Blues 278 Items

The best of the Alive sessions. Featuring members of GravelRoad, Moreland & Arbuckle, Soledad Brothers and Outrageous Cherry.

I Be Trying might be the title of the new record from two-time Grammy nominee Cedric Burnside, but it's also a mission statement in an era when plenty of us have discovered what "the blues" really means. Recorded over three days at Royal Studios in Memphis (the home studio of Al Green and Hi Records in the 60s and 70s), this album is the ultimate statement of purpose for a critically acclaimed artist who has proudly carried the mantle of Mississippi Hill Country blues around the world. Over thirteen tracks, Burnside delivers his bruised but unfettered truth over blistering guitar and deep pocket drums-a sound birthed in his soul but developed and perfected on the road. But no matter how far he travels, the righteous sound he makes could only come from one place. I Be Trying is the sound of modern Mississippi. Produced by second-generation Memphis soul trailblazer Boo Mitchell ("Uptown Funk") and featuring guest appearances from Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars) and Zac Cockrell (Brittany Howard), I Be Trying takes the sound that Burnside learned from his grandfather, blues legend R.L. Burnside, and reinterprets it into a modern, bold Black American sound that expands the sonic landscape while respecting and honoring its roots.

Daptone Records is honored to announce the release of Innov Gnawa's forthcoming full length, Lila. Hailing from Morocco, but based in NYC, Innov Gnawa have been making waves locally and abroad with their hypnotic live shows - which is why producer, Bosco Mann invited the group to come record at the Legendary Daptone House of Soul. Gnawa is a music and spiritual tradition rooted in Morocco and dates back many centuries. Over the years, the liberated slaves of Northern and Western Africa integrated their musical rhythms and religious beliefs into the culture of Morocco creating a unique style of music and dance called Gnawa. It's not religious music, but rather music and rhythms that promote healing through trance and spirituality. The infectious rhythms of Gnawa songs are invocations for saints and spirits of freedom and liberation.

Gnawa groups consist of a Ma'Alem, or master, who plays the Guembri(or Sintir) - an ancient three stringed bass that later evolved into the modern day banjo, accompanied by a brotherhood of musicians playing the karkabas, which are metal castanets, representing the shackles and chains of slaves. The title of this album, Lila, literally means Night, and is a traditional Gnawa ceremony in which the Ma'Alem and his karkaba ensemble dedicate an evening of healing through music. A traditional Lila has many parts with a very extensive repertoire, and can last anywhere from a few hours to few days, and even weeks in some cases. The hypnotic poly-rhythms, along with incense and ceremonial ambiance induces states of trance in the musicians and guests. This all night rhythm fest is a spiritual ritual that cleanses the body, mind and spirit. It would be impossible to capture an entire Lila on on LP, but what Innov Gnawa delivers is a concise glimpse into this ancient Moroccan tradition. We invite you to immerse yourself into Lila. Experience freedom, liberation and the power of healing through music. You are not alive if this music doesn't move you.

Daptone Records is honored to announce the release of Innov Gnawa's forthcoming full length, Lila. Hailing from Morocco, but based in NYC, Innov Gnawa have been making waves locally and abroad with their hypnotic live shows - which is why producer, Bosco Mann invited the group to come record at the Legendary Daptone House of Soul. Gnawa is a music and spiritual tradition rooted in Morocco and dates back many centuries. Over the years, the liberated slaves of Northern and Western Africa integrated their musical rhythms and religious beliefs into the culture of Morocco creating a unique style of music and dance called Gnawa. It's not religious music, but rather music and rhythms that promote healing through trance and spirituality. The infectious rhythms of Gnawa songs are invocations for saints and spirits of freedom and liberation.

Gnawa groups consist of a Ma'Alem, or master, who plays the Guembri(or Sintir) - an ancient three stringed bass that later evolved into the modern day banjo, accompanied by a brotherhood of musicians playing the karkabas, which are metal castanets, representing the shackles and chains of slaves. The title of this album, Lila, literally means Night, and is a traditional Gnawa ceremony in which the Ma'Alem and his karkaba ensemble dedicate an evening of healing through music. A traditional Lila has many parts with a very extensive repertoire, and can last anywhere from a few hours to few days, and even weeks in some cases. The hypnotic poly-rhythms, along with incense and ceremonial ambiance induces states of trance in the musicians and guests. This all night rhythm fest is a spiritual ritual that cleanses the body, mind and spirit. It would be impossible to capture an entire Lila on on LP, but what Innov Gnawa delivers is a concise glimpse into this ancient Moroccan tradition. We invite you to immerse yourself into Lila. Experience freedom, liberation and the power of healing through music. You are not alive if this music doesn't move you.

a spontanious outburst of energy after the first lockdown resulted in this 6th album from Tiny Legs Timrepress on black vinyl

Everything is mysterious! This is the second full-length from Japanese talented artist "Kensuke Ide and his mother ship" which was acclaimed by listeners as the one of the best albums in 2020. P-vine is presenting it as the long-awaited LP version! Is the innovative sound that will surprise all listeners the madness of Devil or Taoyuan Township? No, that's exactly the "mystery of 2020" !

Having noticed that Christmas tends to be an annual event and that vinyl is suffering a resurgence, we here at Ace have put the two together and extracted 14 blues, R&B and doo wop sides from our Christmas R&B compact disc and turned them into a seasonal platter.

A mostly upbeat selection that will certainly help you and yours get through these fraught times.

Blues stars like B.B. King and Lowell Fulsom, with their ripping up-beat guitars join forces with the mellower mistletoe sounds of Hadda Brooks and Jesse Belvin.

This positive view of seasonal goodwill was probably down to the fact that all these sides were cut in Los Angeles in the warm California sun.

One of the earliest blues performers of the pre-war era, and an offspring of a family of freed slaves, Henry "Ragtime Texas" Thomas was one of the most influential, but also one of the most enigmatic practitioners of the blues genre. Much of Thomas' life was un-chronicled by historians (The exact date of his death is still a point of contention) except to say that much of his life he lived as a drifter, making his living by performing on street corners and for railway employees. Though his personal life is still shrouded in mystery, his music remains significant, so many decades later. Thomas stood out from his peers primarily by the way he strummed his guitar; as one would strum a banjo. His songs emphasized dance rhythm over complex picking, and often utilized instruments unorthodox to blues music, such as the Deep South folk instrument the quills. This sound proved to be instrumental in the development of the Texas blues sound, and would be his trademark across the 24 sides that he recorded for Vocalion Records, of which only 23 would be released commercially.

Ivory Coast isn’t known for country music. But Jess Sah Bi & Peter One’s 1985 recording Our Garden Needs Its Flowers, a massive-selling regional hit, brought a burgeoning interest in folk and Americana into the mainstream and carried two young men to international prominence, culminating in stadium-filling concerts and performances for the first lady of Cote d’Ivoire and dignitaries.

The album was made following a chance introduction via Jess’s nephew, who heard Peter playing for fun around his university dormitory. At the time, Jess Sah Bi (Die Sah Bi) was Ivory Coast’s first political cartoonist, having already published in dozens of magazines and newspapers across West Africa and France. Meanwhile Peter One (Pierre-Evrard Tra) was a university student and soon-to-be high school history teacher. Both musicians had spent time singing and playing guitar and composing songs on their own until they came together to record their independently-released opus.

The music contrasted starkly with the popular sounds of the time, ranging from fast-paced regional dance music genres to ziglibithy to soukous to straight-up funk played by Abidjan’s plethora of bands. Country music and folk-rock weren’t very popular with the general public. But interest was bubbling up within the growing student population, who connected with the protest sentiments expressed by many English and American artists of the era. “It’s very nice music, with very nice harmonies, and it’s different from what you hear every day,” Peter says. “The language was a big barrier though. You had to learn English to understand the songs, and the students were the ones learning English.” Having access to education along with their awareness of social and political inequality and injustice made students the perfect audience for folk music in Ivory Coast.

Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton and Don Williams’ music could be heard on some radio programs around Ivory Coast’s major cities, and some younger people were getting hip to Simon & Garfunkel, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Cat Stevens and Crosby Stills & Nash. The stage was set for Jess Sah Bi & Peter One’s homegrown country music to make a mark on Ivorians’ consciousness. Complete with slide guitar, soaring vocals and anthemic, politically-conscious lyrics in three languages, the recording became ubiquitous across French-speaking West Africa. “We expected the album to be a big success, but we could not have imagined how far it would go,” Peter says.

After Our Garden Needs Its Flowers release, Jess and Peter’s profile lifted rapidly, leading to stadium performances in Togo, Burkina Faso and elsewhere. Their ascent was accompanied by critical acclaim from the local press and television programs, appearances at galas organized by Marie-Thérèse Houphouët-Boigny, the wife of the late Félix Houphouët-Boigny, the first president of the Ivory Coast and even a performance during the 1988 ECOWAS (Economic Coalition of West African States) summit in Yamoussoukro at President Houphouët-Boigny’s request. Jess and Peter’s run lasted until the early 1990s, capped off with the BBC using their song African Chant as theme music the day Nelson Mandela was released from prison.

Jess and Peter now live in San Francisco and Nashville, respectively, and continue to make music on their own. Plans for shows reuniting the duo are in the works for later this year.

Limited edition for Record Store Day 2018!

Harmonica Frank recorded these tracks for Sun Records in the early '50s! It's definitely blues at the core, but which also has links to Appalachian music.

The 45rpm Analogue Productions reissue of Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Texas Flood" is so good, as are its 45rpm companions — "Couldn't Stand The Weather" and "Soul To Soul" — that they truly represent what Gregg Geller, producer and A&R representative described as »the best replication of the master tapes to date«.
We've already brought you the 33 1/3rpm box set "Texas Hurricane" featuring the greatest Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute ever reissued — six of Vaughan's most classic album titles remastered for ultimate blues and guitar fanatics. We've now taken the extra step and done 45rpm versions of these three standout LPs.
We've used the original 30 inches-per-second, half-inch analog master tapes for all of these albums. Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound cut the lacquers for the LPs using the ultimate VMS 80 cutting lathe. Gary Salstrom handled the plating and the vinyl was pressed of course at our Quality Record Pressings, maker of the world's finest-sounding LPs.
Stevie Ray Vaughan's 1983 debut album, "Texas Flood", was a phenomenal success, climbing into the Top 40 and spending over half a year on the charts, which was practically unheard of for a blues recording. The record plays like a dynamite club show, filled with crowd-pleasing originals and covers, all performed with unbridled enthusiasm. "Texas Flood" was certified gold on August 13, 1990, and certified platinum on January 22, 1992.
There's not a link in this production chain that wasn't absolute first-rate. The absolute best that money can buy.
But beyond that we've poured our passion into this project. Acoustic Sounds is a big fan of the blues and Stevie Ray Vaughan. It's a big dream come true to work on this project and to make these records sound and look the best they ever have.

Two ecellent country-blues rockers from 1942 pressed with 78rpm labels on a solid center for that authentic feel. Nice job!

Over 50 years since his discovery by ethnomusicologists Dr. Harry Oster and Richard Allen in the prison farm of Angola, Louisiana, what is it that makes the blues as sung and picked by Robert Pete Williams such a singular listening experience, unequaled elsewhere in that musical form? As Peter Guralnick, in his Feel Like Going Home book writes: “It’s difficult to approve the banalities of most blues singers after listening to Robert Pete Williams. More than anyone else he shatters the conventions of the form and refuses to rely upon any of the clichés, either of music or of lyric, which bluesman after bluesman will invoke. Instead he sings blues which reflect a unique and personal vision; he makes each song unmistakably his own.” Unfamiliar keys, cliché-free lyricism, spontaneity, an individualistic style in invoking his particular blues, all make Robert Pete Williams an idiosyncratic entry into the canon. It’s impossible to listen to blues artists before him and hear strains of his particular style. None have matched it since. Louisiana Blues contains 10 songs recorded in the month of July 1966 out in Berkeley, California for John Fahey’s Takoma imprint. Comes with a 8 page booklet. Limited edition of 600 on bottleneck brown vinyl.

This is Eric Clapton's 23rd Studio album for which he teamed up with star-producer Glyn Johns once more.

Mississippi's Son House was already legendary for a small collection of live field recordings made by folklorist Alan Lomax in 1941 and 1942, and for having taught some important licks to both Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters before he was rediscovered by a new generation of college-age fans in 1964.
The 'Father of the Delta Blues' recorded this namesake LP for Columbia Records a year later in 1965. It's become, in the words of Living Blues magazine — »Essential recordings by one of the greatest bluesmen ever.« And now, Analogue Productions presents a reissue unmatched in sonic quality and luxury presentation. For our version we turned to Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound to remaster the recording from the original master tapes. The freshly cut lacquers were then plated and pressed on 200-gram vinyl by our own Quality Record Pressings.
Son was born Eddie James House, Jr., on March 21, 1902, in Riverton, Miss. By the age of 15, he was preaching the gospel in various Baptist churches as the family seemingly wandered from one plantation to the next. He didn't even bother picking up a guitar until he turned 25; to quote House, »I didn't like no guitar when I first heard it; oh gee, I couldn't stand a guy playin' a guitar. I didn't like none of it.« But if his ambivalence to the instrument was obvious, even more obvious was the simple fact that Son hated plantation labor even more and had developed a taste for corn whiskey. After drunkenly launching into a blues at a house frolic in Lyon, Miss., one night and picking up some coin for doing it, the die seemed to be cast; Son House may have been a preacher, but he was part of the blues world now.

Muddy Waters was the greatest blues musician ever, and the most influential. He invented electric blues, inspired
the Rolling Stones and created the template for the rock’n’roll band and its wild lifestyle. Enjoy his Chess singles
here on our superb 2LP set.