VA - Acoustic Blues Vol. 1-4 The Roots Of It All (The Definitive Collection!) [2013-2014] (8 x CDs)

ACOUSTIC BLUES

VA - Acoustic Blues Vol. 1-4 The Roots Of It All (The Definitive Collection!) [2013-2014] (8 x CDs)

Four double discs can look like excess on the shelf, but this set settles into something quieter once it begins. Bear Family Records issued these volumes across 2013 and 2014, each one carrying its own booklet, yet the intention only becomes clear when they are heard together. Eight discs, nearly a century of recordings, arranged with patience rather than urgency.

It does not open with a statement. The earliest sides arrive plainly, voices and guitars set down with little separation between performer and room. Blind Lemon Jefferson, Papa Charlie Jackson, Lonnie Johnson appear without framing, each track carrying its own weight. The sound is direct, sometimes fragile, sometimes steady, but always close.

What changes is not the style but the surroundings. Moving through the first volumes, the recordings begin to widen. Small additions appear, a second guitar, a fiddle, a bass line that holds the rhythm a little tighter. By the time Robert Johnson enters the sequence, the language is already established, his recordings sit inside it rather than standing apart.

The later volumes shift the perspective again. Instead of ending the story in the 1930s, the set continues forward, showing how that same acoustic approach survives in later decades. Performers such as Taj Mahal and Etta Baker appear with clearer recording quality, but the structure remains familiar, voice, guitar, and space.

Across all four volumes, the sequencing works by accumulation. The shifts are gradual, almost unmarked, one performance leading to the next without needing explanation. Early field recordings, studio sides, revival era sessions, they sit together as part of the same line.

Taken as a whole, the set feels less like a history lesson and more like a long continuity of sound. Leave it playing long enough and the decades begin to blur, the differences still there, but held together by a shared approach that never really disappears. (B)

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Track lists

Vol. 1 CD1

01 Sylvester Weaver - Guitar Blues 2:58

02 Papa Charlie Jackson - Shake That Thing 2:58

03 Lonnie Johnson - Mr. Johnson's Blues 2:41

04 Blind Lemon Jefferson - Match Box Blues 3:03

05 Barbecue Bob - Mississippi Heavy Water Blues 3:04

06 Furry Lewis - Billy Lyons and Stack O'Lee 2:33

07 Jim Jackson - Jim Jackson's Kansas City Blues - Pt. 1 3:11

08 Blind Willie Johnson - Dark Was The Night - Cold Was The Ground 3:24

09 Frank Stokes - Downtown Blues 3:19

10 Mississippi John Hurt - Frankie 3:35

11 Ramblin' Thomas - So Lonesome 2:51

12 Rube Lacy - Ham Hound Crave 2:54

13 Henry Thomas - Bull Doze Blues 3:27

14 Scrapper Blackwell - Kokomo Blues 3:05

15 Tommy Johnson - Canned Heat Blues 3:42

16 Ishman Bracey - The Four Day Blues 3:25

17 Blind Willie McTell - Statesboro Blues 2:43

18 Curley Weaver - No No Blues 3:04

19 Hambone Willie Newbern - Roll and Tumble Blues 3:00

20 Henry Spaulding - Cairo Blues 2:49

21 Charley Patton - Pony Blues 2:59

22 Kansas Joe - When The Levee Breaks 3:08

23 Little Hat Jones - Little Hat Blues 3:15

24 Blind Blake - Diddie Wa Diddie 2:59

25 Charlie McCoy - Last Time Blues 3:08

26 Robert Wilkins - That's No Way to Get Along 2:58

27 Henry Townsend - Henry's Worry Blues 3:09

28 Clifford Gibson - Ice and Snow Blues 2:55

29 Blind Joe Reynolds - Outside Woman Blues 3:00

Vol. 1 CD2

01 Mississippi Sheiks - Sitting on Top of The World 3:10

02 Garfield Akers - Dough Roller Blues 3:14

03 Son House - My Black Mama - Part 1 3:08

04 Willie Brown - M & O Blues 3:05

05 Charley Jordan - Stack O'Dollars Blues 2:37

06 J. T. "Funny Paper" Smith - Howling Wolf Blues - No. 1 2:50

07 Skip James - I'm So Glad 2:50

08 King Solomon Hill - Times Has Done Got Hard 3:12

09 Big Bill Broonzy - Long Tall Mama 2:49

10 Josh White - Good Gal 3:11

11 Tampa Red - Black Angel Blues 3:32

12 Leadbelly - Midnight Special 3:09

13 Memphis Minnie - Chickasaw Train Blues (Low Down Dirty Thing) 3:19

14 Kokomo Arnold - Milk Cow Blues 3:04

15 Johnny Temple - Lead Pencil Blues (It Just Won't Write) 3:08

16 Sleepy John Estes - Someday Baby Blues 3:01

17 Blind Gary Davis - Cross and Evil Woman Blues 3:06

18 Blind Boy Fuller - Rag, Mama, Rag 3:13

19 Carl Martin - Crow Jane 2:56

20 Joe Williams' Washboard Blues Singers - Baby Please Don't Go 3:24

21 Casey Bill Weldon - Somebody Changed The Lock on My Door 3:22

22 Oscar Woods - Lone Wolf Blues 3:12

23 Robert Johnson - Cross Road Blues 2:41

24 Black Ace - Black Ace 2:46

25 Robert Lee McCoy - Prowling Night-Hawk 3:03

26 Bukka White - Shake 'Em on Down 3:01

27 Bo Carter - Old Devil 3:03

28 Sister Rosetta Tharpe - This Train 2:44

29 Tommy McClennan - Bottle it Up and Go 2:48

Vol. 2 CD1

01 Big Joe Williams - Crawlin' King Snake 2:51

02 Robert Petway - Catfish Blues 3:00

03 Brownie McGhee - Step it Up and Go No. 2 2:48

04 Tony Hollins - Cut Saw Blues 2:55

05 Robert Lockwood Jr. - Black Spider Blues 2:59

06 McKinley Morganfield - I Be's Troubled 3:06

07 Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup - If I Get Lucky 3:05

08 Buddy Moss - Unfinished Business 2:53

09 William Brown - Mississippi Blues 6:06

10 David "Honeyboy" Edwards - Water Coast Blues 5:59

11 Gabriel Brown - Stick With Me 2:43

12 Johnny Shines - Evil-Hearted Woman Blues 2:49

13 Lightnin' Hopkins - Katie Mae Blues 3:03

14 Josh White - Evil Hearted Man 2:32

15 Othum Brown - Ora-Nelle Blues 2:46

16 Johnny Young - Money Taking Woman 2:44

17 Little Boy Fuller - Blood Red River Blues 2:36

18 Back Porch Boys - Sweet Woman Blues 3:03

19 "Stick" McGhee & His Buddies - Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee 2:18

20 Frankie Lee Sims and His Guitar Trio - Single Man Blues 2:51

21 K. C. Douglas Trio - Mercury Boogie 2:26

22 Lowell Fulson - The Blues is Killing Me 2:34

23 Alabama Slim - Boar Hog Blues 2:38

24 Sylvester Cotton - Ugly Woman Blues 2:44

25 Pinetop Slim - Applejack Boogie 2:39

26 Willie Lane - Prowlin' Ground Hog 2:41

27 Dan Pickett - Ride to A Funeral in A V8 2:33

Vol. 2 CD2

01 Dennis McMillon - Paper Wooden Daddy 2:43

02 Manny Nichols - Walking Talking Blues 2:36

03 Johnny Beck - You Gotta Lay Down Momma 2:37

04 James Tisdom - Model T Boogie 2:34

05 Soldier Boy Houston - Dallas Be-Bop Blues 3:06

06 Little David - You're Gonna Weep and Moan 3:05

07 Pig N' Whistle Red - Talkin' to You Mama 3:09

08 Lil' Son Jackson - Ticket Agent Blues 2:38

09 Luther Huff - 1951 Blues 2:39

10 Larks - Eyesight to The Blind 2:53

11 Luther Stoneham - 1949 Blues 2:38

12 William Stewart - Me Talking Boy 2:24

13 Nat Terry - Take it Easy Baby 3:24

14 John Lee - Down at The Depot 3:09

15 Julius King - If You See My Lover 3:05

16 Doug Quattlebaum - Don't Be Funny, Baby! 2:35

17 Sister O. M. Terrell - I'm Going to The City 2:51

18 Jimmy & Walter - Before Long 2:59

19 Jesse Thomas - Gonna Move to California 2:25

20 Big Son Tillis - Rocks is My Pillow 3:12

21 Jesse Fuller - San Francisco Bay Blues 3:30

22 Lick, Slick & Slide - I Love My Baby 2:33

23 Doctor Ross - Industrial Boogie 2:38

24 Big Bill Broonzy - Willie Mae Blues 3:36

25 Elizabeth Cotten - Freight Train 2:46

26 Snooks Eaglin - See See Rider 3:12

27 John Lee Hooker - Burning Hell 3:19

28 Fred McDowell - Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning 2:46

Vol. 3 CD1

01 Mance Lipscomb - Shake, Shake, Mama 2:52

02 John Lee Hooker - Tupelo 3:21

03 Rev. Gary Davis - Samson and Delilah 4:07

04 Robert Pete Williams - I’ve Grown So Ugly 2:51

05 Lightnin' Hopkins - Mojo Hand 3:05

06 Lonnie Johnson - Moaning Blues 4:03

07 Smoky Babe - Hottest Brand Goin’ 4:09

08 Herman E. Johnson - I Just Keeps on Wanting You 2:48

09 Scrapper Blackwell - Shady Lane 5:29

10 Pink Anderson - I Got Mine 3:09

11 Pete Franklin - Prison Bound 4:24

12 Shirley Griffith - Bye Bye Blues 4:13

13 Robert C. Smith - Please Don’t Drive Me Away 2:27

14 Memphis Willie B. - Wine Drinking Woman 3:38

15 Baby Tate - What Have I Done to You 2:44

16 Leroy Dallas - She Caught The M & O 3:45

17 Sleepy John Estes - Vernita’s Blues 2:21

18 J. D. Short - I’m Just Wastin’ My Time 4:37

19 Muddy Waters - Feel Like Going Home 3:54

20 Buddy Moss - Amy 2:44

21 Johnny Young - Want My Lovin’ 3:32

22 Arvella Gray - Corrine, Corrina 2:15

23 Mississippi John Hurt - Candy Man 2:55

24 Maxwell Street Jimmy - Alberta 2:56

Vol. 3 CD2

01 Son House - Empire State Express 3:43

02 Fred McDowell - Frisco Lines 4:01

03 J.B. Lenoir - If I Get Lucky 3:02

04 Skip James - Sickbed Blues 4:08

05 R.L. Burnside - Long Haired Doney 2:47

06 Furry Lewis - Old Original Furry Lewis Blues 3:48

07 Joe Callicott - Lonesome Katy Blues 3:06

08 John Jackson - Rocks and Gravel 3:18

09 Babe Stovall - Worried Blues 3:35

10 Howlin' Wolf - Ain’t Goin’ Down That Dirt Road #2 4:09

11 Larry Johnson - Four Women Blues 2:35

12 Jack Owens - I Love My Baby 4:52

13 Johnny Shines - Your Troubles Can’t Be Like Mine 4:21

14 Brownie McGhee - My Last Suit 3:55

15 Juke Boy Bonner - Tired of The Greyhound Bus 2:28

16 Tarheel Slim - So Sweet, So Sweet 3:21

17 Tom Shaw - Baby Be A Boy Child Named Him After Me 5:46

18 Eddie Taylor - Bullcow Blues 3:12

19 Bill Williams - Salty Dog 4:39

20 Guitar Shorty - Jessie Jones 4:00

21 Reverend Pearly Brown - It’s A Mean Old World to Try to Live In 2:26

22 Louisiana Red - Dead Stray Dog 3:58

23 David "Honeyboy" Edwards - Big Fat Mama 2:58

24 Henry Townsend - Can’t You See 3:19

Vol. 4 CD1

01 Archie Edwards - The Road is Rough and Rocky 4:33

02 Frank Hovington - Lonesome Road Blues 5:27

03 Guitar Slim - I’m Feelin' Lonesome 4:46

04 Sam Chatmon - Sam’s Blues 3:37

05 Boogie Bill Webb - Big Road Blues 2:33

06 Arzo Youngblood - Bye Bye Blues 2:48

07 John Cephas - Reno Factory 4:45

08 Eugene Powell - Worried Blues 3:05

09 Albert Macon - Mean Old Frisco Blues 3:46

10 James "Son" Thomas - Devil Blues 4:46

11 Henry Townsend - Heartbroken Man Blues 4:06

12 James Brewer - Pea Vine Whistle 3:54

13 Rory Block - Future Blues 3:06

14 Sparky Rucker - Kind-Hearted Woman 4:12

15 Ted Bogan - That’ll Never Happen No More 2:14

16 Taj Mahal - Fishin’ Blues 4:31

17 Jo-Ann Kelly - Try Me One More Time 4:34

18 Etta Baker - Broken Hearted Blues 4:53

19 Paul Rishell - Trouble Blues 2:43

20 John Dee Holeman - Early Morning Blues 3:33

21 Guy Davis - Take Me Back, Babe 4:35

Vol. 4 CD2

01 Homesick James - Bein’ With The One You Love 3:04

02 Paul Geremia - Kick it in The Country 4:13

03 Alvin Youngblood Hart - Big Mama’s Door 3:50

04 Keb' Mo' - You Can Love Yourself 2:32

05 Doug MacLeod - Old Country Road 4:35

06 Corey Harris - High Fever Blues 3:12

07 Jimmie Lee Robinson - Angry Lover 3:33

08 Geoff Muldaur - Sloppy Drunk 4:25

09 Robert Lockwood Jr. - C.C. Rider 3:54

10 Jerry Ricks - I Will Turn Your Money Green 4:18

11 Roy Book Binder - Can’t Do That No More 3:29

12 Precious Bryant - You Don’t Want Me No More 2:52

13 Robert Belfour - Pushin’ My Luck 4:33

14 Eric Bibb - Come Back Baby 4:41

15 Jimmy "Duck" Holmes - Nightmare 4:00

16 John Paul Hammond - Statesboro Blues 3:25

17 Del Rey - Plymouth Rock 3:50

18 Chris James - Black Spider Blues 3:28

19 Bonnie Raitt - Ain’t Nothin’ in Ramblin’ 3:41

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Music weaves itself into the fabric of our emotions, dances through the corridors of memory, and whispers to the soul of who we are. Sharing these stories deepens the connection, turning the experience into something timeless and profound.

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