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*****

Woody Guthrie, Otis Redding, and John Coltrane each passed away in 1967. These three men virtually invented protest music, soul, and free jazz, respectively. Each brought a passion to his music that was almost (and sometimes was) religious in its fervor. And each are revered to this day. A thorough review of the year in music isn’t complete without mention of Dust Bowl Ballads, Otis Blue, and A Love Supreme, even though each those albums were made well before ’67.

If the door was open for new stars to emerge, there were plenty of talented artists waiting to bust through. Bands of every stripe were conjuring astonishing musical innovation, and this year saw the introduction of several artists who would leave indelible imprints on music, society, and popular culture. The Doors, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Fred Neil, The Velvet Underground, Moby Grape, Captain Beefheart, and Country Joe & The Fish all dropped fully realized, groundbreaking first albums. 1967 is the greatest year on record for debut albums – by a Country Joe mile.

The Monterey Pop Festival would introduce the concept that would spawn Woodstock, Altamont, Lollapalooza and more. BBC Radio One began rolling, as did a magazine called Rolling Stone, which pressed issue #1 in ’67. It's a year that will always be remembered for The Summer Of Love, but 1967 had many memorable, technicolor moments. Fortunately, the best of them are preserved in wax, ready to be conjured up at a moment's notice.

*****

The Top 20 Albums Of 1967

The Doors * The Doors & Strange Days

#1 In 1967, Jim Morrison saw a country filled with rubes and straight men and dove right in. Consequently, the Doors rode a rocketship to stardom; due to Morrison’s dark charisma as well as their unique sound. Part blues badass, part artsy fartsy, and part Rimbaud, The Doors was the perfect soundtrack for the so-called ‘Summer Of Love’. ‘Light My Fire’ and ‘Break On Through’ set the pulse of the times, and ‘The End’ lifted rock to the status of art, while setting Morrison’s agenda – ie: “I am a poet, and a shocking one at that.” This is the rare album where every song is as good as gold: ‘Back Door Man’ ‘Alabama Song’ ‘Take It As It Comes’ – a monumental achievement and a staggering debut.

Strange Days is nearly its equal. In addition to the midget, strongman, and acrobats on the cover, it boasts a nearly flawless set of songs, including the title track, ‘People Are Strange’, ‘When The Music Is Over’ ‘Love Me Two Times’ and ‘Moonlight Drive. The only real misstep is ‘Horse Latitudes’ – a preview of the pompous poetic posturing that Morrison would come to be known for. But taken together, the Doors’ self-titled debut and its follow up make up one of the most inventive and hit-filled years by any band in the history of rock and roll.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience * Are You Experienced?

#2 Quite simply the greatest debut album of all-time. This changed the way all guitarists approached their instrument. Suddenly it was less about chords and notes, and more an instrument to channel one’s soul. Jimi’s approach to feedback was also revolutionary. Before him, it was to be avoided at all costs – after him, it was a wave to be ridden by the boldest, bravest, and most skilled. Top it off with some of the finest songs ever written, and you have something that was – and is – truly incendiary.

There are the hits: ‘Purple Haze’, ‘Foxey Lady’, ‘Fire’, and ‘Hey Joe’. There are the astral freak-outs: ‘Third Stone From The Sun’, ‘Love Or Confusion’, ‘I Don’t Live Today’. There are the ballads: ‘The Wind Cries Mary’, ‘Manic Depression’. After years of backing acts like the Isley Brothers and Little Richard on the so-called Chitlin’ Circuit of smaller Southern clubs, Jimi had a wide variety of chops (and stunts like playing with his teeth and behind his back) that he was eager to show off. On his debut he used all of them to maximum effect.

If Jimi had been struck by lightning (or more likely, beamed away in a spaceship) after Are You Experienced?, his legacy would still loom nearly as large. That’s not to downplay his later, equally great work, but to point out that his meteoric talent was evident from the first notes of his first album. Every song here is a self-contained world - eleven magical places to be visited again and again, that never seem to lose even a bit of their brilliance or luster.

The Beatles * Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band & Magical Mystery Tour

#3 Sgt Pepper's was one of the great cultural sensations of its time. This album was played by every creature everywhere, of every gender, specie, and nationality, for months on end. It affected the way that musicians approached music ever after. No longer was the album to be a collection of singles, but a grand artistic statement. This influence was good/bad, as fidgety musicians realized the ante was upped and it was time to get serious. Some, like an already overwrought Brian Wilson, simply imploded from the pressure. Others met the challenge, and still many more took it as a cue to use the studio as a child would a package of finger paints (listen the The Stones’ Satanic Majesties Request for further evidence).

Musically, this is not the Beatles' best (my Mom’s gonna kill me for writing that) but there are great songs here (see Mom!) like ‘Within You Without You’ (introduced world music, sitar jams) ‘Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds’ (introduced psychedelia) ‘A Day In The Life’ (introduced dark songwriting, and paved the way for every band like Radiohead). For good and often bad, this is the single most influential album of all time.

Magical Mystery Tour only added incrementally to the Beatles’ legend. ‘I Am The Walrus’ is pure cryptic psychedelia, ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ is simply one of the greatest songs ever, and ‘Baby You’re A Rich Man’ was their bitchiest to song to that point. Overall it isn’t a great album (or even a very good one, by Beatles’ standards) but if it had any other band’s name on the cover it would be considered a drop dead classic of its era.

Fred Neil * Fred Neil

#4 Fred Neil’s self-titled solo debut is the greatest singer/songwriter album of all time. And yes, that includes Paul Simon, James Taylor, Neil Young, and any other heavyweight you care to mention. He sings like a man awakened from a not especially pleasant dream, but his voice is weighted perfectly for his bluesy folk songs. He brings forth the lines “I’ve got a secret that I shouldn’t tell/I’m gonna go to heaven in a split pea shell” like a man reciting his last earthly words. Album opener ‘Dolphins’ sounds like fanciful fantasizing, but it ended up being his mission statement: he retired from music in 1971 and hid himself away in South Florida, rarely heard from again.

Bob Dylan * John Wesley Harding

#5 It’s hard not to think that Dylan was almost openly mocking his audience by JWH. The liner notes alone send off the “if this shit is gibberish you wouldn’t be smart enough to know the difference” vibe that would come full bloom on Self-Portrait. ‘I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine’ is certainly the first hint of the religious bent that his late 70’s/early 80’s work would take. But two tracks rescue this album from oblivion – ‘All Along The Watchtower’ which is one of his best, and was covered/appropriated by Jimi Hendrix, and ‘Drifter’s Escape’ which (although less memorably covered by Hendrix) is a quintessential Dylan mix of apocalypse and apocrypha. Shredded by critics and fans alike on arrival, this album is hard to fathom, but far too good to ignore.

John Fahey * Days Have Gone By, Vol. 6 & Requia And Other Compositions…

#6 John Fahey crafted some of the most intense and original compositions of the 20th Century. Indeed, only within the last handful of years (and in the guises of M. Ward, Devendra Banhart, and others) has the true influence and lasting power of Fahey’s music become apparent. His songs spring up in the cracks at the intersection of folk and blues, and their innate melodic quality never fails to sustain you through every piece. His two albums in 1967 prove that even if Fahey was performing outside the bright lights of stardom, his songs – and his playing – were without peer.

Albert King * Born Under A Bad Sign

#7 One of the best blues albums of all time leads with a strong right hook – the title track is practically embedded in the genre’s DNA – and doesn’t let up from there. ‘Crosscut Saw’ ‘Kansas City’ and ‘The Hunter’ purr with sexual voracity, and King holds his own on even lightweight material like ‘Laundromat Blues’. As the original liner notes promise: “Albert King has the solution if you have the time to listen.”

Moby Grape * Moby Grape

#8 The Grateful Dead lasted longer, Big Brother and Jefferson Airplane had more star power, and Quicksilver Messenger Service had better musicians, but the greatest document of the late 60’s SF Sound was made by none other than Moby Grape. Beset by poor management, questionable promotion, and personnel issues, they never again approached the economical power of this sterling debut. Drummer Don Stevenson flips the bird from the original cover (it was airbrushed off subsequent printings) and the music inside flips the script on the psychedelic noodlings that have dated many of its contemporaries. Every song is concise and well written, and the album includes songwriting by all members of the band. In fact, even without all those problems, they’d have been hard pressed to match this effort.

Captain Beefheart * Safe As Milk

#9 Captain Beefheart’s debut album charted a course that his music would follow over the next 15 years. The original version of this album was rejected by A&M, forcing Beefheart (aka Don VanVliet) to reconfigure his band and cut the songs again. The new lineup featured Ry Cooder on slide guitar, as well as guitarist Antennae Jimmy Semens and drummer John “Drumbo” French, who would become mainstays of the Magic Band. While not nearly as far out as future Beefheart albums (Trout Mask Replica set the bar for weird just 2 years later) this twisted combination of Delta Blues, free jazz, and stream of conscience lyrics is unlike anything else released at the time, and tracks like ‘Sure Nuff-n-Yes I Do’ still sound out of this world 40 years later.

Love * Forever Changes

#10 Love lead singer Arthur Lee was a man at a crossroads in 1967. Haunted by apocalyptic visions and believing that the world was coming to an abrupt end, he was convinced that this would be his last album, and decided not to hold anything back. Forever Changes includes elements of jazz, folk, soul and psychedelia, and is a heady brew that is as difficult to pinpoint as it often is to enjoy. For all intents and purposes, Lee was correct – this was the last album by the group’s original lineup, and though Love would soldier on in various incarnations, they would never again approach the majestic madness that ripples through this album.

Velvet Underground & Nico * Velvet Underground & Nico

#11 Lou Reed’s journalistic eye. John Cale’s avant-cello. Niko’s heinous screech. Warhol’s big yellow banana. Listing ingredients only hints at the carnage. Nitroglycerin to the nicey-nice generation. Giving voice to crossdressers and junkies. Jaws gaped. People ignored it. Ignored this cover? Out of print as late as 1979. But all the right people were listening. Most influential LP of all time? A gosh darn golly gee whiz challenge of a listen.

Merle Haggard * I’m A Lonesome Fugitive & Branded Man

#12 Long before he helped establish the “Outlaw” wing of country music, Merle Haggard was just an outlaw. After spending time in a number in juvenile detention centers and prisons (including San Quentin, where he was in the audience for Johnny Cash’s legendary shows) Haggard decided to make a go of a music career after being literally pushed onstage. By the mid-60’s he was one of the biggest names in Country music, and at one point enjoyed a run of 37 straight top ten hits that included 23 Number Ones. Not coincidentally, this success came during a period when he was writing songs about his down and out days. I’m A Lonesome Fugitive and Branded Man are two of his very best, and most confessional, albums and back his standing as one of the finest songwriters in any genre.

Miles Davis * Sorcerer & Nefertiti

#13 By 1967, Miles Davis was a music machine. Improbable as it seems today, he put out at least two albums per year between 1965 and 1970 – that’s 14 albums in a 6-year span, if you’re counting at home. Even more amazingly, most of it was great music. Sorcerer features his wife, Cicely Tyson, on the cover – inside, his second quintet (different from the 5 piece that brought you Cookin’ With The Miles Davis Quintet, Workin’ With…, etc.) settles into sparse, polyrhythmic grooves that sound like traditional jazz while anticipating the atmospheric play of fusion. Davis, Wayne Shorter (tenor sax), Herbie Hancock (piano), Ron Carter (bass), and Tony Williams (drums) each take different routes to the same melody, intertwine for a bit, and then are off again. Nefertiti slows the formula down, and brings Miles into the forefront, making it the stronger of the pair. But both Sorcerer and Nefertiti are brilliant roadmaps to the future of jazz.

Aretha Franklin * I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You

#14 Atlantic head honcho Jerry Wexler assembled a remarkably badass band – including the Muscle Shoals rhythm section – to back Aretha on her debut for his label. And she rose to the challenge, creating one of the masterworks of her career. It hardly matters that only a few of the tunes were originals – she makes every song here her own. From ‘Respect’ to the title track to ‘Do Right Woman, Do Right Man’, I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You is a landmark soul album. Indeed, it was only after this that people would begin to call her “Queen Of Soul”.

Magic Sam * West Side Soul

#15 Sam Maghett made just two albums before succumbing to a heart attack in 1969 at age 32, but they were both brilliant. West Side Soul, his debut, explored the connections between soul music and the blues, and inadvertently created the blueprint for what modern blues would sound like. His music layered the passion of soul onto the stomp of Chicago blues - rendering songs like 'Sweet Home Chicago' 'That's All I Need' and 'All Your Love' into instant, Animal House-style party classics. It's a potent mixture that still sounds Magic to this day.

Cream * Disraeli Gears

#16 One of the first power trios (ie, guitar, bass & drums), and “supergroups” comprised of well-known members of other bands, Cream mixed a murky psychedelic blues sound with virtuoso playing and some of the most obtuse lyrics ever penned. Disraeli Gears, their second LP, broke big in the U.S. on the strength of singles ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ and ‘Strange Brew’. And while it’s often difficult to tell what these songs are about, this ambiguous haziness has helped the album retain its power through several decades. More importantly, Cream was the vehicle that delivered Clapton to the door of superstardom. One listen to this proves that the journey was fait accompli for EC.

Country Joe & The Fish * Electric Music For The Mind & Body

#17 Electric Music For The Mind & Body is an undeniably great album and a surprisingly fun ride. Imagine hitchhiking, getting picked up by the weirdest old hippie who wants to talk your ear off, and then discovering that each and every one of his stories are riveting, filled with interesting characters, and totally different from anything you’ve heard before. Country Joe is the driver, and this is definitely a trip worth taking.

The Rolling Stones * Between The Buttons

#18 During 1967, the Stones enjoyed the trappings of living as superstars and millionaires in swinging London, and Between The Buttons reflects their funhouse mirror reality. From ‘Please Go Home’ to ‘All Sold Out’ to ‘Complicated’ the songs (down to their titles) read like a manual for a band trying to cope with groupies, hangers on, and the nastiest wench of all, success. The last singles-oriented album the Stones produced, this represents a key transition from their earlier, R&B influenced sound to the dirty blues rock that people still associate with the group. It’s not their best, but it’s at least 2000 light years from their worst.

Bonzo Dog Doodah Band * Gorilla

#19 Sometimes it is hip to be square. The Bonzos – and their jolly-good British humor – are so far removed from the Internet age that they sound positively fresh. This rip-roaring slapdash adventure includes hairy monsters, Adolph Hitler on vibes, and an ‘Old MacDonald’ meets Warner Brothers tune called ‘Jollity Farm’. Gorilla wouldn’t go over big in America, but it influenced another band of misfits who would, by the name of Monty Python.

Buffalo Springfield * Buffalo Springfield Again

#20 Steven Stills and Neil Young’s first shot at stardom sounds pretty good in retrospect. In fact, Buffalo Springfield has aged quite a big better than CSN and CSNY’s contemporary 70’s folk rock sound. Buffalo Springfield Again was recorded chaotically by ever shifting groupings of the band’s members. But because of this fragmented approach, it brings together symphonic folk (‘Expecting To Fly’), country pop (‘Bluebird’), singer/songwriter ballads (‘Hung Upside Down’), and perhaps Neil’s only overt attempt at writing a hit single (‘Mr. Soul’). The band would be short-lived, but they still cast a long shadow.

*****

And 10 runners-up…

The Byrds * Younger Than Yesterday
Traffic * Mr. Fantasy
Arlo Guthrie * Alice’s Restaurant
Van Morrison * Blowin’ Your Mind
West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band * Part One
Count Five * Psychotic Reaction
The Kinks * Something Else
Duke Ellington * Far East Suite
The Creation * We Are Paintermen
Frank Sinatra * Francis Albert Sinatra & Carlos Antonio Jobim

*****

Bummers, man…

Rolling Stones * Their Satanic Majesties Request
Jefferson Airplane * After Bathing At Baxter’s
The Mothers Of Invention * Absolutely Free
Fifth Dimension * Up, Up And Away
Elvis Presley * Clambake

*****

9 Things That Happened In 1967

Burning Desire – On March 31st at The Astoria in London, Jimi Hendrix sets fire to his guitar for the first time.

Day Trippers – Paul McCartney announces that all the Beatles have dropped acid – even sweet, lovable Ringo.

Stop Smiling – On May 2nd, Capitol Records shuts down the long overdue Beach Boys album Smile, due to Brian Wilson’s declining mental state.

Hippies Unite – The Monterey Pop Festival is held from June 16th – 18th, inventing the rock festival as we know – and often loathe – it.

The King Is Wed – Elvis Presley marries Priscilla Beaulieu at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas.

Ed Is Red – The Doors perform on the Ed Sullivan show, refuse to change the lyrics of ‘Light My Fire’ and are banned from future performances on the show.

Otis Blues – Otis Redding dies in a plane crash a mere two days after recording ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay’.

Bring Protection – In spite of a lot of evidence to the contrary, the summer of 1967 is anointed ‘The Summer Of Love’ by San Francisco hippies.

All Aboard – Rolling Stone Magazine and BBC Radio One open for business.

Robert Johnson – King Of The Delta Blues Singers

#1 – It’s hard to overstate the importance of Robert Johnson’s influence on the sound of modern music. His ghostly wail and precise finger picking style, combined with tales of hellhounds and cheating women, set the bar for what a blues singer should sound like (and, since rock was born out of the blues… well, you connect the dots). And his personal background is one of the most interesting and hotly debated stories in the history of music. An oft-told tale has Johnson meeting the Devil at the crossroads and trading his soul for the musical skills that would make him a legend.

But the songs are the real story here: ‘Sweet Home Chicago’, ‘I’m A Steady Rollin’ Man’, ‘Ramblin’ On My Mind’, ‘Stop Breakin’ Down Blues’, ‘They’re Red Hot’ and ‘Love In Vain Blues’ – along with nearly everything else he recorded in his short life – would go on to become standards, and have been covered by everyone from Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones to The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Eric Clapton. Johnson’s influence was particularly rampant during the mid-to-late 1960’s when many young rockers (including Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, and Clapton) turned to him for inspiration as well as material. And while Johnson had a deep influence on the British blues, his hold on musicians continues into the 21st century in the songs of the White Stripes and others. As long as music is being made, Robert Johnson’s influence will continue to resonate.

Howlin’ Wolf – The Chess Box

#2 – Howlin’ Wolf (aka Chester Burnett) is, as the Blues Hound says "a singer/persona whose ferocity has never been equaled and rarely even approached." He stood 6 feet 6 inches tall and tipped the scales at more than 300 pounds and his personality filled every iota of that frame. The guy just rips. “I just be in the field plowing and songs come to me you know…” he says on one of the spoken word segments here. Wolf sowed a number of blues masterpieces for Chicago’s Chess Records, including ‘Smokestack Lightnin’ ‘Back Door Man’ ‘Spoonful’ ‘Killing Floor’ and ‘300 Pounds Of Joy’. These songs – covered by early rock luminaries such as the Grateful Dead, The Doors, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix – represent just the beginning of this treasure trove. For proof that absolute musical intensity doesn’t require ear shredding decibels or quicksilver guitar work, fire up Howlin’ Wolf’s epic Chess Box.

Leadbelly – King Of The 12-String Guitar

#3 – Huddie Leadbetter, aka Leadbelly, had a voice as smooth as good liquor, and twice as dangerous. He didn’t mind telling it like it was, and his man-in-the-streets style made him something of a gangsta rapper before his time. Indeed, legendary Library Of Congress field recorder Alan Lomax discovered and first recorded Leadbelly while that latter was serving time in the notorious Parchman Farm Penitentiary for attempted murder. A multi-talented instrumentalist, he specialized in 12-string guitar. All of Leadbelly’s music transcends the Blues – it is music of the highest order. The songs that Leadbelly performed in his lifetime have been covered by an incredibly wide array of performers, including Pete Seeger, The Rolling Stones, Nirvana, and Van Morrison.

Billie Holiday – Songs For Distingue Lovers

#4 – To her core, Lady Day was a blues singer. A life filled with hard living, hard relationships, and hard drugs gave her first hand insight into what constituted the blues – and ultimately led to her early grave. But none of that should overshadow her accomplishments as a singer. In terms of vocal phrasing, Holiday stands as one of the finest singers of the 20th century – along with Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles and Marvin Gaye. Like those artists, her voice seems to come from within in the song, and any tune she put it to is instantly hers.

She sings like a woman whose heart was recently removed by way of her throat, so it wouldn’t matter if she were backed by Xavier Cugat or Carl Stalling – Billie Holiday always sang the blues. Here, she’s backed by Jimmy Rowles, Ben Webster and Barney Kessel, among other jazz musicians, but her voice epitomizes unendurable pain, endless struggle, and utter hopelessness. Songs For Distingue Lovers is as good a place as any to begin discovering the genius of Billie Holiday. Taking perversely happy songs and lending them her distinct touch, she turns tales of happiness and found love into gut wrenching takes on anguish and loss. Pure and bitter genius.

Mississippi John Hurt – 1928 Sessions

#5 – Mississippi John Hurt’s story reads like a blues fairy tale. A farm laborer from Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt recorded a number of sides in 1928 for the Okeh label. But the great depression effectively ended his recording career before it gained any traction, and he returned to Avalon to resume working as a laborer. In 1963, record collector Tom Hoskins pieced together clues from Hurt’s songs, found him in Avalon, and convinced him to resume his music career. Hurt was instantly recognized as a lost genius, and began a healthy touring and recording schedule, releasing three albums and playing to coffeehouses across the country. Alas, his re-found fame was cut short when he passed away in 1966. 1928 Sessions captures Hurt in his young glory before he went into deep freeze. His finger picking is absolutely unparalleled in the history of Blues music – just listen to ‘Frankie’ for evidence. A mellow, soulful singer, Hurt’s laid back style makes him instantly recognizable and thoroughly enjoyable.

Bessie Smith – The Complete Recordings, Vol. 1

#6 – The “Empress Of The Blues” possessed a voice powerful enough to cut through the hiss and scratch of primitive recordings and leap across the chasm of time. No other singer from the 1910’s & 20’s still sounds as fresh, vital, and imposing as Bessie Smith. She was one of the first stars of recorded music, and it wasn’t uncommon for her more popular sides to sell nearly a million copies. The majority of her songs were recorded before 1929, when the Great Depression essentially put the recording industry out of business.

The Complete Recordings, Vol. 1 is the first set in a series that collects all of her recorded work on 5 two-disc sets. The music here was recorded between February 1923 and April 1924 and features her mostly just accompanied by piano. From ‘Downhearted Blues’ all the way through to ‘Hateful Blues’ Smith’s voice is equal parts iron and velvet, and she sings like a woman who would – and has – spit in the face of the devil himself.

Before she died in 1937 – at age 43, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident – she laid a foundation of blues songs that have influenced generations of female singers, including Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin, & Norah Jones. But there’s only one Bessie Smith, and she’s right here, waiting to reach out across nearly 100 years’ time and tell you just how it is.

Reverend Gary Davis – Harlem Street Singer

#7 – Davis was born partially blind and lost his sight completely before he reached adulthood. He turned to the church in part to cope with this burden, and in 1933 was ordained as a Baptist minister. In the late 50’s he found favor with the secular folk crowd, and began to have an influence on players of that era including Dave Van Ronk, Bob Dylan, and eventually, Jerry Garcia. His picking style was born out of a badly broken and poorly set left wrist that forced him to finger his notes at an odd angle. But his vocal intensity was no accident – Davis sang with a fire that matched the brimstone in his songs. Harlem Street Singer displays the eclectic mix of song styles – ragtime, marches, gospel, field songs, and more – that he brought together through his incomparable voice and singular style.

Big Bill Broonzy – Trouble In Mind

#8 – Though not as often-referenced as other blues giants, Broonzy was a pioneering artist and influence on many of the men whose shadows he would come to stand in. Trouble In Mind is an excellent collection of singles he recorded during the 30’s for labels such as Vocalion, Columbia, and ARC, and it’s an excellent place to delve into his work. Broonzy brought a well-developed sense of humor to a genre that could have used more of it. But only someone with his slick genius could consistently put a smile on your face while singing the genuine blues.

Skip James – The Complete Early Recordings Of Skip James - 1930

#9 – Early Recordings is one of the scariest albums ever recorded in any genre, under any circumstances. James’ unearthly wail is the sound of a tormented spirit corkscrewing away from its earthly body. When he sings “Jesus is coming to this world again/Coming to judge the hearts of men“, he sounds like a leering devil who sees all your sins and gleefully knows how you’ll be judged. The quality of these recordings is terrible, but the sheets of hiss and scratch sound like black rain and actually add to the overall creepy effect. Refreshingly spared the digital sanitization that almost every other reissue of the compact disc era has undergone, this is a hair-raising journey down the darkest side street of the Blues.

Albert King – Born Under A Bad Sign

#10 – "He can take four notes and write a volume," guitarist Mike Bloomfield once said of Albert King. His minimalist blues styling is in a perfect setting here, backed by the Memphis Horns, Booker T. & The MG’s, and many other Stax/Volt luminaries. More a collection of singles than a proper album, Born Under A Bad Sign influenced a who’s who of rock, including Clapton, Hendrix, Peter Green, and others. More importantly, it fused soul, R&B and the Blues into a stout mixture that would reinvigorate interest in a sagging genre and ensure that King would be forever (and rightly) known as a Blues legend and one of the most influential musicians of all-time.

Mance Lipscomb – Texas Sharecropper & Songster

#11 – Beau De Glen Lipscomb’s nickname was short for “emancipation” but he sang like a man welded permanently to the chain gang. His acoustic Texas blues style didn’t find an audience until the 1960’s – by which time Lipscomb had been performing for nearly 30 years – but he was still quite prolific, recording nearly 90 original songs before passing away in 1976. Texas Sharecropper And Songster compiles the better part of two of his early-60’s albums for the Arhoolie label, and it’s an excellent introduction to one of the most gifted and original voices to sing the Blues.

John Lee Hooker – Alternative Boogie: Early Studio Recordings 1948 – 1952

#12 – Start with the voice: a slow drawl that’s as thick and sweet as molasses. Then there’s the backbeat: driving things along at a casual but insistent rate – like a ‘57 Chevy cruising down smooth, freshly-laid blacktop. The combination would carry Hooker to a magnificent career that spanned nearly 60 years and see him cross over to rock audiences time and again in ways that must have left his contemporaries wondering and envious. This collection contains early, alternate versions of songs that Hooker would go on to re-record, and it’s an impeccable look at the formative years of a Blues genius. To hear a fine slice of the other (funk/rock) side of Hooker, be sure to check out 1974’s excellent and underrated Free Beer And Chicken.

Lonnie Johnson – The Complete Folkways Recordings

#13 – Lonnie Johnson is the Velvet Underground of the blues. A bluesman’s bluesman, his wide-ranging influence sits in inverse proportion to his meager popularity. Luminaries such as Robert Johnson and Bob Dylan have cribbed from his phrasing, picking, and knife-edge vocals. After Mississippi John Hurt, Johnson is the most laid back singer on this list, but he still sounds like a man singing like his life depended on it.

Muddy Waters – At Newport 1960

#14 – At the 1960 Newport Folk Festival, Muddy Waters wasn’t yet a Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame inductee or Chicago Blues titan – he was simply a man with a band trying to impress a whole bunch of white people. This soulful yet blistering set did the trick, and then some – igniting interest in electric blues and sending Waters on his way to all those accolades. “Put A Tiger In Your Tank” is a perfect example of the barely restrained ferocity that marks the whole set. The band featured Otis Spann on piano and James Cotton on harmonica, and they provide the underpinning for Waters’ smooth growl. Muddy made many exceptional albums throughout his career, but none surpass the locomotive chug of At Newport 1960.

Blind Willie McTell – The Definitive Blind Willie McTell

#15 – “Nobody can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell” sang Bob Dylan in his song named and written for this blues titan. Virtually ignored in his lifetime, McTell wrote songs like ‘Three Women Blues’ – “one for the morning/one for late at night/I got one for noon time/to treat your old daddy right” that sound like a cross between Luther Campbell and Robert Johnson. That is, impeccably sung tales of love, lust and betrayal. And – like virtually every other name on this list – McTell has a long list of disciples (including Taj Mahal, Nirvana, Dylan, and White Stripes) and sings like he’s haunted by the very hounds of hell.

Bo Diddley – Bo Diddley Is A Gunslinger

#16 – Of all the great blues artists, Bo Diddley most directly influenced the formation of rock-n-roll from the blues. His hits – including ‘I’m A Man’ and ‘Who Do You Love’ – contained a propulsive beat that foreshadowed the sound of rock, and not surprisingly, dozens of rock greats have covered his songs. His trademark square-bodied guitar (and matching glasses) makes Diddley an instantly recognizable figure. In fact, he’s been recognized by nearly every hall of fame that’s associated with music. And who could forget his classic ‘Bo Knows’ Nike commercial with Bo Jackson? Still going strong after 50 years in music, he recently headlined a concert fundraiser to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

R.L. Burnside – Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down

#17 – The most recently made album on this list by 32 years (Albert King’s Born Under A Bad Sign was made in 1968), Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down is nonetheless the real deal. Fat Possum Records has carried the blues torch proudly into the 21st century, and R.L. Burnside was perhaps the label’s most exciting artist until his death in late 2005. He puts on a fierce display of blues virtuosity here – melding Muddy Waters electrified intensity with Howlin’ Wolf’s larger than life presence, Skip James’ deathbed dread, and a healthy dose of modern effects like scratching and sampling. ‘Hard Time Killin’ Floor Blues’ ‘Got Messed Up’ ‘Chain Of Fools’ and others prove that – even if Burnside is no longer with us – grimy, honest blues are alive & well.

Magic Sam – West Side Soul

#18 – Mississippi-Delta born Sam Maghett died in 1969 at the age of 32, and before he had a chance to establish himself as a great bluesman. Now considered the undisputed king of Chicago West Side Blues, his recorded legacy boils down to two great albums, West Side Soul and 1968’s Black Magic. Like Robert Johnson before him, Magic Sam left a towering if abbreviated take on the blues that continues to thrill listeners and influence musicians of every persuasion.

Jimmy Reed – Blues Masters: The Very Best Of

#19 – Covered by a wide range of artists including The Yardbirds, Neil Young, Elvis Presley, and the Grateful Dead, Reed is one of the most influential musicians to ever pick up a guitar. The quality and thoroughness of this compilation is as much a tribute to the excellent work of Rhino records as it is to Reed himself. Too many blues greats are undermined by shoddy and inferior ‘greatest hits’ packages that have more holes than a rack of bowling balls, but The Very Best Of Jimmy Reed hits all the high points, and there are plenty. Reed died at age 50 in 1976 from complications related to alcoholism, but his place in music history (not to mention his plaque in the Rock & Roll hall of fame) had been long ago secured.

Lightnin’ Hopkins – The Complete Prestige/Bluesville Recordings (Box Set)

#20 – Texan Sam ‘Lightnin’ Hopkins strayed beyond the usual blues topics (bad women, tough times, hard liquor, etc) and reported on the happenings of his day, including aerospace travel, the wars in Vietnam and Korea, and natural disasters of all shapes and sizes. Worth the splurge, this seven disc box collects 12 of his albums from the 1960’s. Considering that he recorded more than 50 albums in a nearly 40-year recording career, this is a great way to start getting acquainted with a Blues legend.

Other Shades Of Blue…

Bukka White – The Complete Bukka White
Buddy Guy & Junior Wells – Buddy Guy & Junior Wells Play The Blues
Tommy Johnson – Canned Heat (1928-1929)
Arthur ‘Big Boy’ Crudup – That’s All Right Mama
Elmore James – Shake Your Moneymaker: The Best Of The Fire Sessions
Charley Patton – Pony Blues
Otis Rush – Cobra Recordings: 1956-1958
Clarence ‘Gatemouth’ Brown – Original Peacock Recordings
Sonny Boy Williamson [II] – One Way Out
Pink Anderson – Ballad And Folksinger - Vol. 3
Etta James – The Chess Box
Furry Lewis – Shake ‘Em On Down
Willie Dixon – I Am The Blues
Lightnin’ Slim – Rooster Blues
Albert Collins, Robert Cray & Johnny Copeland – Showdown!
Son House – Father Of The Delta Blues: The Complete 1965 Recordings
Memphis Minnie – The Essential Memphis Minnie
T-Bone Walker – The Complete Imperial Recordings: 1950-1954
Smoky Babe – Hottest Brand Goin’

6 More Greats That Didn’t Quite Fit…

Ray Charles

John Fahey

John Mayall

Roy Buchanan

Ali Farka Toure

Taj Mahal

10 From The Next Generation(s)…

Jimi Hendrix
The Allman Brothers Band
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Steve Miller Band
JJ Cale
Terry Reid
Santana
White Stripes
Black Keys
British Blues (Bluesbreakers, Yardbirds, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, Rolling Stones, Faces, Led Zeppelin, Pretty Things, Downliners Sect, Kinks, etc)

Great Blues Compilations

Martin Scorcese Presents The Blues (Box Set)
Chess Blues (Box Set)
The Great Bluesmen (Vanguard)
Anthology Of American Folk Music (Box Set)