Wild & greasy blues at its best, a two-song session for an anthology turned into an all-night, live-in-the-studio jam. Sounds like it was great fun.
Signing to Alligator in the mid-'80s, they released their debut album, Roughhousin', in 1986 and found themselves receiving national attention. They began playing urban clubs and festivals all over the country and eventually toured Canada, Europe, and Japan.
Sometimes the bloodlines show up and at other times they explode with a fanfare that shows itself to the world. Lil' Ed Williams traces his heritage back to his uncle, one of the Chicago blues legends, slide guitar master J.B. Hutto. He was tutored by his uncle, and the West Side Chicago blues scene that nurtured him, and readily gives J.B. much of the credit for his prowess. He captures some of that same raw street energy that was his uncle's trademark on many of the tracks on this, his fifth Alligator release. Listen to "The Creeper" to get an idea of the savage fury that he can channel through his slide guitar work. This disc manifests that feel for the blues that can't be taught, but must be both lived and seen from the inside…
Wild, raw, rough-edged Chicago slide guitar blues, this is jumpin', partyin' music in the tradition of Hound Dog Taylor and J.B. Hutto (Lil' Ed's uncle). Recorded live in the studio with no overdubs, it includes nine original compositions plus covers of Hutto and Albert Collins tunes.
40 CD box set. Artists include John Lee 'Sonny Boy' Williamson, Leadbelly, Big Bill Broonzy, Bessie Smith, Muddy Waters, Mississippi John Hurt, Memphis Minnie, John Lee Hooker, Big Joe Williams and many more. 725 tracks all digitally remastered to enhance the original recordings without manipulating the character of the music. Recordings made between 1923 and 1948. 20 double slimline jewel cases housed together in a cardboard box.
This band is hot. Very, very hot. And those aren't just empty words. After all, the Blues Company from Osnabrück, Germany is neither a hodgepodge of rank beginners nor - to borrow business lingo - a group of new business starters. Rather, they are a team of artists who have made their mark, musicians with experience and know-how aplenty. The musicians at work here have long since ensured that the name of their “company” is a recognised “seal of approval”. In a nutshell, “Blues Company” stands for German's longest-running and most successful blues band. And with each new recording, with each concert, these pros underscore that their passionate love affair with the blues is burning brightly as ever.
After two albums on Le Chant du Monde at Harmonia Mundi, then “Nomade Sonore” (Revelation 2015 – Jazz Magazine) on Gaya, Éric Séva proves himself to be an atypical musician whose curiosity feeds his creative spirit. He continues with this fourth opus “Body and Blues” dedicated to the blues, to the blue note. In this new project he plumbs the essence of his own sensitivity, his own story. Blues is the verbalization of a constant struggle against adversity. Thanks to the sounds of the baritone, soprano and sopranino saxophones sublimated by the unexpected use of a wah-wah pedal, blues finds an unexpected voice with Éric Séva.
This fabulous blues duo has existed for more than 20 years. The harp and guitar has been a traditional format in the blues history, and they are giving you the best of what they consider is the best of the acoustic blues tradition. Their music goes back to the 1920’s, 30’s and 40’s. The Jumper and Moe play in different styles like the Mississippi slide or harp style, or the sweet Piedmont way of guitar picking. We can find memories of Blind Blake, Mississippi John Hurt, Bo Carter, Leadbelly, Lightning Hopkins, Blind Willie McTell, Bukka White, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, BB King, Mississippi Sheiks, The Memphis Jug Band, Robert Johnson, and many more of the oldtimers in their music.
Muddy Waters was the leading exponent of Chicago blues in the Fifties, and with him, the blues came up from the Delta and went electric. His guitar licks and repertoire have fueled innumerable blues bands.
In 1959, John Lee Hooker signed a one-off deal with the Riverside label to record an acoustic session of the country blues. It was a key change from his earlier recordings, most of which had featured Hooker on an electric guitar with his trademark reverb and stomping foot. Folk purists of the day were delighted with COUNTRY BLUES, believing Hooker had returned to his roots, leaving the "glitzy commercialism" of R&B behind. But some Hooker fans considered COUNTRY BLUES a "betrayal" of his true sound. The truth is probably somewhere in-between. Remember, John Lee Hooker is always John Lee Hooker, regardless of the format. If you like Hooker, or acoustic blues, buy this album. It is an intimate session featuring standards like "How Long", "Bottle Up and Go", as well as Hooker's first recorded take on "Tupelo", one of his all-time classics.
John Lee Hooker developed a “talking blues” style that became his trademark. Though similar to the early Delta tradition, his metrically free approach and unique sound would make him a staple of the Detroit blues tradition. Often called the “King of the Boogie,” Hooker's driving, rhythmic approach to guitar playing has become an integral part of the blues. His thunderous electric guitar sounded raw, while his basic technique was riveting.