Big Boss Man

This 52-disc (no, that is not a typo) comp, ABC of the Blues: The Ultimate Collection from the Delta to the Big Cities, may just indeed live up to its name. There are 98 artists represented , performing 1,040 tracks. The music begins at the beginning (though the set is not sequenced chronologically) with Charlie Patton, Son House, and Robert Johnson, and moves all the way through the vintage Chicago years of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, with stops along the way in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, New York, and all points in between. Certainly, some of these artists are considered more rhythm & blues than purely blues artists: the inclusion of music by Johnny Otis, Wynonie Harris, Bo Diddley, and others makes that clear.

Lorenzo Thompson (Chicago) and Jose Luis Pardo (Argentina) met in the late 90´s in Buenos Aires. Several years and shuffles later, destiny reunited them in a wild and fun tour around all Spain. By the end of the tour in Sept. 2010, they went into Studio in Mallorca Island with local band Big Yuyu´s solid base and Quique Gomez playing harp. The result is an exquisite blues album payin homage to the greats but with a refined and fresh touch. Both Pardo and Jordi Alvarez play the true stuff with short but accurate solos. The voice of Lorenzo fills every room and this you will hear. Quique´s big sound in his harmonica easily reminds us of Little Walter and Pep on drums and Juan Amaro on bass are not playing one wrong note in the entire CD. Enjoy this piece of recent blues history.