Happy Birthday

This three-CD box set is the most thorough and valuable retrospective of Janis Joplin's career. Besides including all of her most essential recordings with and without Big Brother & the Holding Company, this 49-song package features quite a few enticing rarities; 18 of the tracks were previously unissued. These include a 1962 home recording of the Joplin original "What Good Can Drinkin' Do," which marked the first time her singing was captured on tape; a pair of acoustic blues tunes from 1965 with backup guitar by future Jefferson Airplane star Jorma Kaukonen, an acoustic demo of "Me and Bobby McGee," a 1970 birthday song for John Lennon, and live performances from her appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969…

Eric Clapton, one of the world's outstanding blues/rock guitarists, once again assembled an all-star team of six-string heroes for his fifth Crossroads Guitar Festival in 2019. Organized at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, the two-day concert event raised funds for the Crossroads Centre in Antigua, the therapy facility for alcohol and drug addicts founded by Clapton in 1998. After a six-year hiatus, the festival returned with new energy and outstanding performances, including performances by James Bay, Jeff Beck, Doyle Bramhall II, Gary Clark Jr, Robert Cray, Sheryl Crow, Andy Fairweather Low, Peter Frampton, Vince Gill, Buddy Guy, Sonny Landreth, Lianne La Havas, Los Lobos, John Mayer, Keb' Mo', Bonnie Raitt, Robert Randolph, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Jimmie Vaughan and others…

Recorded at two separate gigs in January 1975 but not issued until 2006, this captures Junior Wells on-stage at Theresa's, one of the most esteemed Chicago blues clubs. It's a little rawer than most live albums; the sound is good, and Wells is in good form, but his band is a little rough (and, particularly on the tracks with guitarist Sammy Lawhorn, a little off-key). But the flaws really aren't too significant, as this is a pretty enjoyable set of electric Chicago blues in its unadulterated vintage form. Wells offers his trademark exuberant blues with touches of rock, soul, and funk, performing a few of his most popular tunes ("Messin' with the Kid," "Snatch It Back and Hold It") and a bunch of classic covers that are more identified with other performers (Slim Harpo's "Scratch My Back," Big Bill Broonzy's "Key to the Highway," St. Louis Jimmy Oden's "Goin' Down Slow," Little Walter's "Juke," Tampa Red's "Love Her with a Feeling," and "Help the Poor," the last popularized by B.B. King).