Cadillac Daddy: Memphis Recordings, 1952
Artist: Howlin' Wolf

You can't possibly fault the material aboard this 12-song collection of Howlin' Wolf's Memphis recordings cut for Sam Phillips. The title track features some truly frightening guitar work from Willie Johnson,and all the material here is loaded with feral energy and a sense that it could fall apart at any second. It's totally intuitive music,... Read More

Clownin' with the World
Artist: Sonny Boy Williamson [II]

Wonderful CD from the vaults of Trumpet Records. Features unissued Sonny Boy Williamson sides and great tracks by his piano playin' buddy, Willie Love. ~ AMG, All Music Guide Read More

Trouble No More: Singles (1955-1959)
Artist: Muddy Waters

This is an excellent compilation of some of Muddy Waters's lesser-anthologized singles, all of them dating from the late '50s. Some of these were surprisingly hard to acquire in any form until this appeared; the original version of "Got My Mojo Working," and for instance, as well as some of his higher-profile tracks, like "Rock Me,"... Read More

Snooky
Artist: Snooky Pryor

An outstanding comeback effort by Chicago harp pioneer Snooky Pryor, whose timeless sound meshed well with a Windy City trio led by producer/guitarist Steve Freund for this set. Mostly Pryor's own stuff -- "Why You Want to Do Me like That," "That's the Way To Do It," "Cheatin' and Lyin'" -- with his fat-toned harp weathering the decades quite... Read More

The Magic Sam Legacy
Artist: Magic Sam

The 13 tracks on Magic Sam Legacy (1997) are culled from material initially discarded from his two Delmark studio LPs West Side Soul (1967) and Black Magic (1968). The principal caveat being the John Lee Hooker inspired "I Feel So Good" -- liberally copping Hooker's "Boogie Chillun" -- and the spirited instrumental "Lookin' Good," both of which... Read More

The Best of Little Walter, Vol. 2
Artist: Little Walter

This ten-song budget compilation continues the overview of Walter's enormous output for the Chess label. For rock fans, the most familiar track on here is the original version of "Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights)." But there's more where that came from, including the smoking uptempo "It Ain't Right," the blistering instrumental "Boogie," and the... Read More

Memphis Days: Definitive Edition, Vol. 1
Artist: Howlin' Wolf

These are Wolf's earliest and rarest sides recorded at the Sun studios, as raw and explosive as blues records come. Much of this was issued on various European albums during the '70s, always transferred off of muffled-sounding copy tapes. These 21 tracks (all but two of them off the master tapes) feature the amp-on-11 guitar work of Willie... Read More