Spanning five decades ~ original as original can be ~ "Pure Blues", is just what the doctor ordered ~ the best medicine from the likes of ~ Luther Allison, The Allman Brothers Band, Duane Allman, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, Etta James, Albert King, B.B. King, Freddy King, Jonny Lang, Jimmy Reed, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Koko Taylor, Susan Tedeschi, Big Mama Thornton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf ~ each artist with detailed liner-notes and a little history of their background and accomplishments.

Want to thank ~ Andy McKaie (compilation producer) ~ Jeff Moskow (associate producer) ~ Doug Schwartz/Audio Mechanics (digitally mastered) ~ Mike Fink (design) ~ Geary Chansley & Ryan Null (photo research) ~ and Universal Music for this one-of-a-kind album for us, the fans of the best music around...BLUES!

This CD is proof, once and for all ~ that the "BLUES" was then, is now and IS FOREVER ~ we've hit pay-dirt...and that folks, is the truth, plain and simple!

Total Time: 76:28 on 20 Tracks...UTV Records 314 556 176 2...(2001)

6 of 7 found the following review helpful:


You like blues? You'll like this!  Jun 01, 2008 By Steven A. Peterson
This starts off with Eric Clapton and Duane Allman singing "Mean Old World" and ends with B. B. King singing the classic "The Thrill Is Gone." In between, works of blues artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, The Allman Brothers Band, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Freddy King, Jimmy Reed, Albert King, Etta James, and others. WOW! If you like blues, you'll like this eclectic CD.

Some examples:

"Mean Old World." Clapton and Allman do a nice job here. Spare guitar work and raw blues vocals. This is a Little Walter song, and Clapton and Allman do it justice.

"Shame, Shame, Shame." Kenny Wayne Shepherd takes this song on. There is some nice scorching blues guitar work and fine blues vocals. This is a neat cut! Blues fans will enjoy. . . .

"LIttle Red Rooster." Oh, yeah! One of Willie Dixon's best compositions. Mick Jagger and the Stones did a nicer turn on this. Here, Luther Allison is the artist. This is another fine rendering of this work. Great guitar work, fine vocals. Outstanding!

"Hoochie Coochie Man." This is the real deal. Muddy Waters himself takes on this Willie Dixon song--and as soon as I say it's Muddy Waters, I need say nothing further. This is another terrific cut. I get goose bumps listening to this one.

"Hound Dog." Elvis did a version of this that stood the United States ion its head. Before Elvis, Big Mama Thornton sang an earlier version. What a treat! Listen and compare her version with Elvis'. Hers is absolutely great blues and I find it compelling. This is 2:50 of raw blues. Wow!

The final cut on this CD--"The Thrill Is Gone." One of B. B. King's best! Forget its popularity and get back to the music itself. This is a great work. His spare guitar work is more effective than some rock guitarists who spew out zillions of notes--with not a scintilla of the effectiveness of King. Stunning!

There are many other fine works, too.

In short, if you are interested in blues, from all manner of singers, you will find this most satisfying. 5 stars without any question!

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:


PURE BLUES....THA'S RIGHT!  Dec 27, 2008 By G. J. Cook
PURE BLUES IS A GREAT MIX OF BLUES ARTISTS, FROM THE OLD TIME BIG MAMA THORNTON AND JIMMY REED, ALL THE WAY UP THE BLUES LADDER TO THE MORE CURRENT KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD AND JOHNNY LANG. AND THE LADDER DON'T MISS A RUNG EITHER. ALL THE GREATS ARE HERE. THERE ARE 20 SONGS ON THIS DISC, ALL DONE BY DIFFERENT ARTISTS. NOT LIKE SOME "VARIOUS ARTISTS" CDS WITH SOME ARTISTS PERFORMING 2 OR EVEN 3 SONGS. NOT MY CONCEPT OF "VARIOUS". LIKE BLUES? LIKE A REAL MIX? GET THIS CD. YOU'LL DIG IT. I GA-RONE-TEE. JERSEY SLIM

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:


A must-have for a blues fan  Jan 12, 2008 By R. Pohlmann
This CD has some great music on it. My only gripe is that they included two or three tracks that got overplayed on FM radio, like "Smoking Gun" and "The Thrill Is Gone". The first track, with Eric Clapton & Duane Allman is awesome and it alone, in my opinion, makes this CD worth buying.


Pure Blues  Sep 09, 2011 By Chris
Very nice CD. It had a lot of artists and a lot of songs. It put you in a good mood.

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