5 comments about Louis Jordan & His Tympani Five.

1. Simply put, for its value this is one of the greatest collections of CD's of utter joy and happiness around.
   
   This multivolume set covers the early music and musical peak of the musical and comical link between Bert Williams and Louis Armstrong (LJ's dad was a friend of Bert's and used his records to inspire his son, and Satch was a mentor and occasional collaborator with LJ) and the first generation of R&B rockers (Ray Chalres, the Godfather, B.B. King, and Little Richard have all sang their praises to LJ).
   
   Some of his really rare early music is found on the early discs. It took him a while to find his style of humorous stories told to a beat and inspired sax playing, but there are still some diamonds in the rough here. "Swinging in the Coconut Trees" is an amusing and atmospheric instrumental, "Keep a Knockin" was later covered by Little Richard, "Do You Call That a Buddy" is a good comical blues with some nice background singing by the T-5, "June Teenth Jamboree" is probably the first record to deal with this early black holiday (LJ was astudent of Black folklore, and incorporated it into his music), and "What's the Use of Gettin' Sober" is the kind of wild, authentic black humor that would put Amos & Andy's "PseudoNegro" antics to shame.
   
   Later on, we get into the familiar bits of inspired nuttiness and great musicianship. "Caldonia," "Sat Nite Fish Fry," "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie," "Beware" (and its sequel "Look Out Sister" which has some hilarious early rapping), and what is to me the funniest R&B record of all time, the knee-slapping floor-pounding classic BEANS & CORNBREAD.
   
   We also get some of the calypso tunes with Jordan's expertly delivered "Jafakean" accent such as "Run Joe," "Early in the morning," "Stone Cold dead in the Market," and "Push Ka peesh Kee Pie." The West Indians were flattered by these tunes and LJ made succesful tours of the West Indies.
   
   However, the set ends at about 1950, just before our man's career peaked. But his later material is available elsewhere on Amazon. In either case, whenver you come home from a hard day at work, put this set on your CD player. It'll put your psychologist out of work!



2. I wandered into this CD while checking out the many great boxed sets that JSP Records has to offer. I knew very little about Louis Jordan before hearing this, and now I'm hooked! For anybody whole loves to hear the building blocks of modern music, this is for you. If you like to hear things like Bob Wills, Milton Brown, Louis Armstrong, This is for you.



3. Wolf Shadow, great review. Louis Jordan was my uncle and I have almost all of these great cuts on original 33 1/3s and even 45s and 78s. I will buy this CD to preserve my Louis collection which I hardly ever played in the past 40 years.
   
   I give it four stars instead of five because his grearest blues hit "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" is not included in over 130 cuts.
   
   There are others I would have liked to have seen included like 'School Days', which we loved as kids years ago. Plus more of his blues solos. Lots of people did not consider my uncle a "serious" musician, which he surely was.
   
   All in all, a great box set well worth the price.



4. Don't think twice-- buy it! Great collection goes on and on, and never runs out of steam. Louis Jordan was at his peak when these were recorded. I repeat: buy!



5. The sound quality on this set is great with one exception: "Five Guys Named Moe" sounds horrible! It sounds like it was dubbed from an out-of-round record! What's most puzzling is that this is the only track that sounds bad, and that this was one of Louis Jordan's biggest hits, with many superior transfers available. JSP usually does a stellar job with sound - what happened here?! Luckily, I still have my LP version. Otherwise I'd give this set 5 stars.

5 comments about Hooker.

1. I had a smattering of John Lee Hooker compilations but this one shames all of them. This is like his biography done in a similar style to Eric Clapton's "Crossroads" box set. I like chronological compilations so you can hear the artist "develop". If you love raw blues and you don't have this put it on your Christmas list!!!
   P.S. I think that Shout Factory is doing a good job of re-releasing some classic music such as Marshall Tucker Band albums. I bought most of these and have played them to death!!!



2. some material is repetitive but overall a must for any blues listener or any other music listener. the nuances of his playing develope deeper with each listening. hooker, buddy guy, b.b. king--what a great cache of music we have at our eartips to listen to.



3. This chronology of Hooker recordings is simply awesome! To walk through the progression of songs from early recordings to the present is simply mesmerizing. Some titles are repeated throughout the 4 disc set put are clearly an evolution of the artist. It is clear why he influenced so many artists, too. You can't go wrong with this set.



4. If you like the blues you gotta get these 4 CDs. At times the songs may seem sparse and repetitive but there is so much soul in them I can listen to them over and over again. A wonderful overview of John Lee Hooker's career. Excellent remastering.



5. This box set starts out with acoustic foot tapping blues just as you would expect but by the middle of disc 2 it really picks up.Disc 3 and 4 is John Lee Hooker at his finest.He truly was one of the best at singing and playing the blues.I would recommend this to anyone who loves the Blues.

5 comments about Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton.

1. WOW!!! 5***** The best of the BEST...Cannot say enough about this..but u cannot go wrong in this purchase!!! WOW!!!



2. I love this set, but for the price, I think it's more for those who, like me, fell off into the deep end. For the money, I would recommend the JSP set, it's $25 and has all of Patton's recordings.
   The JSP definetly has more noise reduction, which can be a plus to newbies,(but I prefer the more original sound of the recordings, no matter what. They are history after all.) That said, you get a copy of Fahey's long out of print book,( Which goes for more then $200) plus an amazing packaging by Revenant. There is much material hear to study.



3. This is the musical equivalent of a family Bible. You will pass it down from children to grandchildren. It cannot be likened to any other boxed set I have ever seen - not even the lavish and fantastic Bear Family country and rockabilly sets from Germany. The Folkways reissue of the Anthology of American Folk Music comes close in look and feel, but it's still 100 miles behind.

   There are three points that I would make to a potential purchaser that may not be totally obvious:

   1. These recordings sound really, really good for those on the old Paramount label - where the recordings were done poorly, no metal parts exist, and all extant CDs are dubbed from 78 RPM shellac pressings, some of which are in pretty bad shape (at one point the only existing copy of Willie Brown's "Future Blues" was broken in half!). I have not heard JSP's Patton boxed set, which would seem to be a great substitute at $25 for somebody who does not want to pay $150. However, I do have JSP's "Legends of the Country Blues," which has the 1930 Son House Paramount recordings that are on disc 4 of this set. This sounds much better. The JSP sounds more No-Noised to me, while this sounds more alive on the high end. I say that as someone who has bought a lot of the JSP sets, and who would have no hesitation recommending their work generally.

   2. This is not 7 CDs of just Charley Patton. This is a really good introduction to pre-Robert Johnson Delta blues. You get all the Paramount recordings of Son House, Willie Brown and Louise Johnson, two of whom were seminal figures, and the last of whom was just fun. (Somebody ought to make a movie about the roadtrip Patton, House, Brown and Johnson took to Wisconsin to record these tracks. They could get Charles Dutton to play the guy from the Delta Big Four who drove them.) You get a CD of some pretty essential stuff by various artists, including Tommy Johnson. You get the Delta Big Four, Son Sims and some others. You get a CD of interviews.

   3. It's bittersweet to say, but this set may get overtaken by future discoveries. It's criminally ironic that a full-body, first-generation photo of Charley Patton finally surfaced a year after this box came out. Also, it's known that there are other Patton recordings for which 78s have yet to be found; they may turn up if they haven't already.

   You KNOW you want to buy it. Don't you?




4. The previous reviews make some valid points about this stunning box set-it is really special, and like thing that are incremntally finer, it is geometrically more [money]- and i take my blues pretty seriously...
   it is, as mentioned, like a fine rare book-and the essential music (the first 5 cds ) are available ... in the Complete Works of Charley Patton (the five cd set in a slip case-limited liner notes) also listed here, and affordable for 'us bluesmen'.

   I am writing this to let all know that, aside from two additional cds, one containing interviews by others about Patton, and one of other artists who performed his work (thus the "worlds of CP" ), and some very cool posters and stickers and lovely packaging and other toys and eye candy, the essence is available for a fraction of the cost-same stuff from "masked marvel productions" the orignator of this lovely tome -made in the UK. Unless you really love CP and will listen to this lots, I recommend the [shorter] set-it is still the stirring blues of this great, complete.




5. From the reviews I know this is worth the money there is allot of rare stuff on here especially the Willie Brown song "Pallet on the Floor" this is my main reason for wanting to get this box set so bad. This is the only place you can get that Willie Brown song according to Yazoo2002 "Masters of the Delta Blues, Friends of Charlie Patton" he only recorded two songs in his life time "M&O blues" and "Jinx Blues" one of the most awesome Delta blues songs I have heard (Jinx Blues). Oh yeah one more thing I would have given this 5 stars but where in the world is the Ishmon Bracey recording I mean he was one of Charlie Patton's worlds also (lol) wasn't he not to mention one of the best Delta Bluesmen to strum a guitar it just seems incomplete to have Kid Bailey, Son House, Willie Brown, Tommy Johnson, Bertha Lee and no Ishmon Bracey .... The poor guy is probally squirming in his grave right now leaving him out like that yall otta be ashamed of yourselves (Yazoo would have never done a thing like that). Just for that I'm giving this 3.5 stars now (but I'm still gonna save the money to buy this) p.s how in the hell is a Bluesman suppose to afford this boxset....

5 comments about Progressions: 100 Years of Jazz Guitar.

1. As my title says, I consider this box set an overview...all in good reason, though. As a guitarist myself that has never really known where to begin when dealing with Jazz guitar, this set which was actually a gift was the absolute perfect place to start. It is the greatest open-door into the Jazz guitar world. I certainly wouldn't advise anyone to drop-anchor here though. It would be doing the people who put this box-set together a disservice. Branching out using this box-set as a springboard is the best thing you can do when building a Jazz guitar collection. I highly recommend it!



2. I've had this box set for more than a year now and really enjoy it. It has been a good way to explore many of the jazz guitar masters. I just picked up three CDs from artisits I disovered through this set; Al di Meola, Mike Stern and John McLaughlin. Id covers everything from early innovators through fusion masters.



3. Part of the fun of these kinds of anthologies is the grumbling over who was left out, what doesn't belong, etc. Taken as a whole however, this is a pretty compelling set of tunes.
   
   I love disc one with some really good finds - like the hysterical Minnehaha by Sam Koki - maybe not the best playing but very fun. But, since these old tunes are so short shouldn't we have gotten more than one Django and Charlie Christian? Disc 2-3 have some nice tracks by players I've kinda ignored: Johnny Smith, Jimmy Raney, Lenny Breau for example. And Grant Green, who I had enjoyed on the old Blue Notes but had seen as a sort of Kenny Burrell lite, is surprising, fresh and swinging here. Good choices of tunes in almost all cases - Wes Montgomery, Hank Garland and others. (Did alot of these players let their chops slacken a bit over time?)
   
   But, do we need Lee Ritenour on a jazz anthology? Jeff Beck? Santana?
   
   Where are Egberto Gismonti, Bireli Lagrene, Stochelo Rosenberg, Sylvain Luc, Pierre Dorge, Scotty Anderson, Jimmy Bruno?
   
   Its funny though, if you listen to one Derek Bailey or Sonny Sharrock tune, you don't realize that all of their solos follow the same frightening descent into hell. I actually like their playing if I hear, like one piece every year or so.



4. What a shame one never gets to hear Oscar Almen do what he does better
   than just about any other Guitarist,Or hear enough Django,Charlie Christen
   ,Teddy Bunn,To really understand why they are more than just fine Guitarist....they are "Jazz Greats"
   
   Thats because this Collection is more Intrested in getting
   non jazz fans to buy this set.
   There's a few odd things about this very good box set.The fact
   that the cover of the Booklet(which is very nice)is a picture of a flattop
   guitar,and there's plenty of Guitars and Guitarist that should be in a rock or pop collection
   
   I guess when they were trying to update the fine two record set
   50 years of jazz Guitar,They stuck with the one track pre artist.
   This makes for a lot of space for many guitarists,Which is the main
   problem with this set.Instead of giving you 2 or 3 cuts from real
   jazz greats(not just fine Guitar Players)they fill the four
   cds with Pop and Rock recordings that have no place in a jazz Guitar
   collection.
   I love Santana ,but he's not Jazz,Part of something being jazz in
   improvisation,something that Santana doen't do much of .Which
   doesn't make "Europa" any less great,.Also just because you
   Improvise doesn't mean that a artist is a jazz also.Theres plenty
   of Guitarists that have nothing to do with jazz on this set.Some
   are jazz players who play pop(Earl Klugh),Others like Hendrix
   or Jeff Beck aren't Jazz at all.The last pages
   of the booklet are pictures of Strats and Les Pauls and even
   a Classical guitar gets a double page spread how silly is That!



5. After listening to this 4 cd set several times I've come to the conclusion that it could have been better condensed into 2 spectacular jazz cd's. First of all, cd 1 starts off with what sounds like banjo. Who's bright idea what it to include it on 100 years of jazz guitar? There are also songs that are dominated by saxophone and/or vocals with guitar as a background instrument.
   If I wanted to hear vocals and sax I would have purchased cd's with vocals and/or Coltrane or Sonny Rollins, repectively.
   There are only a few gems on cd 1 most notably Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian.
   Cd 2 is probably the best with cd 3 close behind. However, can somebody tell me why Jimi Hendrix doing "Manic Depression" is on this cd? If you know the answer then perhaps you may also know why in the world Carlos Santana is on this collection as well.
   And Derek Bailey's 1997, "Should Be Reversed" is just garbage!!! THIS IS NOT JAZZ!!! Who's bright idea was it to put this track on the compilation? I keep thinking, another Django tune, another Wes Montgomery, Pass, Ellis, Burrell tune would have been better suited to make this a better compilation.
   All that 1970's distorted psuedo-jazz fusion racket by the likes of John McLaughlin and others dominate cd 4. Cd 4 contains all the "really want to play rock, but call themselves jazz guitarists."
   There are some great guitarists and tasty licks on this cd package, but there is also NON jazz on this too. Be advised.

5 comments about The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson.

1. I saw recently where Elvis Costello had this, or some other SBW collection, in his current Top Ten play list. That got me thinking.
   
   Handyman owns a fairly deep collection of wide ranging, well-worn and warped blues LPs.
   My most heavily traveled avenue of interest being the post-war 1950's Chicago blues scene.
   
   I have a few vinyl volumes of SBW Chess material. Those recordings are desert island blues picks for me.
   
   Sonny Boy Williamson's take on the blues has a particular funky edge, a particular off-beat that I cannot describe in musical terminology, but which I have always found distinctive and attractive.
   
   The goldmines of the frontliners; Muddy Waters, Howlin'Wolf, Elmore James,John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy etc have been unearthed and scavenged for years.
   
   Sonny Boy's mine is a bit harder locate but, the blues treasure lying therein is, in my humble opinion, of equal intrigue and value, and holds a particular shine.
   
   I encourage anyone getting onboard the never ending blues train to make room for some SBW in their satchel.



2. THIS IS THE BEST OF THE BLUES SINGERS..STANDING RIGHT NEXT TO BB KING AND RAY CHARLES..IT DONT GET ANY BETTER..AND NOW I FINALLY SEE WHERE THE YOUNG BRITISH GROUPS LIKE THE ROLLING STONES AND ETC. FROM THE 60'S COPIED THEIR STYLE...AND WITH THE HARMONIC SOUND TOO...GO TO THE ROOTS FOR THE TRUE SOUND CAUSE NOTHING ELSE CAN COMPARE!!!



3. This is a superb collection.
   Singer/harpist Aleck "Rice" Miller may have started calling himself "Sonny Boy Williamson" to take advantage of the fame of John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson from Tennessee. But he wasn't a cheap imitator - Miller was one of the major blues artists at Chess Records in the 50s, alongside Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, and probably the best harmonica player the blues has even seen.
   
   Rice Miller was a tremendous songwriter whose keen attention to detail was quite unusual in a genre which relied heavily on cliché and a handful of repeated patterns. He penned witty, sometimes romantic, sometimes venomous lyrics, and tunes memorable enough to rival those of Chess stalwart Willie Dixon. He was an equally terrific singer, highly expressive, and usually backed in the studio by superstar musicians like Dixon, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers, Otis Spann and Robert "Jr." Lockwood.
   
   Sometimes a double-disc compilation is stretching it, especially for the casual fan, but these 45 tracks are not even close to being too many. Absolutely everything on "The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson" is worth a listen, and I can easily name another dozen songs which should have been here...Miller's recordings for Chess maintained an incredible level of quality.
   There are really too many highlights to mention, but among the very best songs are "Don't Start Me To Talkin'", "All My Love In Vain", "Your Funeral And My Trial", "Let Me Explain" and "Fattening Frogs For Snakes" from Miller's first Chess LP, as well as "Help Me", "Checkin' Up On My Baby", "Too Young To Die" and many, many more - and more than half of these tracks are not on the single-disc MCA/Chess-release "His Best", which should be sufficent reason to pick up this fine collection instead.
   
   And while you're at it, get Miller's early Trumpet recordings as well on Arhoolie's "King Biscuit Time"!



4. Though I had heard many of his songs performed by others, I did not know the name Sonny Boy Williamson until I heard a John Mayall song about him thirtysome years ago. Recently, my dormant interest in the Delta blues was rekindled, so I decided to try and find out just what this Sonny Boy was about.
   Where better to start than a box set? I really had no idea what to expect when I bought it, but what I got was more than expected. I took the set on a recent road trip and listened to both discs more than five times each and found something new to like each time.
   The verdict? I love this stuff. Not only can Sonny Boy play his blues harp like no other, he can really sing. His songs are well-written and are often humorous when they are not meant to be. The sound is great too, one can hear every instrument at work, particularly the drums which drive the easy swing of Sonny's blues.
   My favorites? I like every song. If I had to pick, Unseen Eye and Somebody Help Me would be near the top.
   The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson dishes out a heaping plateful of raw blues at its primitive finest. Don't miss out on this one, its money well-spent.



5. Sonny always had a great story song- There was always some predicament going on or some trouble he was in or just simply him being nosey and signafying on other folks problems. And all of this made him the best story teller. I absolutely love his storytelling in song. He was without a doubt the most compelling storyteller in all of Blues history. Buy this cd it's great and listen to the great stories. Sonny in one song says quote- "My baby asked me for 100 dollars and I didn't have but 99"- or the greatest (aint gone be no more sugar daddy) song ever recorded called "Fattening frogs for snakes" and of course his biggest hit is included on this package-1955's "Don't start me talking" because Sonny says when he starts talkin "he'll tell everything he knows". All of these are great classic blues songs from a true blues genius.

5 comments about Led Zeppelin Box Set, Vol. 2.

1. A word of warning on this box set: It is not complete in itself; nor is it for the casual fan looking for a hits collection, or anyone who does not already own the first Led Zeppelin 4 CD set. This is for those who started their Zeppelin collection with that set and now would like everything else LZ recorded (with the exception of the BBC Sessions, for which there is a separate compilation). And as such, it does well.
   Again, Jimmy Page personally did the remastering of these tracks and arranged the sequencing of them, in an attempt to continue the excellent listening experience of the first set. The sad thing is it does not work quite as well, somehow. Oh, you get the handful of hits the first set inexplicably misses, most notably "Good Times, Bad Times" and "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)" as well as "We're Gonna Groove". And some fantastic album cuts, "Carousellambra" being among my personal favorites. And it's not as though any of the music here is not as highly entertaining as anything Zeppelin has recorded (although the previously unreleased "Baby Come On Home" is actually nothing remarkable; other artists have done this sort of thing much better).
   No, but the problem is that one gets the feeling that Page was frustrated with not being able to fit some choice cuts on the first set, so he included them on a second, surrounding them with everything else to justify the compilation of five or six songs. This appears to be the result of not thinking the sequencing through as well as was done on the first set or the original albums.
   He probably should have just planned a six-disk set from the beginning. That way there would have been no left-overs to try to "fit in"; they would have been part of the master plan from the inception of the project.
   And really, the way to view the first box set was not simply a way to get the "hits", but as a re-sequenced masterpiece of a listening experience, not meant as a replacement for the original albums, but as an alternate way of enjoying and thinking about this ground-breaking group's music. For hits, you would be better off buying Mothership. But for deeper insight into the music of Led Zeppelin, the first Box Set and the albums are the way to go.
   To sum up, buy this if you have Box Set 1 and love it. You'll complete your collection economically; but don't expect it to be the great work the first was. But, if you don't have Box Set 1 and really appreciate Zeppelin's music, you might be better served to buy the re-mastered albums. And if you are devoted fan and already have the albums, put the first set down as a hint for your spouse to buy as an anniversary gift and forget Box Set 2 altogether! At that point, it's little more than a redundancy.



2. The rest of the songs in the catalog not in the first box set. Frankly some of these should have been in the original; 'Good Times, Bad Times', 'You Shook Me', 'Bron-Yr-Aur', 'Hot Dog', 'Darlene', 'Hots on For Nowhere', 'Down By the Seaside' and 'How Many More Times' all great tunes that would be better off in box set 1 as opposed to some of the dreck that somehow got on there, particularly some of the stuff from the 3rd album.



3. If you have the four disc boxed set you know you are missing quite a few essential Zep cuts so, spend a little more and get this two disc set to complete your collection.



4. Led Zeppelin's first boxed set was an excellent starting point for casual fans, but also left out a lot of great stuff. With many newbies craving for more Led Zeppelin, another boxed set was compiled called "Led Zeppelin Box Set, Vol. 2". How does it hold up? Read on for my review.
   
   Positives:
   -If you own the boxed set and are interested in having all the tracks omitted from it, than this collection will do just fine. This has all the important stuff left off the first collection, including "Living Loving Maid (She's Just A Woman)", "The Lemon Song", "Good Times, Bad Times", "Sick Again", "Moby Dick", "The Crunge" and "Bron-Yr-Aur".
   -The songs sound really good.
   -It's reasonably priced.
   -There's a previously unreleaed song called "Baby Come On Home". It's a really good song.
   
   Negatives
   -As great as this collection, it would have been better to have the two cds split into two separate cds and inserted onto the first boxed sets.
   -This cd is very hard to locate.
   
   Overall, if you have the first Led Zeppelin boxed set, than you should definitely get this second editoion as well.



5. I actually like Box Set 2 better than Box Set 1. In this set, Jimmy Page seems to have the most input., rather than Set 1, which was more geared to Robert Plant. If you love Zep Music... you will LOVE Box Set 2. Good Listening!

5 comments about The Classic Years 1927-1940.

1. wow this is a veary good cd not only the price is good but u get 5 cds if u are a blues lover then by this cd it will be great for youre collection



2. Blind Willie McTell was one of the all-time greatest blues guitarists and singers of his or any other era: He is definitely one of my favorites, and this CD compilation is highly recommended. One of the reviewers mentioned that this is not the definitive Blind Willie McTell CD, and I would have to agree. I would also recommend two other CD's by Blind Willie McTell: "Atlanta Twelve-String," and "Pig'n'Whistle Red." As I am writing this review I am listening to his music, and it is a pure joy to the ears. My era of blues is mainly from the 1920's to the the late 1940's. And Blind Willie McTell fits right in there with the greats of his era. I never tire of his music.
   
   This CD, "The Classic Years 1927-1940" is just magnificent. This CD is partly a focus of McTell's early years when he recorded for Lomax. And although McTell was not a 'Delta Blues' performer, he was a bridge between the Delta Blues and the more refined East Coast sound: Hence the title given by many as 'East Coast Piedmont Style. The CD itself consists of 4 discs, which were digitally remastered. McTell's 12-string guitar sounds just magnificent on the CDs. And as some reviewers have written; it almost sounds as if two or more guitarist's are playing; but there are not; at least not on the early sides. That's how great he was!
   
   You cannot beat the number of songs or the price of this JSP issued DVD. Considering the time period that these recordings were done, and the sound equipment that was used by Lomax, there is some surface noise on the Lomax sides. Not much though. And unless we have a time machine, there is really little technology can do about this. But this does not detract from the beautiful sounds of Blind Willie McTell. I would list some of his songs played on these four Discs; however, there is a listening sample here on amazon; and although it is not as good as your own system or speakers, it does give you ALL the tracks listed with a music sample. The man was just great: and this is a great McTell collection. If you do not have Blind Willie McTell in your Blues collection, then it is not a complete Blues collection. This CD is highly recommended.



3. This is great, but it's still not all the McTell you need. To really have everything, you'll need his later recordings, titled 'Atlanta Twelve-String,' 'Pig'n'Whistie Red' and 'Last Session.' Of these three, the last one is for completists only, but the first two are not only stunning, but stunning in more modern sound quality. His voice had matured and lowered quite a bit before these more modern recordings were made, but (except for the last session where he was not only aging but drunk as well) it sounds very strong and vibrant.
   
   The JSP box here, on the other hand, focuses on his early sides and the field recordings for Lomax. Unless you own these cuts on other CDs, this is really worth getting.
   
   However, it is NOT delta blues as some reviewers like to say. Blind Willie was not from the delta and does not play in the delta style.



4. This is the only Blind Willie McTell box set you need. This four disc set gives great representaion of his work. Im not a huge fan of the female accompaniment, but its not terrible, its just not up to par with lets say Bessie Smith. His guitar work is incredible, and the drity quality should be well appreciated because of the age of the recordings. McTell has a voice that greatly captures the sound of the old time blues, the delta blues style, not the Chicago style. Also proved to be a great influence to modern blues musicians.



5. A wonderful resource for those interested in The Blues. Willie sang and played both slide and 12 string guitar and whether he performed novelty numbers, gospel or the blues, he was brilliant.
   Apart from the music, this set is worthwhile for the interview with John Lomax on disc D. I cringed to hear Lomax ask Willie about songs about 'complaining songs' such as 'Ain't it hard to be a [...], and I had to remind myself that Lomax was 'of his time' and using a term that had currency with both black and white people at that time. Willie cleverly moves the conversation along and then we are back to the music which is breathtaking. This set should be in the collection of everyone who loves the blues.

5 comments about The Complete Prestige/Bluesville Recordings.

1. For a Hopkins fan or a music historian this set is fantastic. Sam Hopkins was a master story-teller - period - and there is a lot of spoken material that inter-weaves his personal history, regional blues history, and general reflections from a different time and a predominantly rural black culture. Having grown up in the rural South as a small boy, I sat at the feet of such story tellers for hours transformed by their spell. That said, if one only wants to listen to Sam Hopkins's music, there are better recordings or at least better quality recordings and one can obtain a suitable collection for less dough. This is a must-have set for a special sub-genre of enthusiasts and for them it is a rare treasure, indeed.



2. SON SOLO 7 DISCOS..REUNEN LAS GRABACIONES DE HOPKINS PARA prestige Y bluesville EN UN PERIODO DE 4 AÑOS!! ES NADA MAS QUE ESO...Y ES ABSOLUTAMENTE RECOMENDABLE Y DE ESCUCHA OBLIGATORIA PARA QUIEN AME EL BLUES!!!! 112 TEMAS QUE RETRATAN TODA UNA VIDA...EL CONCIERTO DE SWARTHMORE, PREVIAMENTE INEDITO, ES ESENCIAL PARA COMPRENDER EL REVIVAL DEL BLUES EN LOS '60! REALMENTE, UNA EDICION MARAVILLOSA, DIGNA DE UN ARTISTA UNICO EN SU TIPO!



3. Yes, it is expensive but if you are interested in the blues then it's a really good deal. As has already been explained, the 7th disc is only interviews. But the 6 discs of music are incredible. I had to work up my nerve to make this purchase a few years ago. Luckily, I did get a discount but I still say it's worth the hefty price tag. I'm listening to 'Last Night Blues' right now and it's just as haunting today as it was when I first bought the set.



4. This seven disk, expensive box set is often a difficult pill to swallow, but I am glad that I did. On six disks twelve Lightnin' albums from the 60's are combined. If you are interested in Lightnin', do the math. The Complete Prestige/Bluesville Rocordings is a value. The seventh disk is full of interviews that may seem dull to some, but to a fan willing to spend $ to get the blues they are a welcome addition. A very interesting way to learn about the man is from his own voice in interviews like these. The liner notes are a simple histoy, a few pictures and a discography. Again, I am glad I bought it.



5. This is one fantastic collection of music! However, I was a little disappointed by the apparent lack of effort that went into the finished product. With such a comprehensive assortment of music, I expected to find at least liner notes or a booklet with some biographical material or reviews. Also, it should be noted that the final disk in this set is only spoken word. While the novelty of it is awesome, and you get to here Lightnin's stories first hand, at my first listening I was somewhat off set because I wasn't expecting it. However, those things aside, this set is worth every penny!

No comments about Ain't Times Hard: Political and Social Comment In The Blues.

5 comments about The Birth Of Soul : The Complete Atlantic Rhythm & Blues Recordings, 1952-1959.

1. HERE ARE ALL OF RAY CHARLES' SONGS THAT HE RECORDED ON ATLANTIC RECORDS, BASICALLY IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER. A GREAT BOX SET WITH INFORMATIVE BOOKLET. THESE ARE THE SONGS THAT MADE ALEGEND OUT OF A MAN. NO-ONE CAN COMPLAIN ABOUT THIS PRODUCTION, BUT I DO FIND MYSELF LISTENING TO DISCS 2& 3 MORE THAN THE FIRST ONE. RAY'S EARLIEST RECORDINGS (Disc 1) ARE MORE LIKE IMITATIONS OF CHARLES BROWN OR FLOYD DIXON, AND THE LATER RECORDINGS ARE WHEN HE REALLY BECOMES "BROTHER RAY".



2. This 3 CD box set from Atlantic should stand as a monument to the way an artist's "best of" compilation should be presented.
   
   Ray's first charted hit came in 1949 for the Down Beat label as a member of The Maxin Trio when Confusion Blues reached # 2 on what passed then for the R&B charts. In 1951, on his own now with the Swing Time label, he then scored with Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand [# 5 R&B] and followed that in 1952 with Kiss-A Me Baby [# 8 R&B].
   
   That led to a contract with Atlantic Records where, in May 1954, he had his first hit with It Should've Been Me [# 5 R&B] b/w Sinner's Prayer. That was followed in August by Don't You Know [# 10 R&B] b/w Losing Hand. All four sides are in this set.
   
   Then came the seminal I've Got A Woman [sometimes listed as I Got A Woman] which soared to # 1 R&B early in 1955 b/w Come Back, itself a hit at # 4 R&B. In fact, from that point onward to 1956's Hellelujah I Love Her So, he would have only double-sided hits. And they are ALL here, as are both sides to all his following Atlantic hits up to, and including, the old Hank Snow Country smash [a hint of things to come with that genre] I'm Movin' On [# 11 R&B/# 40 Billboard Pop Hot 100 in 1959] b/w I Believe To My Soul.
   
   It's interesting to note that it took the Pop market over eight years to "discover" Ray, and when they did it was to deliver a modest # 34 in November 1957 for Swanee River Rock (Talkin' 'Bout That River), which was the B-side to Ain't That Love, which only made the R&B charts at # 9 (Swanee River Rock also scored at # 14 R&B).
   
   For some reason, the ONLY Atlantic hits not included are Don't Let The Sun Catch You Cryin' [# 17 R&B/# 95 Hot 100 in 1960] and its B-side, Let The Good Times Roll [# 78 Hot 100], and Just For A Thrill [# 16 R&B] and its flipside Heartbreaker. Also, while his final Atlantic hit, Tell The Truth [# 13 R&B in September 1960] IS included, the B-side, Sweet Sixteen Bars, is not.
   
   These, however, are minor quibbles. The large 32-page booklet contains not only a complete discography of the contents, along with numerous photographs and album/45rpm/poster reproductions, but also an extensive essay as well, written by Robert Palmer.
   
   Deserves a prize place in any serious music collection.



3. This boxed set is superbly packaged, CD 1 covers 1952 to 1954, CD 2 1954 to 1957 and CD 3 1957 to 1959. Theres a nice accompanying booklet which gives full credit to all the known musicians and there is a substantial written history of Ray Charles time at Atlantic records which must runs into thousand of words.
   
   Jerry Wexler is quoted in these notes saying "In terms of purity and musical value, he cut his best sides for us. It was righteous roots music. It was intrinsically great music". So its no surprise that the music IS some of the best stuff Ray Charles ever did. A mixture of Rhythm and Blues, Jazz, Gospel and Blues that quite rightly is called the birth of soul.



4. Normally box sets are the audio equivalent of a Whitman's Sampler; there's a lot to choose from and you may not like everything in it, but that ain't this box set baby! Covering Brother Ray's tenure at Atlantic Records from 1952 to 1959 this box set encompasses most everything he recorded there and is pretty much the creation of soul music as we know it today. Here is Ray fusing R&B, gospel, swing, jazz, and pretty much anything else he put his fertile mind to. Listen to these recordings and it won't take long for you to figure out why Ray was called "the Genius." The tracks crackle with life and energy and thanks to the re-mastering they received they also don't crackle and pop like some of the older re-issues and re-releases. There's no guile and plenty of style here; there's also more recent re-releases of this material, but this packs in a whole lot more and is the superior collection if you ask me. If your foot isn't tapping and your fingers snapping then you don't have a pulse brother.



5. Ray Charles was a musician free of genre or style. He could play Rock, R&B, Country, and Soul with equal talent and virtuosity. The fact that he was able to do this, coupled with his invention of Soul, is simply a miracle of modern popular music.
   
   These recordings, marking the birth of Soul from the mind of the greatest musician in popular music, are to be cherished for the history the present. Every one of these recordings are evidence of the genius tht was Ray Charles. Some are quite simple in their arrangement, some vastly more intricate, yet every one expresses the powerful emotions that exude from the music and the man.
   
   This collection is seminal in it's importance in recording the birth of a genre that founded the careers of some of our most important popular musicians. Aretha Franklin, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gay, The Pointer Sisters, Barry White, etc. The list could go on for pages, but I think the point is made.