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! — Classic Albums of Modern Blues (’81–’90)
The Sky Is CryingSonny Boy Williamson II
Although it’s not used much in other genres, the harmonica is frequently featured in the blues.
Among the harmonicas used in blues, the non-chromatic type is sometimes called a blues harp, and one of its masters is Sonny Boy Williamson II.
unlucky boyChicken Shack
Chicken Shack, led by Stan Webb and active since the 1960s, is a band that’s always mentioned when discussing British blues.
This track, with its effective use of saxophone, is rooted in the blues yet approaches the sound from a decidedly rock-leaning angle, and can be considered one of their signature works.
Fixing To Die BluesBuck White
Bukka White, born in 1909, was a Delta blues guitarist and singer from roughly halfway between Aberdeen and Houston, Mississippi, in the United States.
He was commonly known as “Bukka.” He was a cousin of B.B.
King’s mother, favored a steel guitar made by the National String Instrument Corporation, and also occasionally played piano.
He made his first recordings for Victor Records in 1930, and the songs “Shake ’Em on Down” and “Po’ Boy,” recorded around 1939, are considered his best known.
In 1962, Bob Dylan covered White’s 1940 release “Fixin’ to Die Blues,” and in 1963 guitarist John Fahey and Ed Denson “rediscovered” White.
The song was later covered by Robert Plant and G.
Love, and “Fixin’ to Die Blues” was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame list in 2012.
At lastEtta James
Etta James, born in 1938 in Los Angeles, California, was an R&B singer known for her powerful blues voice.
A gospel prodigy, she sang on the radio at just five years old as part of a church choir in L.A.
At 15, she auditioned for a female trio called the Peaches, caught the attention of Johnny Otis, and in 1954 he took her to Modern Records in L.A.
to record.
Their song The Wallflower reached No.
1 on the R&B chart in 1955.
She is known for hits such as At Last, Tell Mama, and I’d Rather Go Blind.
She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, and in 1994 she released Mystery Lady, a tribute to Billie Holiday, which won a Grammy Award.
In 2008, Beyoncé portrayed James in the film Cadillac Records, which depicts Chess Records and blues musicians.
Crazy BluesMamie Smith
Mamie Smith, born in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio, was a vaudeville-trained female singer who toured and recorded with jazz bands featuring horns.
Crazy Blues, first recorded in 1920 for Okeh Records, became a sensational hit for its time and marked her as the first Black woman to record the blues.
As a work of historic and cultural significance, it earned her the title “Queen of the Blues” in the Grammy Hall of Fame, and the recording is preserved by the Library of Congress.
In an era steeped in racial discrimination, Mamie’s achievements won strong support from women and people of color, and her success helped usher in the golden age of blues featuring Black female singers.
Good MorningMemphis Minnie
Memphis Minnie, born in 1897 in Algiers, Louisiana, was a female blues singer and guitarist who secured star status in the male-dominated blues world.
She mastered guitar and banjo in her childhood in Walls, Mississippi, and by around age 13 she was singing on the streets of Memphis.
She joined medicine shows and circuses and began traveling throughout the South.
In 1939, Me and My Chauffeur became a hit; her powerful voice and bold guitar playing captivated listeners, and she recorded over 250 tracks.
Good Morning was recorded in Chicago in 1936.
Recommended for rock fans too! — Masterpieces of Modern Blues (91–100)
Avalon BluesMississippi John Hurt
Mississippi John Hurt, born in 1893 in Teoc, Mississippi, was a blues singer and guitarist.
He learned guitar at age nine, spent the years up to the 1920s playing old-time music, and recorded 13 tracks for the Okeh label.
Afterwards, lacking further recording opportunities, he lived in the countryside as a sharecropper until his rediscovery in 1963, when, past the age of 70, he began a second career and became one of the most beloved of the legendary bluesmen rediscovered in the 1960s.
Avalon Blues, recorded in 1928 for the Okeh label, was one of the clues that led to his rediscovery.