Muddy Waters.

Start with Robert Johnson, work from there.

Muddy Waters
John Lee Hooker

Sonny Terry and Brownie Mcgee...

Blues or blues rock? I listen to stuff like Walter Trout, Gary Moore, Albert King, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. I think all of those have youtube videos you could try looking at.

Catastrofark: Muddy Waters.

gunsmack: Start with Robert Johnson, work from there.

jamminatorr!: Muddy Waters
John Lee Hooker

Sonny Terry and Brownie Mcgee...

These, thread over.

The Meters are good, but most of their stuff is instrumental. NPR also has an album on iTunes called I Heard It On NPR - Shake These Blues which is quite good and features a lot of different artists with different styles.

Listen, go check out more of the stuff you like, ditch the stuff you don't.

I enjoy myself some Stevie Ray.

Oh, and B.B. King. For the love of god, B.B. King.

Willie Dixon too

Good suggestions so far.

Add The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions & anything by John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. If you're a Canuck, you must find some Dutch Mason.

I am of the opinion that the best blues has an element of gospel in them and you should be able to hear the years of drug and alcohol abuse. To that end, try the following grizzled old negroes:

Barbecue Bob
Rev. Gary Davis
T-Model Ford

A lot of the more modern blues puts me off. SRV is all hat and trenchcoat marketing with no soul and BB King is on autopilot doing that hand waggle thing that white folks pay to see.

Black Sabbath. They're pretty blues-ish.

Since we are on the subject, is it just me or are blues fans treated like weirdos? Music stores only (usually) have a single rack of blues CD's and if you tell anyone you like the blues it's the usual "oh the blues, that's what you listen to if you want to kill yourself" joke run over and over again.

/rant over

SockMonkeyHolocaust: Barbecue Bob

TFD voted earlier today to change his name to "Dry Roastin' Robert" because his temperature was about 5 degrees out of the proper range for barbecue.

Speaking of Canuck, for some more modern blues-rock try Colin James (though not his big band stuff of course).

I recommend Bad Habits for the bluesiest stuff, but I also enjoy his first two albums (self-titled, and Sudden Stop) for rockier songs.

Son, you can't learn the blues. You have to live the blues.

/always wanted to say that

A lot of the basic blues dudes have been covered in this list so far. The thing with the blues is that there are so many different offshoots of 'blues'

Already mentioned gospel inspired blues, jazz, rockabilly, blues rock... it really depends on what specifically you're looking for.

This list (new window) covers a lot of the good artists.

Also, try eMusic. There is an assload of really awesome stuff for download cheap.

\add Blind Willie Johnson to previous list. That guy doesn't sing as much as he croaks.

10.0.0.1: TFD voted earlier today to change his name to "Dry Roastin' Robert" because his temperature was about 5 degrees out of the proper range for barbecue.

LOL

the black keys
they rock

Humean_Nature:

The Meters are good, but most of their stuff is instrumental.


The Meters... blues???

DrBenway: The Meters... blues???

"Blues" seems to be an all-inclusive category. Buckwheat Zydeco and the Meters are usually headlining the local summer Blues fest up here each year. They're not what I call Blues, but the audience is the same.

John Mayer is the king of the blues.

rickythepenguin: John Mayer is the king of the blues.

Who knew that ricky was the editor of Blender?

Sonny Boy Williamson is one of my faves.

SockMonkeyHolocaust: rickythepenguin: John Mayer is the king of the blues.

Who knew that ricky was the editor of Blender?


If I said "Eric Clapton", would that make the editor of "Guitar World"?

Of course it would.

Bob_Laublaw:

"Blues" seems to be an all-inclusive category. Buckwheat Zydeco and the Meters are usually headlining the local summer Blues fest up here each year. They're not what I call Blues, but the audience is the same.


True that. But I wouldn't call them a jazz band just for playing at the Jazz Festival in New Orleans, which doesn't necessarily feature that much jazz.

This thread makes me think of Ghost World.

I'm late, but I like Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughn, BB King.

You're going to get a lot of GREAT recommendations from so many others, so I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest something a little different for you... Tak Matsumoto.

He's a Japanese guitar virtuoso who, while a little different, very much has his roots in Blues and Jazz. Tak Matsumoto performing "Blue" live with an orchestra. (new window)

I hope you enjoy. Cheers!

picodenico: Sonny Boy Williamson is one of my faves.


I'm more of a Blind Melon Chitlin guy.

ayesee: He's a Japanese guitar virtuoso who, while a little different, very much has his roots in Blues and Jazz. Tak Matsumoto performing "Blue" live with an orchestra. (new window)

Agreed. Thanks for pointing this out to me a few days ago!

/off to search for more

ayesee: You're going to get a lot of GREAT recommendations from so many others, so I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest something a little different for you... Tak Matsumoto.

He's a Japanese guitar virtuoso who, while a little different, very much has his roots in Blues and Jazz. Tak Matsumoto performing "Blue" live with an orchestra. (new window)

I hope you enjoy. Cheers!

Oh yeah! Good call!

DrBenway: This thread makes me think of Ghost World.


CHAN LEH-HEH CHAN HOO
NEESA ALLAY LAWN HOO
NEESA ALLAY LALLY LOO YAWNEE YAWNEE YAAA
CHAN LEH HEH CHAN HOO

OH GOD IT'S GONE GREEN!!!

Leadbelly, Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson, Muddy Waters, John Hurt, and of course B.B. King. Bessie Smith for toy old folks.

seeqpod.com should have a good selection under any of those names.

Leadbelly is somewhat folk and Waters is a little bit of a rocker, all the others are purists.

Now git yo' ass off my grass.

Any thing by Ralph Machio in Crossroads. Man he rocks.

picodenico: OH GOD IT'S GONE GREEN!!!

*hide*

picodenico: OH GOD IT'S GONE GREEN!!!

This has to be a mistake.

picodenico: OH GOD IT'S GONE GREEN!!!

The world as we know it is coming to an end.

Muddy Waters for sure..

/THat stuff rules..

rickythepenguin: If I said "Eric Clapton", would that make the editor of "Guitar World"?

Only if you had followed with 500 words about some white bread virtuoso with no soul who is the latest and greatest blues artist who will take SRV's crown.

Lightnin' Hopkins is good for old-school, acoustic blues.
For electric, it doesn't get any better than Albert King.
Then you can try Buddy Guy, Freddie King and Taj Mahal to see which direction you would like to go.
I like Joe Bonamassa as part of the new guys.

Howlin' Wolf

Why did it set "toy" when I typed "the"?

Filtpwn3d?

Willie "Blind Dog" Fulton & Lightning Boy

Can't you just go to the store and take a farking chance?

blind willie mctell

Taj Mahal 'The Natch'l Blues' - Nawlins style....

Charley Musselwhite is a great harp player.

I recommend "Rough News" as first listening. Very diverse set of tracks: Chicago mostly, but also Delta and one track that is Brazilian influence.

His debut album Stand Back! is pretty amazing classic Chicago Blues.

Taj Mahal

gunsmack: Start with Robert Johnson, work from there.

Actually it's usually easiest for blues newbies to work backwards to that.