The Green Mare

This double-disc overview collection of British super guitarist Peter Green. By concentrating on a 20-year period, listeners get a solid selection of Green's creative genius with Fleetwood Mac, his spotty early solo records when his disintegration begins, and his tentative but still brilliant first return to music-making as well as a pair of sideman gigs with Bob Brunning's Sunflower Blues Band tossed in for good measure. There are only two live cuts in the batch, Boston Tea Party-era versions of "Black Magic Woman" and a cover of Duster Bennett's "Jumping at Shadows," and a wildly interspersed series of solo album cuts, Mac singles, and LP grooves like the juxtaposition of Green's "Lost My Love" with FM's "Fast Talking Woman Blues."

Subtitled - Classics & Rarities Featuring Peter Green. This collection of singles, studio out-takes and 'live' performances captures all the energy and excitement of their sound…

Some Peter Green fans might be put off by this 64-song/four-CD collection, owing to the fact that they are likely to already own a significant chunk of what's here (especially the Fleetwood Mac material). (And in fairness, there apparently isn't a lot of – or any – unreleased material to draw on from Green's classic period with the band). But this reviewer had to spring for this four-and-a-half hour showcase of his work, and for one major reason – vitality. Green's virtuosity is a given, and his taste and his insights into blues and what can be done with it – while still leaving it as blues – are well known to anyone who's heard his work.

A massive, 2-disc compilation featuring cover versions of virtually every Peter Green song written during his Fleetwood Mac period, and a few drawn from his mid-80s solo period. While there are some weaker moments in this 39-track collection, the majority of the interpretations feature blues guitar, piano and vocal at their very best. Rather than simply pay tribute to Peter Green by faithfully imitating his material, the artists have chosen to re-interpret these songs and in most cases the results are superb. The power of Green's influence is felt all the more deeply when so many artists use his music as a jumping-off point. A must have item for blues guitar fans.

Some Peter Green fans might be put off by this 64-song/four-CD collection, owing to the fact that they are likely to already own a significant chunk of what's here (especially the Fleetwood Mac material). (And in fairness, there apparently isn't a lot of – or any – unreleased material to draw on from Green's classic period with the band). But this reviewer had to spring for this four-and-a-half hour showcase of his work, and for one major reason – vitality. Green's virtuosity is a given, and his taste and his insights into blues and what can be done with it – while still leaving it as blues – are well known to anyone who's heard his work.

This double-disc overview collection of British super guitarist Peter Green is unique only for the limit of its focus and its seeming willy-nilly sequenced expression of it. If you're a fan, there isn't anything here you don't already have…

Some Peter Green fans might be put off by this 64-song/four-CD collection, owing to the fact that they are likely to already own a significant chunk of what's here (especially the Fleetwood Mac material). (And in fairness, there apparently isn't a lot of – or any – unreleased material to draw on from Green's classic period with the band). But this reviewer had to spring for this four-and-a-half hour showcase of his work, and for one major reason – vitality. Green's virtuosity is a given, and his taste and his insights into blues and what can be done with it – while still leaving it as blues – are well known to anyone who's heard his work.