No comments about Powerful Stuff.

1 comments about Hung Down Head.

1. Here's a great compilation of great blues from chess sessions from approx 1956 through the early 60's. Great guitar and classic chess blues sound. This features Lowell Fulson's classic guitar and some great classic blues. Get it.

1 comments about The Best of T-Bone Walker: The Talkin' Guitar.

1. Let me say from the start that this is my first experience with T-Bone Walker so this price is just about as good as it gets for a brand new disc regardless of the artist. I thought I had a pretty good handle on the blues and then I heard this guy. Talk about jaw dropping...wow. This is smooth, silky, laid back blues from a master of the genre. T-Bone's blues comes across in a more subtle and easy going fashion and I found it to be unbelievable pleasant to listen to. I can't accurately speak of this in comparison to other cds from this guitarist, but I can say that for this price, even if you would categorize yourself as a casual blues fan, this is a bargain you simply can not pass up. Put it on, sit on the front porch, sip your beverage, and enjoy! Quite honestly, one of the best blues cds I've ever heard.

2 comments about The Very Best of Lightnin' Hopkins.

1. I'm nearly happy with this album. Its major flaw, that I'm quite irritated about, is that the introduction to Big Car Blues cuts off before Hopkins has finished his story. It goes straight to the song, which is about Lightnin' trying to recover his stolen car, but the listener never gets to hear how it was stolen. This effectively butchers the story telling element of Hopkins' work.

   Other than that, it's a fine collection. But since it contains songs that are obvious choices for an anthology, I'd suggest getting another anthology with a more complete version of Black Car Blues




2. I'm nearly happy with this album. Its major flaw, that I'm quite irritated about, is that the introduction to Big Car Blues cuts off before Hopkins has finished his story. It goes straight to the song, which is about Lightnin' trying to recover his stolen car, but the listener never gets to hear how it was stolen. This effectively butchers the story telling element of Hopkins' work.

   Other than that, it's a fine collection. But since it contains songs that are obvious choices for an anthology, I'd suggest getting another anthology with a more complete version of Black Car Blues

No comments about Feelin' the Spirit.

1 comments about I Like To Live The Love.

1. This CD, "I Like to Live the Love", is a compendium of cuts from two previous collaborations between the venerable B.B. King and masterful blues vocalist, Bobby Bland. Those earlier efforts, "Together for the First Time" and "Together Again" have become blues classics. The music is live. Most of it is terrifically good. King's guitar mastery and operatic blues shouting blends well, often wonderfully well, with Bland's subtler vocals. The side men do a solid job and the audience response, often distracting on concert CD's, usually enhances the music. It is apparent that the performers are enjoying themselves. Bland is in top form on these cuts -- and that's saying a lot.

   Those who have never heard Bobby Bland have missed out on one of the best reasons for living of which I am aware. His voice is impossible to describe without lapsing into seeming contradictions. For example, it's both smooth as silk and rough as sandpaper. It must be heard. Equally impressive, Bland always seem to have a deeply intuitive understanding of the songs he sings. He employs his remarkable voice with an all-too-rare intelligence. (In a sane world, everyone would know Bobby Bland and his work.) This CD is a good vehicle for hearing him.

   I have a quibble about the selections made for this CD. Certainly, "3-O'clock Blues" and "Driftin' Blues" are about as good as it gets. I like both of these live versions better than any others I know. All of the cuts on this collection are worthy. Yet two cuts from the original source collections, Bland's best-ever rendition of "I'll Take Care of You" (which drives his audience crazy!)and an incomparably high-spirited rendition of King's blues anthem, "The Thrill Is Gone", are not included. As good as this CD is, it would have been better if they had been.

   For someone who has never heard the original Bland/King "Together" collections, this CD should prove to be be a good purchase. It has most of the best material from those efforts and leaves out the few cuts which don't quite work. Serious blues enthusiasts might do better to purchase the earlier works. Still, "I Like to Live the Love" should enhance the collection of occasional blues fans, or those with more eclectic tastes, with a low-cost, high-quality CD that will bring much in the way of enjoyment.

No comments about Mellow Fellow.

No comments about You've Got Me Loving You.

5 comments about Country Blues.

1. I love all of his stuff, I have about five CD's worth. He's so raw, natural and pure. I just can't put into words how much I love his material, he just floors it and lets fly, always something new to catch in one of his songs. He's so inspiring to me as a guitarplayer!
   
   Get this CD



2. Had this on an old album......wanted it on cd...just what i was looking for.



3. This is a good example and sample of Lightnin' Hopkins. My guitar teacher uses it to teach me acoustic blues in the free form style that is not a strict 12 bar form. A strong shuffle pattern with free form blues runs predominate.
   
   You will hear some of this in Stevie Ray Vaughn's music.



4. First of all, Lightnin' is the man. Now that we've established that, lets go on to this particular album. ANY Lightnin' album is 5 stars compared to most other things, but this one is really cool. Lightnin' is just messing around here, playing for some folky geek who brought a tape recorder over to his house, but listen to what he plays! This is the blues itself concentrated and fermented and stripped down to its most essential, most direct, most powerful phrases. Sure, its Lightnin's blues, but this is pretty much what its ALL about, blues, rock and roll, jazz, R&B, this is the roots of it all, right here. So why build all that other stuff onto it? Why go digital, why add effects, why even use a studio for heaven's sake? This is 10 times better and 10 times simpler than all that...one man, one guitar, an ocean of inspiration!



5. Hopkins is usually referred to as the epitome of Texas blues, and without having listened to any of his contemporaries in this regard, I can still see why he is labeled as such. This album has tracks with dark, bold sounds and a delivery unlike Delta bluesmen that put you out on the desolate back country or in the hard work place. Coupled with the words, your mind is focused on the most basic and essential traits of life for a black man in the hard living conditions of Texas, and the raw emotion evoked by these circumstances. In an interesting contrast, some of his songs have a very lighthearted feel to them, but the lyrics mention nothing reminiscent of high life, thereby emphasizing the emptiness of Hopkins' "thesis of blues", for lack of a better phrase.

2 comments about Wrap It Up.

1. I somewhat sheepishly admit that I skip over certain songs on this CD when they come up, because they just don't hold my interest, but others, including of course the two hit songs "Wrap It Up" and "Tuff Enuff," make up for a couple of misses.

   I've heard that the real forte' of the T-birds was their live performances, and I'm inclined to believe that, because I know of so many bands who absolutely brought down the house in person, but only rarely captured the same excitement in the recording studio.

   If you're a big fan, you might wanna check out Sam & Dave's original version of "Wrap It Up", and you'll see that the FT's borrowed quite a bit from them. Of course, if you're gonna borrow from somebody, Sam & Dave are a great choice for source material. But that's another review...




2. The Fabulous Thunderbirds are far from the blues band status of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble, but nevertheless "Wrap it Up" is a pretty fair record, with a pop-blues sound that is rare to hear these days. Worth a look if you like old time rythem and blues.