All Music, All The Time

Is anyone in R&P a Blues music fan too?

Any type of Blues genre!
Please list some of your favorite Blues artists?
Some of my favorites are:

The Brew (newest one thanks to Lil Meg)
Chris Duarte
B.B. King
Albert Collins
Robert Cray
Johnny Winter
“Monster” Mike Welch
Garry Moore
Black Keys
Joe Bonamassa
As you can see from this list I’m a blues-rock and electric-blues fan mostly.
Edit; It’s great to see so many blues fans! Lots of great choices too.

I love blues music…both traditional, and blues inflected rock as well.

Here’s a few blues artists that I really enjoy…

Elmore James – Known for his fiery slide work, he influenced many great rock guitarists slide technique too…from Jeremy Spencer (Fleetwood Mac) to Duane Allman. His first long playing record was released in 1960 titled ‘Elmore James and the Broom Dusters – Blues After Hours’…look for it!

Fenton Robinson – was one of my favorite bluesmen of the 1970′s. The man coaxed some amazingly deep baritone sounds from his Gibson ES-335. Very underrated as a player, and worth looking into. A great album to start with is ‘Somebody Loan Me A Dime’.

Albert Collins – I think this man would rank in my top 5 blues guitarists.
Known for his unique sound featuring minor tunings, and sustained notes…Albert was way ahead of his time. Though through all of his earlier material, I like his 1978 album ‘Ice Pickin’ the best.

Otis Spann – Magic Fingers! One of my favorite blues pianists of all time. His 1960 album ‘Is The Blues’ should be on everyones “to buy” list IMO.

Sam ‘Lightnin’ Hopkins – Sam was a Texas country bluesman, known for his intricate boogie riffs. His career began in the 1920s and stretched all the way into the 1980s. Check out the albums ‘Lightnin and the Blues’ and ‘Mojo Hand’…they’re both available on CD now.

Howlin Wolf – Known for his hard-driving rhythmic style on harmonica, which was taught to him by his brother in law Alek Miller (Sonny Boy Williamson). He was also one of the earliest bluesmen to use an electric guitar, back in the 1930s.

Sonny Boy Williamson – Great bluesman…loved his 1959 album ‘Down and Out Blues’, a stone blues classic! His live collaboration with The Yardbirds on the 1966 LP ‘Sonny Boy Williamson and The Yardbirds’ was great too.

Hound Dog Taylor – His music recorded during the 60′s was great, but most of it never saw the light of day intill the 70′s & 80′s. He passed away in 1975. Try to find the album ‘Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers’….it’s great!

Muddy Waters – I’m a huge fan of everything this legend has done. I was just playing his album ‘At Newport 1960′ a couple days ago. What a great sounding live LP for it’s time. Another interesting album worth looking into is his 1968 release ‘Electric Mud’. It’s fantastic, and shows his experimental side. Some people referred to it as blues/psychedelia…I just call it a great blues album!

John Lee Hooker – He was a brilliant blues guitarist, and would play the walking bass pattern with his thumb, while using a series of trills, done by rapid hammer-ons and pull-offs. I love everything he’s done, though my favorite albums are ‘The Big Soul of John Lee Hooker’ and ‘Travelin’. His recordings with Canned Heat were great too! ‘Hooker n Heat’…Lol…I love that!

I realize that I missed a ton of other notable blues artists…like BB, Albert and Freddie King, Eddie Boyd, Bo Diddley, Willie Dixon, the Blind Willie’s…McTell and Johnson, and Blind Lemon Jefferson. I’m also a huge fan of practically everything ‘Chess’ recording studios ever produced.

Here’s a few more that I’ve always enjoyed…

Hambone Willie Newbern
Willie Baker
Eddie Boyd
Curley Weaver
King Solomon Hill
Blind Boy Fuller
Barbecue Bob
Robert Johnson
Son House
Frankie Lee Sims

As for blues rock? Wow…I’m an enormous fan of that genre as well. Everything from American bands like…
The Butterfield Blues Band, Canned Heat, Johnny Winter, Allman Brothers, Siegel-Schwall Band, The Electric Flag, Bloomfield – Kooper – Stills, etc.

To the great British bands of the 60′s, early 70′s…
Groundhogs, Ten Years After, Killing Floor, Savoy Brown, Chicken Shack, Fleetwood Mac, Tramline, Juicy Lucy, John Mayalls Blues Breakers, Taste, Climax Chicago Blues Band, and so on.

There were also some fantastic blues/rock bands during the 60′s from countries many people in North America would never suspect.
A couple of my favorites are the Dutch bands, ‘Cuby & the Blizzards’, and ‘Livin Blues’. Here’s a few songs…

Livin’ Blues –
Black Panther:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/0Z4UUmNl/livinblues_black_panther/

Hells Session:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/NsCQqKdy/livinblues_hells_session/

Bow Legged Woman:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/8B9t1Vn5/livinblues_bowlegged_women/

Big Back Train:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/ZhWR_-5v/livinblues_big_black_train/

Cuby and the Blizzards –
Checkin Up On My Baby:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/vgscvWFd/cuby_and_the_blizzards_checkinup_on_my_baby/

Trippin Thru a Midnight Blues:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/wEQJLX7-/cuby_and_the_blizzards_trippinthrua_midnight_blues/

Feel So Bad:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/VvIKEi5O/cuby_and_the_blizzards_feel_so_bad/

These are some recordings Cuby + Blizzards did with US blues great Eddie Boyd on piano and vocals –
Nuttin But Trouble:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/1T4q-mmM/cuby_and_the_blizzards_nuttinbut_trouble/

The Hammond Sings the Blues:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/Ysua0UFK/cuby_and_the_blizzards_the_hammond_sings_the_blues/

Swingin Boogie:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/ODPS34WU/cuby_and_the_blizzards_swinging_boogie/

Here’s a couple great Cuby videos…these guys were looked at as heroes late 60′s Holland:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl392aZaLNg

This is one of my favorite Canadian blues bands of the late 60′s, and IMO they were right up there with the best the UK had to offer during it’s 60′s blues boom.
As a matter of fact, their second album was recorded in England…sort of local hometown Toronto heroes…
McKenna Mendelson Mainline:

Beltmaker:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/NKePydPZ/mckenna_mendelson_mainline_beltmaker/

One Way Ticket:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/nExavREU/mckenna_mendelson_mainline_one_way_ticket/

She’s Alright:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/J0FjB9sb/mckenna_mendelson_mainline_shes_alright/

Think I’m Losing My Marbles:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/dA4iBHu1/mckenna_mendelson_mainline_think_im_losingmy_marbles/

Drive You:

http://www.imeem.com/people/iWsurYO/music/dT0dT5uC/mckenna_mendelson_mainline_drive_you/

There were many other great blues bands from other various parts of Europe, Australia, and Asia during this time also. I thought I’d share those two Dutch, and Canadian bands with you for now.

Great question!

*Edit – Wowwhatisthatthing…
Sometimes I’ll star a question, then come back and answer later when I have time.
I’m also a fan of Walter Trout…fantastic guitarist. Has was great while playing with Canned Heat back in the 80′s. You should check out his live DVD called ‘Relentless:The Concert’. It was filmed live at the Paradiso in Amsterdam a few years ago. It’s one of my favorite concert DVD’s:

http://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Concert-Walter-Trout-Radicals/dp/B0000D0YXC

Peavey V-type guitar and JSX amp

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