Recommended for rock fans too! — A classic album of modern blues
The birth of the blues, often called the root of rock ’n’ roll and jazz, dates back to the late 19th century.
Its forms are diverse and can’t be summed up in a single phrase: from Delta blues and country blues—often referred to as prewar blues—to Chicago blues and modern blues, which developed after the war in Chicago and incorporated electric instruments.
In this article, we introduce classic blues albums whose style and spirit continue to be carried on by many musicians even in the 2020s.
The lineup focuses mainly on modern blues that’s easy for beginners to enjoy, so even those who usually listen to rock will find it accessible.
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Recommended for rock fans too! — Masterpieces of Modern Blues (’61–’70)
The Bottom of The TopPhillip Walker
Phillip Walker is a blues guitarist and singer who has been based in Los Angeles since 1959.
His style is rooted in Texas blues, and he performed gritty blues infused with a strong sense of swing.
This track was released in 1973.
It Hurts Me TooTampa Red
Tampa Red, a U.
S.
musician and a wizard of single-string slide-style guitar.
He was a versatile type who wrote his own songs and both played and sang.
This track, too, has been covered many times by later musicians.
DOWN HOME BLUESZZ Hill
This is a classic song by ZZ Hill, a blues singer from Texas in the United States who was active from the 1970s to the 1980s.
It was included on his 1982 album “Down Home,” released by Malaco Records, a label that handled many excellent blues releases at the time.
LucilleB.B. King
B.
B.
King, born in 1925 in Itta Bena, in the northwestern part of Mississippi, USA, was a blues singer and guitarist.
Active from the 1950s until his later years, he is known as the most successful bluesman and the person who developed one of the world’s most famous guitar styles.
Characterized by expressive string-bending (choking) technique, he forged a lean, distinctive style that fused sharp vibrato with passionate vocals.
He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom as well as numerous honorary doctorates.
His nickname “B.
B.” comes from “Blues Boy,” and the Japanese pop group B.
B.
Queens took their name as a play on B.
B.
King’s.
He named his guitar “Lucille,” and Gibson released a B.
B.
King signature model under that name; there is also an album and a song titled “Lucille,” released in 1968.
Spoonful BluesCharley Patton
The birthplace of acoustic pre-war blues was the Mississippi River Delta.
These blues are sometimes called “Delta blues.” Charley Patton is one of the most famous bluesmen of the Delta blues.
Key to the HighwayBig Bill Broozy
Big Bill Broonzy, born in 1893 in Scott County, Mississippi, was an American blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter who composed nearly 300 blues songs over his lifetime and is regarded as a pioneer of the Chicago blues style.
In 1924, he left Mississippi for Chicago, where he met Papa Charlie Jackson, learned guitar from him, and in 1929 made his first recordings as a solo singer.
Later, in 1936, he became one of the first blues singers to use a small group.
“Key to the Highway” is one of his best-known songs and was released by Columbia Records.
Blue GuitarEARL HOOKER
Earl Hooker, born in 1939 in Clarksdale, Mississippi, was a blues musician renowned as a master of slide guitar and one of the earliest bluesmen to use the wah-wah pedal.
He is recognized as a key figure during the heyday of Chicago blues.
He moved to Chicago, Illinois, at the age of one, began playing guitar at fifteen, and made his first recording in 1952.
Known both for guest appearances with major artists like Muddy Waters and for his work as a studio musician, he ranged beyond blues into country and jazz.
His favored guitar was a double-neck Gibson SG, and his cousin was John Lee Hooker.
His instrumental track Blues Guitar, released by Age in 1962, became a hit.