Reviews (3)

Teasin' Pleaser....
The Chess Blues Classics. Bellisimo, Baby. Great for an intro to the Chicago style post-Delta electric blues music--heck, this is great even if you're a longtime fan. This chronicles Chess Records move to their Michigan Ave. digs and the consolidating of some of their satellite small record companies into one big happy homestead. Bass man extraordinaire Willie Dixon becomes the Chess A & R man, and these Blues? They wail, Man, they wail! Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy, Howlin', Etta, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy!!!! When the Buddy Guy track comes on, you notice how much smoother the recording technology, hence, the Blues itself, becomes. A Little Milton cut has sessionmen Charles Stepney on piano and Maurice White on drums. Etta James house rocks a live audience in Nashville. Willie gives a tune to KoKo Taylor. And Hooker does the Last Call...will you love this? Do you have to ask?

Great music
Like its companion volume, "Chess Blues Classics 1947-1956", this CD offers some of the best tracks by some of the best blues musicians of Chicago's famed Chess label.
A couple of selections are debatable, and "Chess Blues Classics" is of no interest to the more experienced blues fan (no rarities). But if you're a newcomer and would like to explore classic electric blues, this is a very fine place to start doing so.

"Chess Blues Classics 1957-1967" includes two excellent cuts by harp legend Aleck 'Rice' Miller (Sonny Boy Williamson II), namely "Help Me" and the magnificent "Fattening Frogs For Snakes", as well as excellent tunes by John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, and legendary bluesmen Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and slide guitarist Elmore James. And Otis Rush's too rarely heard "So Many Roads, So Many Trains", with its smouldering slow guitar solo, is here as well.

Several of these tracks count among the greatest electric blues performances ever issued, including Howlin' Wolf's "Little Red Rooster" and John Lee Hooker's "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer".
4½ stars. A great place to start.

Excellent doorway into the blues
I bought this CD 4 years ago, not knowing a whole lot about the blues, and it is now one of my favorite albums. An excellent anthology of the classic blues. Anyone who considers themselves a music fan should listen to this CD. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

crisp refreashing
well put togather intresting lacks some of the punch of other electric blues albums a worthy addition to a blues collection ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent CD
I got this CD coincidentally a few years ago when I lent it from the library. I was a bluesfan for years already but only knew the big names like BB King etc. This album showed me there's a lot more. Since I heard this CD and knew the names of the people/band playing on it my horizon broadened. It set me to buying CD's of James Harman and that led me to Hollywood Fats, James Clarke etc. This CD is great studymaterial for guitarplyers also! This afternoon I listened to the CD again and enjoyed the incredible guitarplaying of Mike Morgan. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great sampler
What more to say - see the cuts included.

Blues sampler
This is a great CD for someone who is getting to know the blues for the first time. All types of blues are represented. It includes some of the great masters of the art like Muddy Waters and Koko Taylor. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

modern blues
This is my FAVORITE blues cd! It has all the flavor of traditional blues music, but with a very contemporary sound. This is going to be one of YOUR favorites too. I have loaned this cd out many, many times, the last time it didn't come back. This is the ONLY site I could find it on. I will be re-purchasing it. Forget the music stores, You won't find it. If you buy it and DON'T like it, contact me, I will buy it from you! Then when everyone asks to use it, I'll just give them a copy for themselves. DON'T forget to listen to the demos! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good for any kind of preferences
Blues music it's not just for blue people, it's for any kind of people. This album has a really beatufull combination of artists, rythms, feelings, and inspirations, thath you can enjoy it any time, in any place. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great CD
Some eclectic songs here that make great music to slather (bbq sauce) by. The boppin' opener by Mitch Woods is awesome, really puts you in the mood, followed by wry humor wrapped in authentic lamentations on a subject most soulful, good southern-style cooking. Has the historic relevance you'd expect from House of Blues, with some numbers dug up from God knows where as well as big headliners. The actual BBQ content is somewhat diluted with ditties on other dishes, but enough to go on. A fun CD to have if you're serious about your 'cue and want to spend a soulful afternoon. Crack a cold one and enjoy! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Amazing!
This set is one of the best compilations of post-war blues you can get. Every track is great and you can hear the transformation of the black blues experience from the agricultural South to the industrial North come right through your speakers. Buy this set and quote these songs to your friends. You'll be cooler! ;-)

AWESOME CHICAGO BLUES
This series is awesome stuff. Some of the very best artists Chicago had to offer on this three CD compilation. Vanguard really hit a homerun with these releases. This series is a must have for all hardcore blues fans and neophytes alike. Get them all,you will love them. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

This is the LP that did it, and did it in a big way...
After heaing this LP for the first time, nothing was ever the same for me, musically, ever again. From this, I steadily found my way through the blues, and into straight ahead jazz. Hearing James (then 'Jimmy') Cotton's "Rocket 88", or Buddy Guy's rendition of "Money" still makes me shiver. This is a great compilation of some great urban, electric blues, as well as some 'pining' southern influenced rural stuff ( Johnny Young's "Stealin", "Mule Kickin 'In My Stall", "Tobacco Road"). Otis Spann's "Spann's Stomp" and "Twisted Snake" cross deep into the early jazz genre. Marvelous stuff here for real blues lovers.

A must have for any blues fan
A great compliation of classic electric Chicago Blues. All the performances are top notch from Buddy Guy's "Sweet Little Angel" to Otis Spann's vituosity on the keyboards to the fat full sound of Big Walter Horton this CD is a winner in everyway. A must have! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

They're all here
The reviewer who said that SRV was not on this set obviously did not read the liner notes, which indicate that SRV played on the Lonnie Mack tracks from the Strikes Like Lightening sessions. The other artists the reviewer stated that were not there ARE, but are not the featured artist on the tracks.

I bought this set, and the 25th, when they came out and was really wowed by what I heard. Houndog Taylor is my favorite, followed closely by Koko Taylor and Albert "Master of the Telecaster" Collins. There is some really fine musicianship, great feel, and real respect for the blues displayed on this set.
Higly recommended.

Some good old blues
Amazon keeps inter-mixing the reviews for the 'Alligator Records 20th Anniversary Collection' album and the similarly named 'Alligator Records 20th Anniversary tour' album. So I will include a review of both here to set the record straight.

The 'Collection' album is by far superior to the 'tour' album. The collection has many artists on show and offers a bit of everything. The best tracks are AC Reed's 'These blues are killing me' with SRV brilliant on guitar, Little Charlie and the Nightcats with 'Rain', Roy Buchanan's classic 'Drowning on dry land', Koko Taylor with 'That's why i'm crying', Katie Webster with 'Pussycat Moan', Son Seal with 'Going back home' and Hound Dog Taylor and the classic 'Give me back my wig'. The album is uneven as you would expect for a label show case but well worth it as a introduction to a variety of blues styles and artists.

The 1993 20th aniversary tour album has only Li' Ed, (the late) Kattie Wester, Elvin Bishop, Lonnie Brooks and Koko Taylor. The album does typify Alligator records music that by my definition is mostly reasonable blues without being great. This live album has plenty of energy and is listenable, but fails to scale the heights I expect of the blues.

I discovered most of my favorite blues artists from this CD
Alligator records has some serious talent on it's label. Many of them are big names that you will recognize if you have been into blues for very long. I have tried samplers from other blues record labels and have been very disappointed with the mediocre talent on their label. Usually there are only one or two people -out of fourteen or fifteen - that stand out on other blues samplers. You will recognize that the vast majority of artists on Alligator Records are true talents - even if you don't like their style. This album is definitely worth the investment.

good,better,best
Alligator has compiled a very good collection of its artists on this CD. It has Iceman , SRV , KOKo , Son Seals, Johnny Winter and many other of the best of the blues. If you buy it, find some storage for the rest of your collection, because you won't remember who they are. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Good Collection
This collection of blues from relatively recent artists (50s to 70s) is worth the money. Of particular interest is to hear Otis Rush's original 'All your love' to see how Eric Clapton copied every note on the ground breaking John Mayall beano album. In addition there are so many other original tracks and guitar licks which artists have copied over the subsequent years.

A good introduction to the Blues.
If you are a blues guitarist wannabe you should own this album. Good recordings of a variety of blues styles and classic licks. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A must own blues album
I first heard this album 20 years ago. All of the artists are great. Jimmy Johnson's performance is magic. As far as I'm concerned, Johnson is the blues. His voice talks to your soul. "Feel Like Breaking Up Somebody's Home" is one of my all time favorite songs. It's the perfect companion to a rainy day. ... Read more

Amazon.com

This blues tribute to one of the Beatles's most important recordings has little to commend. The one truly outstanding cut is Joe Louis Walker's slow, soulful squeeze through "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," where his voice and lead guitar cry and moan, bringing the song's deep currents of pain to the surface. T-Bone Wolk and Anders Osborne stick to the original arrangements of "Don't Pass Me By" and "Happiness Is a Warm Gun," coming up with suitably amiable and dark results, respectively. Singer Maria Muldaur, joined by guitarist Chris Duarte, gives "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da" a blithe Memphis soul treatment. But the rest suffers from a lack of time and imagination. A generic funk take on "Revolution" with guitarist-singers Kenny Neal, Lucky Peterson, and Tab Benoit sounds rushed and lazy. And Peterson's "Yer Blues" is riddled with phony vocal hyperventilation. "Blackbird" and "Dear Prudence" have been covered to death by everyone from new-wavers to wedding bands, so it's hard to fault singer-guitarist Colin Linden for failing to bring excitement to the former. Sadly, when he teams with harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite for an instrumental "Dear Prudence," it just sounds like Muzak. --Ted Drozdowski ... Read more

Reviews (2)

I don't agree with the reviewer either
I think the reviewer was just having a bad day. This album is great fun (though I must admit: I really don't need this -- or ANY -- version of "Don't Pass Me By") and a whole new way of thinking about these classic songs.

Great Covers
I don't agree with the reviewer. I think this is a great cover album, by great artists, having fun. ... Read more