Blues CDs New Releases - October 2012

Wow, this is a B.B. King fan's dream come true, a ten-disc collection celebrating the 50th anniversary of the guitarist's signing with ABC-Paramount Records. The collection comes packaged in a deluxe box including a 72-page gilded hardback book. Two discs document King's early recordings for labels like Bullet, Modern/RPM, and Kent Records while the other eight CDs cover the enormous wealth of material the prolific artist recorded for ABC-Paramount, Bluesway, and Impulse Records as well as highlights from his years with MCA/Geffen Records including collaborations with Robert Cray, Eric Clapton, and others, plus unreleased singles and live tracks. Whew! For those of us with less disposable budgets, a four-disc version will also be released. (Release date: 10/09/12)

Always-busy guitarist Joe Bonamassa will close out the year with his friends in the classic rock supergroup Black Country Communion as the band releases its third studio album, Afterglow. While the band's sound is definitely rock 'n' roll with a 1970s edge, more than a little blues feeling seeps in around the corners. Fronted by former Trapeze and Deep Purple singer and bass player Glenn Hughes and featuring guitarist Bonamassa, drummer Jason Bonham (son of Led Zeppelin's John Bonham), and keyboardist Derek Sherinian, Black Country Communion has found ready acceptance from rock and blues fans alike. With Afterglow, the band further refines and expands its already hard-hitting sound. (Release date: 10/30/12)

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Award-winning Canadian singer/songwriter Colin Linden was put on the path of the righteous as an eleven-year-old wannabe musician by none other than the great Howlin' Wolf. Telling the boy to listen to some Son House and Charley Patton if he wanted to be a bluesman, Linden seemingly followed the Wolf's advice and has forged a producer and respected blues-rock artist that is now in its fourth decade. Still Live is Linden's first live disc in some 30 years, a largely original collection of spirited roots 'n' blues performed in an intimate setting and featuring plenty of Linden's slinky slide-guitar playing. (Release date: 10/09/12)

Craig Chaquico, the guitarist on Jefferson Starship's biggest hits and Platinum-selling albums, takes a walk on the blues side with the release of his Blind Pig Records debut Fire Red Moon. The album covers most of the cherished touchstones of the blues, including covers of Robert Johnson's "Crossroads," Albert King's "Born Under The Bad Sign," and Muddy Waters' "Rollin' and Tumblin'," as well as blues-rock originals that incorporate Chaquico's skilled blues, rock, and jazz licks and influences like Jimi Hendrix and Steely Dan. Could be interesting... (Release date: 10/16/12)

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Blues-rock guitarist extraordinaire Warren Haynes and his Gov't Mule band drop a bomb on bootleggers and tape traders by delivering their hardcore fans an early Christmas present in the form of this very cool (and budget-priced) six-disc live set. The Georgia Bootleg Box collects three previously-unreleased live shows from the original Gov't Mule power-trio originally recorded in Georgia in 1996 and featuring songs from what would become the band's debut as well as material that would show up on later albums like Dose. (Release date: 10/16/12)

Detroit blues guitarist Doug Deming has fronted his Jewel Tones band since the late-1990s, the outfit kicking out an amalgam of Chicago-styled blues, West Coast swing and jump blues, rockabilly, and roots-rock to enthusiastic audiences across the Midwest U.S. Deming has added harp player Dennis Gruenling's Little Walter-inspired harmonica for What's It Gonna Take, the band's debut for Vizztone Records and the follow-up to their acclaimed 2009 LP Falling Through The Cracks. Expect nothing but a good time in these grooves, the band a perennial live favorite bringing their onstage energy to the studio for what promises to be a real barn-burner! (Release date: 10/02/12)

David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, Mato Nanji of the Native American blues-rock group Indigenous, and Luther Dickinson, member of North Mississippi Allstars and the Black Crowes have teamed together to record a twelve-song collection of raw, raucous roots 'n' blues tunes that feature plenty of guitars. The three artists met as featured players on this year's Experience Hendrix tour and, feeling a shared musical kinship, got together and recorded 3 Skulls and the Truth. The material is greasy, guitar-driven blues-rock featuring three talented lead guitarists jamming on original material inspired by folks like ZZ Top and Jimi Hendrix. (Release date: 10/02/12)

British blues legend Ian Siegal has been spending a lot of time in the states as of late, recording his album Candy Store Kid for Nugene Records down in Mississippi. Credited to Ian Siegal & the Mississippi Mudbloods, Siegal's backing band for this includes such Southern blues luminaries as Luther and Cody Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars), Alvin Youngblood Hart, Gary Burnside, and Lightnin' Malcolm, the conglomeration recording an exciting and inspired collection of mostly-original roots 'n' blues material. (Release date: 10/16/12)

Maria Muldaur's ...First Came Memphis Minnie is a collection of Memphis Minnie songs interpreted by Muldaur and friends like Rory Block, Ruthie Foster, and Bonnie Raitt. Produced by Muldaur, the singer's 40th album includes several previously-released tracks from a pair of Muldaur's Grammy® Award nominated albums as well as new recordings and includes guest appearances from the aforementioned great singers as well as musicians like David Bromberg, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Roy Rogers, Steve James, and Steve Freund. (Release date: 10/09/12)

Chicago bluesman Mike Wheeler has a resume to envy, the guitarist performing with legends like Koko Taylor, Buddy Guy, and Son Seals as well as contemporary stars like Shemekia Copeland over the last 30 years. Wheeler stepped out on his own with the release of 2003's Mike Wheeler Band album, but he definitely steps up his game as a singer and songwriter with his second effort for Delmark, Self Made Man. Recording with his road-tested regular band, Wheeler knocks out a largely-original set including the lighthearted title track, where he sings "I'm a self made man and I made myself have the blues." Priceless! Features harmonica ace Omar Coleman on three tracks. (Release date: 10/16/12)