John Mayall London Blues

In 2002, Ace released Big Joe Louis & His Blues Kings/The Stars in the Sky, which contained two albums – Big Joe Louis & His Blues Kings (1989, originally released on Blue Horizon) and The Stars in the Sky (1992, originally on Tramp) – by Big Joe Louis & His Blues Kings on one compact disc.

Eric Clapton Young Man Blues (1994 Japanese-only 16-track CD album featuring the 1960s rhythm and blues works of young "Slow Hand", including Bluesbreakers, Yardbirds & immediate sessions with Jimmy Page).
At his peak, Eric Clapton was nicknamed "God" by his fans, an indication of how highly regarded the guitarist was during his glory days. This phrase, immortalized in graffiti that spread across London in 1967, originated a few years earlier when Clapton was playing with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers just after leaving the Yardbirds in 1965. Clapton never was comfortable with the nickname - he embraced "Slowhand," titling his 1977 album after it - but "Clapton Is God" is a pivotal part of his story and an instrumental moment in the rise of the guitar hero, a rock & roll cliché that didn't exist prior to EC…

Nine Below Zero started life in South London during 1977, in the midst of the punk rock boom in England – but their sound and inspiration were so totally counterintuitive to what was going on in punk rock that they scarcely seemed to be part of that movement, apart from their extremely energetic attack on their instruments. Rather than noise for its own sake or auto-destruction, their inspiration lay in classic Chicago blues (though John Mayall's early music and that of the Who and the Kinks from early in their careers also figured into their sound). Dennis Greaves (lead vocals, guitar), Peter Clark (bass), and Kenny Bradley (drums) – soon joined by Mark Feltham (who actually replaced a teacher of theirs who had sat in on the early gigs) on vocals and harmonica – were schoolmates and friends who shared a love of blues; all had all come into the world in the early '60s, and might well have resigned themselves to having missed the boat for the British blues revival by virtue of having been born in the midst of it. Instead, they reached back to that era and found themselves pegged as part of the "mod revival" in the midst of the punk era.

Like many black American blues and R&B artists, New Orleans singer and pianist Champion Jack Dupree found more respect and recognition in Europe than he did in his homeland, and he relocated to Europe in 1959, only rarely returning to the U.S. He cut several albums there, including the two included in this double-disc set from Beat Goes On, From New Orleans to Chicago, recorded in London in 1966, and Champion Jack Dupree and His Blues Band, tracked in the same city a year later (both were originally released on London Decca). Of the two, the latter release is the stronger (thanks in no small part to guitarist Mickey Baker), although From New Orleans is probably better known, mainly for the presence of Eric Clapton and John Mayall at the sessions…

Like many black American blues and R&B artists, New Orleans singer and pianist Champion Jack Dupree found more respect and recognition in Europe than he did in his homeland, and he relocated to Europe in 1959, only rarely returning to the U.S. He cut several albums there, including the two included in this double-disc set from Beat Goes On, From New Orleans to Chicago, recorded in London in 1966, and Champion Jack Dupree and His Blues Band, tracked in the same city a year later (both were originally released on London Decca). Of the two, the latter release is the stronger (thanks in no small part to guitarist Mickey Baker), although From New Orleans is probably better known, mainly for the presence of Eric Clapton and John Mayall at the sessions…

Paul Lamb is a British blues harmonica player and bandleader. He has had a four-decade long career as a blues harmonicist and bandleader, with fans around the world. Lamb’s initial interest in blues came from listening to John Mayall’s records; he then discovered the music of Sonny Terry, in whose style he thoroughly immersed himself for 12 years. He played in folk clubs and in 1975 was successful in a harmonica championship held in Germany. Around 1980, he began playing amplified harmonica, initially in Walter Horton’s style, and as a member of the Blues Burglars he recorded for the Red Lightnin’ label in 1986.

Jays Blues is a fine collection of early-'50s jump blues sides that Jimmy Witherspoon cut for Federal Records. This 23-track collection offers a good retrospective of one of Witherspoon's most neglected – and admittedly, uneven – periods.