Despite the title, this collection is not devoted only to Bluesville releases; rather, it covers all the blues labels that are now under the Fantasy Records umbrella. The 24 songs are drawn from the Bluesville, Prestige, Riverside, Takoma, Milestone, Pablo, Specialty, and Stax archives and cover a wide range of blues styles, from the early blues of Ma Rainey to the big-city blues of John Lee Hooker to the smooth blues of Jimmy Witherspoon. Apart from the Ma Rainey and Blind Lemon Jefferson tracks, which were recorded in the 1920s and released much later by Milestone, the majority of the recordings were made in the 1950s and 1960s. Each label contributes a couple of tracks: from the Specialty vaults comes Frankie Lee Sims and Floyd Dixon's up-tempo blues; from Stax comes Albert King, Little Milton, andJimmy McCracklin; Pablo offers a live recording from 1972 by Muddy Waters; Takoma is represented by a Big Joe Williams cut that features Michael Bloomfield; Prestige's delegates are tracks by Jesse Fuller, Otis Spann, and Jimmy Witherspoon; and Riverside is represented by Alberta Hunter, Odetta, and an acoustic John Lee Hooker cut. The remaining songs are from Bluesville releases and include songs by Blind Willie McTell, Mercy Dee Walton, Lightnin' Hopkins, K.C. Douglas, Lonnie Johnson, Sunnyland Slim, Memphis Slim, Willie Dixon, and Roosevelt Sykes. The diversity of blues styles can be quite jarring; for example, the switch from the screaming heavy metal blues of Muddy Waters to the solo 12-string guitar and voice of Blind Willie McTell is a shock. Still, there are many great songs collected here and the set is a solid overview of the Fantasy blues stable, even if it works better as a catalog overview than it does as a listening experience. A more successful approach may be separate samplers for each label, or at least keeping the labels separated within this collection's track listing.
1. Ill Play The Blues For You - Albert King
2. The Blues Never Die - Otis Spann
3. Honey Bee - Muddy Waters
4. The Dyin Crapshooters Blues - Blind Willie Mctell
5. St. Louis Blues - Alberta Hunter
6. Pity And A Shame - Mercy Dee Walton
7. Chain Gang Blues - Ma Rainey
8. Lonesome House Blues - Blind Lemon Jefferson
9. Got To Move Your Baby - Lightnin Hopkins
10. Hard, Oh Lord - Odetta
11. Tell Me - K.C. Douglas
12. Whistlin Pines - Big Joe Williams
13. Hole In The Wall - Floyd Dixon
14. If That Aint A Reason - Little Milton
15. Yesterday Is Gone - Jimmy Mccracklin
16. Lucy Mae Blues - Frankie Lee Sims
17. Jesses New Midnight Special - Jesse Fuller
18. Dont Ever Love - Lonnie Johnson
19. Baby How Long (How Long Blues) - Sunnyland Slim
20. Letter Home - Memphis Slim
21. Black Snake - John Lee Hooker
22. Good Understanding - Willie Dixon
23. Drivin Wheel - Roosevelt Sykes
24. Grab Me A Freight - Jimmy Witherspoon
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FILE LIST
Filename
Size
01 Albert King - I'll Play the Blues for You.mp3
9.1 MB
02 Otis Spann - The Blues Never Die.mp3
8.5 MB
03 Muddy Waters - Honey Bee.mp3
9 MB
04 Blind Willie McTell - The Dying Crapshooter's Blues.mp3
6.7 MB
05 Alberta Hunter - St. Louis Blues.mp3
5.6 MB
06 Mercy Dee Walton - Pity and a Shame.mp3
9.3 MB
07 Ma Rainey - Chain Gang Blues.mp3
7.2 MB
08 Blind Lemon Jefferson - Lonesome House Blues.mp3
5.6 MB
09 Lightnin' Hopkins - Got to Move Your Baby.mp3
9.3 MB
10 Odetta - Hard, Oh Lord.mp3
9.5 MB
11 K.C. Douglas - Tell Me.mp3
7.4 MB
12 Big Joe Williams - Whistlin' Pines.mp3
5.4 MB
13 Floyd Dixon - Hole in the Wall.mp3
6.6 MB
14 Little Milton - If That Ain't a Reason (For Your Woman to Leave You).mp3
7.8 MB
15 Jimmy McCracklin - Yesterday Is Gone.mp3
9.8 MB
16 Frankie Lee Sims - Lucy Mae Blues.mp3
5.8 MB
17 Jesse Fuller - Jesse's New Midnight Special.mp3
6 MB
18 Lonnie Johnson - Don't Ever Love.mp3
8.3 MB
19 Sunnyland Slim - Baby How Long (How Long Blues).mp3