Artist: Ian Parker
     Album: Where I Belong
     Label: Ruf Records
     Year: 2007
     Genre: Blues-rock
     Format MP3, bitrate: 320 kbps
     Time: 1:00:01
     Size: 135 Mb

For the last decade Ian has been on a journey of discovery, a journey which although far from over, has already provided the young artist with a vast array of experiences which have shaped his musical identity.

The recording of the 'project' album, 'Pilgrimage' in 2005, for which Parker was sent to the deep south of America with Ruf stable-mates Aynsley Lister and Erja Lyytinen, began a process of consolidation for the artist. During this monumental trip, he reconnected with his blues roots, and immediately felt at 'home' in the place where his first true musical love was born. On his return to Europe, Parker set about re-examining in great detail, the work of his blues and soul heroes. Assimilating the lessons learnt from his less bluesy influences, his task now was to bring all of these forces together, in order to truly find himself.

'Where I Belong' is the result of this lengthy artistic process. If he was ever in any doubt, Ian Parker certainly knows who he is now. Unquestionably, a relevant 21st century blues man, Ian is acutely aware of the heritage of his music, as is evident on the passionate 'Love So Cold'. Equally he is in tune with the music of the modern age, as is apparent in the eerie 'Don't Hold Back' and the tortured 'Told My Girl To Go Away', and is able to incorporate those ingredients into his own blues stew - an essential factor in the long term preservation of the genre. 'Until You Show Me', 'Sweet Singing Sirens', and 'Before Our Eyes' are perfect examples of this amalgamation of styles, and of Parker's unique approach to writing.

Recorded analogue to tape, the album has the rich and warm sonic characteristics associated with the pre-digital age, but there is nothing retro about this release. 'Where I Belong' has something for all blues fans, purists and progressives alike. It catalogues the pronounced growth and self-discovery of a contemporary blues artist who is here to stay.

     Artist: Coen Wolters Band
     Album: As The Crow Flies
     Label: Crying Tone Records
     Year: 2006
     Format mp3, bitrate: 320
     Time: 46:18
     Size: 106



Since the release of the band's latest album "As The Crow Flies" (2006) everything changed for the band. Coen's long history of self released CD's and continual live performances, cumulating in the release of his debut "Broken Glass" (2005) CD on Cryingtone Records, established him as an up and coming blues singer with an original twist of his own. The "live band" sound of "as The Crow Flies", coupled with the tours at major festivals that following year, more than proved to a worldwide audience of rabid fans that Coen Wolters rocks, funks and plays the way he wants to play and leave the comparisions for this crowded genre up to others. It's hard to stand in the shadow of great guitarists, but CWB fans know that Coen's songwriting, music and performances are much more than a typical blues rock Experience. >>>

     Artist: Grady Gaines And The Texas Upsetters
     Album: Full Gain
     Label: Black Top
     Year:1987/1988
     Release: 1995
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320kbps
     Time: 50.01
     Size: 116.60 MB




     A meeting of Houston-based all-stars that scorches from the first track to the last. Tenor saxman Grady Gaines is in charge of the proceedings, wailing on the instrumentals "There Is Something on Your Mind" and "Soul Twist," while pianist Teddy Reynolds, Gaines's guitar-wielding brother Roy Gaines, and Joe Medwick divvy up the vocals. Outstanding guitarist Clarence Hollimon is also on board.

     Artist: Walter Trout
     Album: Unspoiled By Progress
     Label: Provogue Music Productions (UK)
     Year: rec.1989-Mar 3, 2009 / rel.2009
     Format: MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time: 78:24
     Size: 171,5 Mb
     AMG rating:

     Artist:VA
     Album:The Alligator Records 20th Anniversary Collection
     Label:Alligator records
     Year: rel.1991
     Format:MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time: 73:06, 72:57
     Size: 157 Mb, 156 Mb.
     AMG rating:

     Artist: Mother Earth
     Album: Satisfied
     Label: Wounded Bird Records
     Year: 1970, release: 2005
     Quality: mp3; 192 kb/s
     Size: 49,31 mb
     Total time: 37:50



By the time of Satisfied, Mother Earth had become pretty much a vehicle for Tracy Nelson plus backing band. There's just one original on this set, Nelson's "Andy Song," and the album sticks to a loose but R&B-focused groove, sometimes stretching the songs out in a fashion that probably would have been more tightly edited had such an approach not been in vogue in 1970. Nelson's vocals are consistently strong and stirring, and the material is commendably diverse, though overall it's just an okay album that could use a little more oomph. The white R&B vibe is tempered by strong streaks of gospel, New Orleans music, and even a bit of jazz, particularly on the smoother parts of "Groovy Way."

     Artists: David Maxwell,Louisana Red
     Album: You Got To Move
     Label: Blue Max
      Recording date:Aug 26, 2007
     Release date : Sep 1, 2009
     Genre/styles:blues/modern electric blues
     Format/quality: mp3/ 320 kbps / 44,1Hz / Stereo
     Playtime: 46:39
     Size: 112 Mb
     AMG Rating:



Iverson Minter, aka Louisiana Red, is a living legend of the blues who can't be stopped when he gets on a roll with either uptown electric or acoustic rural blues. In tandem with veteran and criminally underrated pianist David Maxwell, Red gives proof positive that the natural blues is still alive and well, even without a bassist or drummer. It also shows that Red can still pitch up a fuss on his own, distinctively singing and playing his stylized, instantly recognizable guitar that bears his unmistakable bent-note technique. Maxwell is always in tune with rambling boogie-woogie or straight-up urban blues techniques so much a part of the whole American blues continuum. What makes their alliance very compatible is that they know blues so stone-cold well that they can riff off it in original ways, and play Minter's compositions that suggest other classic tunes yet have something to say that is new. This is an excellent recording, highly recommended to all blues lovers who keep tradition close at hand in the new millennium.~Michael G. Nastos,AMG

     Artist: Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters
     Album: Living in the Light
     Label: Stony Plain
     Year: 2009 , release Jun 2, 2009
     Genre: Contemporary Blues, Soul-Blues
     Format, bitrate: mp3/320 kbps
     Time: 78:19
     Size: 91 MB + 82 MB

     Congratulations to Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters for their nomination of "Living in the Light" as one of the Blues Award's "Best Contemporary Album of 2009,"and to Ronnie for his nomination in the "Best Instrumentalist - Guitar" category.
~Mark Gallo, Jazz Review

     Artist:Bernard Allison
     Album:Storms Of Life
     Label:Artemis Records
     Year:rel.Aug 13, 2002
     Format:MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time: 52:02
     Size: 114 Mb

     Artist: Eric Clapton
     Album: Eric Clapton - Eric Clapton
     Year Of Release: 1970
     Label: Polygram Records
     Genre: Blues-Rock
     Format, bitrate: mp3/320kbps
     Size: 147.14 MB
     Rating AMG:

     The album that launched Clapton's solo career takes most of its cues from his then-recent collaboration with Delaney and Bonnie. In fact, Delaney produced the album, which explains its loose, jam-session feel that sometimes finds Clapton battling against a cast that includes guest stars Stephen Stills, Sonny Curtis, Rita Coolidge, Leon Russell, and Delaney and Bonnie. Yet this is the album on which Clapton established himself as a forceful singer, and it also produced some of his most enduring classics, including "Blues Power," "After Midnight," and "Let It Rain." --Daniel Durchholz

     Artist:VA
     Album:Alligator Records 25th Anniversary Collection
     Label:Alligator records
     Year: rec.1979-1995 / rel. Mar 1996
     Format: MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time: CD 1 -73:35 , CD 2 - 73:34.
     Size: 163 Mb, 163 Mb
     AMG rating:

     Artist: James Cotton
     Album: 35th Anniversary Jam of the James Cotton Blues Band
     Label:Telarc Distribution
     Year:rec.Jun 2001 / rel.May 28, 2002
     Format:MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time: 53:33
     Size: 117, 6 Mb

     Artist: VA
     Album: Alligator Records 30th Anniversary Collection
     Label: Alligator records
     Year: rec.Nov 23, 1974-Jan 9, 2000 / rel.Aug 21, 2001
     Format: MP3 @ 320 Kb/s, avi
     Time: CD1 - 78:52, CD2- 72:12 + Movie - 03:53.
     Size: 171,7 Mb, 195,4 Mb

     Artist: John Mayall
     Album: Moving On
     Label: Lemon Records
     Year: 1973
     Format, Bit Rate: Mp3 320 Kbps
     Time: 47:12
     Size: 99,6 Mb





"MOVING ON" is a live album by John Mayall, recorded at the Whiskey A Go Go, Los Angeles on the 10th of July 1972 with the aid of Wally Heider's Mobile Recording Truck. There is a brief introduction of the band by Bill Cosby. For the first time on CD, this album is endorsed by Mayall himself and he has contributed a new interview for the notes describing the making of this seminal work.

     Artist: B B King
     Album: Live In Japan
     Year: 1971
     Release Date: 1999
     Label: MCA
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320 kb/s
     Time: 76 min
     Size: 161 MB



     Live albums are often disappointing. Such is not the case with LIVE IN JAPAN. Blues legend King was at the height of his popularity at the time of this 1971 performance. "The Thrill Is Gone" had been a smash hit the previous year, and his albums COMPLETELY WELL, INDIANOLA MISSISSIPPI SEEDS, and LIVE AT COOK COUNTY JAIL had sold extremely well. This live set was recorded with the same crack band that played on COOK COUNTY, and the performance here overflows with a palpable exuberance.The interplay between King and his backing players is wildly energetic and often spontaneous, as the impromptu jam "Japanese Boogie," "Jamming At Sankei Hall," and "Hikari #88" will attest. As always, King's trademark fretboard chops and soulful phrasing are outstanding, and his singing on such gems as "How Blue Can You Get," "Hummingbird," and, of course, "The Thrill Is Gone" seems especially heartfelt. A dynamite shot of classic blues and a top-notch live set.

     Artist: Peppermint Harris
     Album: Lonesome As I Can Be
     Label: Jewel / Westside
     Year: 1965-1972
     Released: 2001
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320kbps
     Size: 125.68 MB
     Time: 57:20
     AMG Rating:

     Texas R&B singer Peppermint Harris is best known for two early-'50s hits, the classic "Rainin' in My Heart" and "I Get Loaded," a drunken boast that led to a slew of other drinking songs from Harris, typecasting him as the man with a bottle in his hand, a mixed blessing at best. With an easy baritone that came across as a sort of late-night version of Sam Cooke on too many whiskey shots, Harris arguably did his best work with Jewel Records, a Louisiana label owned and run by Stan "The Record Man" Lewis. While he didn't have any huge hits between 1965 and 1971, the length of his stay at Jewel, Harris nonetheless produced some solid material, as this anthology shows. He reprises his self-penned "Rainin' in My Heart" twice here, and turns in a fine version of Big Bill Broonzy's "Key to the Highway," as well, and working with a large band, he shows a real talent for songwriting, vocal phrasing, and arrangement. There aren't a lot of Peppermint Harris CDs on the market, and while the 1950s Aladdin sides are more famous, this one, given its consistent tone and excellent sound, makes for probably a better introduction to Harris' unique version of Texas R&B. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

     Artist: Teddy Morgan & The Sevilles
     Album: Ridin' In Style
     Label: Antones
     Year: 1994
     Released: 1994
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320kbps
     Size: 91.45 MB
     Time: 39:45

Morgan (b.1971) grew up in Minneapolis. Despite his relative youth, Teddy is already a veteran guitarist, vocalist and frontman for his own swing-style blues trio, the Sevilles. Morgan has absorbed all the old-school traditions, finessing swing-inflected licks, rhythmic roots grooves, traditional blues and even New Orleans rhythms. A profesional guitarist since age 17 when he was known as 'Kid' Morgan, he's played in the bands of James Harman, R.J. Mischo and Lamont Cranston. Mentor Kim Wilson transplanted Morgan to Austin and Antone's Records. On this album the Sevilles get equal billing. Morgan's vocals aren't quite as polished, but overall it's still mighty fine, especially the guitar work. On their debut album, Morgan and the Sevilles map a crash course between Chicago and Southern blues, shifting from Gulf Coast rhythms to irresistible Texas shuffles with ease, 'roots blues', as Morgan himself calls it.

    Artist: B.B. King
    Album: Lucille & Friends
    Label: Spectrum Music
    Year: ; release: 1995
    Genre: Blues
    Format mp3, bitrate: 320 kb/s
    Time: 1:17:21
    Size: 180 Mb (covers)

'Lucille and Friends' is an album of duets and collaborations B.B. has had over the years. The collection is varied; collaborators range from fellow blues travellers to modern rock, pop and jazz artists, with a mixture of both blues standards and original songs. Several tracks such as 'Frosty' have been around for years, but there are a couple of more recent pairings such as U2's 'When Love Comes To Town'. The album does a great job of showcasing B.B.'s ability to adapt to a wide range of musical styles, and an even wider range of artists.

    Artist: Juke Boy Bonner
    Album: Life Gave Me A Dirty Deal (compilation)
    Label: Arhoolie
    Year: 1968-1969; release: 1992
    Genre: Texas Blues
    Format mp3, bitrate: 256 kb/s
    Time: 1:09:45
    Size: 131 Mb (covers)
    AMG Rating:

Likely the most consistent and affecting collection you'll encounter by this singular Texas bluesman, whose strikingly personal approach was stunningly captured by Arhoolie's Chris Strachwitz during the late '60s in Houston. Twenty-three utter originals include "Stay Off Lyons Avenue," "Struggle Here in Houston," "I Got My Passport," and the title track. Bonner sang movingly of his painfully impoverished existence for Arhoolie, and the results still resound triumphantly today. - Bill Dahl at All Music Guide

    Artist: Lonnie Brooks
    Album: Bayou Lightning
    Label: Alligator
    Year: ; release: 1979
    Genre: Modern Electric Blues
    Format mp3, bitrate: 320 kb/s
    Time: 41:23
    Size: 96,3 Mb (cover)
    AMG Rating:

All the promise that Lonnie Brooks possessed was realized on this album, his finest and most consistent to date. The churning bayou groove of "Voodoo Daddy," and a soul-steeped "Watch What You Got," a bone-chilling remake of Junior Parker's "In the Dark," rollicking covers of Tommy Tucker's "Alimony" and Brooks' own "Figure Head," and the swaggering originals "You Know What My Body Needs" and "Watchdog" are among the set's many incendiary highlights. - Bill Dahl at All Music Guide