albionmoonlight
05-15-2015, 08:31 AM
In honor of B.B.'s passing
Lots of great ones from whom to choose.
B.B. King--One of the few artists in any genre who is both loved by the general public and revered by insiders. If you were to ask people on the street to name the greatest Blues musician, they would say B.B. And they would be right.
Robert Johnson--His influence cannot be overstated. And his stuff is still great to listen to.
John Lee Hooker--If an alien from Mars came down and asked me for an example of the Blues, I would play One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.
Muddy Waters--I'm not as personally into him as the others on this list. But there is no denying his influence or his greatness. His connection of Blues to Rock is one of the most important developments in the genre.
Eratta:
Personally, I had a hard time omitting Son House, but I think that Robert Johnson took the "originator" spot on my mountain. And I was thisclose to putting Taj Mahal (whom I prefer) over Muddy Waters. But, leaving my personal tastes out of it, I think that Muddy Waters deserves the nod. And I contemplated putting Bessie Smith on there to get female representation, but the Blues is, for good or ill, pretty much dominated by guys. I don't think that Bessie could kick off any of the top four.
Lots of great ones from whom to choose.
B.B. King--One of the few artists in any genre who is both loved by the general public and revered by insiders. If you were to ask people on the street to name the greatest Blues musician, they would say B.B. And they would be right.
Robert Johnson--His influence cannot be overstated. And his stuff is still great to listen to.
John Lee Hooker--If an alien from Mars came down and asked me for an example of the Blues, I would play One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.
Muddy Waters--I'm not as personally into him as the others on this list. But there is no denying his influence or his greatness. His connection of Blues to Rock is one of the most important developments in the genre.
Eratta:
Personally, I had a hard time omitting Son House, but I think that Robert Johnson took the "originator" spot on my mountain. And I was thisclose to putting Taj Mahal (whom I prefer) over Muddy Waters. But, leaving my personal tastes out of it, I think that Muddy Waters deserves the nod. And I contemplated putting Bessie Smith on there to get female representation, but the Blues is, for good or ill, pretty much dominated by guys. I don't think that Bessie could kick off any of the top four.