AC DC Live at The Old Warf

Despite the fact that the band's best days were obviously behind them, a live album for AC/DC was all but completely necessary. After all, the group's first live release, If You Want Blood You've Got It, was recorded at a time when AC/DC was nothing more than a cult act that had yet to produce many of its future rock staples…

AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in 1973. They were founded by brothers Malcolm Young on rhythm guitar and Angus Young on lead guitar. Their current line-up comprises Angus, bassist Cliff Williams, drummer Phil Rudd, lead vocalist Brian Johnson and rhythm guitarist Stevie Young – nephew of Angus and Malcolm. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and heavy metal, but the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formative influence on the new wave of British heavy metal bands, such as Def Leppard and Saxon. AC/DC were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

New Orleans bluesman Bryan Lee, a longtime fixture on Bourbon Street, indulges in a pyrotechnic guitar summit on Live At The Old Absinthe House Bar…Friday Night. Backed by his good rockin', hard shufflin' band, the blind guitarist cranks on his exuberant theme song "Braille Blues Daddy," Albert King's "Crosscut Saw" and Elmore James' "The Sky Is Crying." Harmonica legend James Cotton joins him on rousing renditions of "Ain't Doin' Too Bad" and "Five Long Years," then Lee goes toe-to-toe with guest guitarists Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Frank Marino. Originally released on CD in 1997.

If you've never really experienced Mike Bloomfield just letting loose and playing ripping and inspired guitar, this is a darn good starting point. Recorded live in 1976 and 1977 by producer Norman Dayron at the Old Waldorf nightclub on Bloomfield's home turf in San Francisco with a hand-picked band, the results are startling to say the least. Bloomfield plays with assurance and authority throughout, exploring new ideas with each new chorus from his guitar, arguably at his best since his early Butterfield/Dylan days. He plays a lot of slide guitar here, too, and tracks like "Bad Luck Baby," "The Sky Is Crying," "Dancin' Fool," and "Buried Alive in the Blues" showcase his mighty talents with the bottleneck, taking the lessons learned firsthand from Robert Nighthawk to places new and wild…