Blues Rock Woman

The Croatian-born artist already caused a sensation with the celebrated album Bad Penny at the Blues Caravan 2018 . “A first-class debut that will liven up the scene,” it said in the press. Now Sky is returning with a hard rock-like second album to make us her accomplice: “If you asked the people around me, they would describe me as “Woman Named Trouble“, “ she says with a mischievous grin.

While Fleetwood Mac didn't invent "the British blues," they were certainly one of the early bands to master the form. This 30-track, double-disc anthology contains everything one would expect from the Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer-fronted blues-rock juggernaut…

Saucy blues-rockers Juicy Lucy formed in 1969 from the ashes of cult favorite garage band the Misunderstood, reuniting vocalist Ray Owen, steel guitarist Glenn "Ross" Campbell, and keyboardist Chris Mercer, with the additions of guitarist Neil Hubbard, bassist Keith Ellis, and drummer Pete Dobson. The group immediately notched a U.K. Top 20 hit with their reading of the Bo Diddley perennial "Who Do You Love," with their self-titled debut LP falling just shy of the Top 40. Ex-Zoot Money singer Paul Williams, guitarist Mick Moody, and drummer Rod Coombes replaced Owen (who exited for a solo career), Hubbard, and Dobson for 1970's Lie Back and Enjoy It, with bassist Jim Leverton assuming Ellis' duties for the follow-up, 1971's Get a Whiff a This.

The legendary Ruf Records showcase tour is now 17 years old, but the concept remains unbeatable and therefore unchanged. Three up-and-coming talents from the most respected blues label in Europe. Three live sets that run the gamut of genres and emotions. And to top it off, a huge jam session where all the artists let loose together - and ask the audience to do the same.

This is something of a sequel to the 1993 Ace compilation of early King sides titled Blues Guitar Hero: The Influential Early Sessions, though it took Ace nearly a decade to unleash the companion volume. All of the 24 tracks were recorded between 1961 and 1966, though some of the songs weren't released until after 1966, in a few cases not for decades; indeed, four alternate takes make their first appearance here. All of King's chart records occurred in 1961, and all were included on the prior Blues Guitar Hero: The Influential Early Sessions, so this couldn't qualify as the first-choice early King; there's no "Hide Away" or "San-Ho-Zay" here. On a musical level, though, this isn't much different in nature or quality than what you'll find on the earlier anthology. Split between vocals and instrumentals, it's top-notch R&B-blues-rock & roll crossover with stinging guitar and soulful vocals, even if the similarity of some of the songs might turn off non-aficionados.