy...
Shemekia Copeland - Strangers
Tinsley Ellis - Highway Man
Otis Taylor - Double V
The Black Keys - Chulahoma (tribute to Junior Kimbrough)
Joe Bonamassa - Had To Cry
Hoodoo Cats - It's Hoodoo Time
Delta Moon - (self titled)
Buddy Guy - (anything!)
Blues Attitude - Show Time Grove
E.C. - Sessions For Robert J
Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown - Back To Bogalusa
Alligator Records has a various 25th anniversary 2-disc CD set that is very good.
I don't know if this one has been mentioned yet, but "Alone and Acoustic" by Buddy Guy and Junior Wells has some good stuff on it and is mixed really well.