The Very Best of Buddy Guy

Performer: Buddy Guy
Artist: Eric Clapton; Willie Dixon; Junior Wells; Otis Rush
Producer: James Austin (Compilation)
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Personnel: Buddy Guy (vocals, guitar); Eric Clapton, Otis Rush, Phil Guy, Lefty Bates, Terry Taylor (guitar); Junior Wells (harmonica); Jarret Gibson, Bob Neely, Donald Hankins, Harold Ashby, McKinley Easton, Carlson Oliver, Eddie Jones, Jackie Brenston, A.C. Reed (saxophone); Sonny Turner, Murray Watson (trumpet); Little Brother Montgomery, Harold Burrage, Otis Spann, Lafayette Leake, Leonard Caston, Junior Mance, Dr. John, Pinetop Perkins (keyboards); Willie Dixon, Jack Meyers, Ernest Johnson, Carl Radle, Leroy Stewart, Mike Morrison (bass); Fred Below, Odie Payne, Clifton James, Jesse Lewis, Jim Gordon, Roosevelt Shaw, Dallas Taylor, Ray Allison (drums). THE VERY BEST OF BUDDY GUY contains recordings from 1958-1985. The Very Best of Buddy Guy is a credible attempt to digitally summarize Buddy Guy's entire pre-Silvertone career on a single 18-song disc. It encompasses the guitarist's 1957 demo "The Way You Been Treating Me," two killer Cobras, four of his hottest Chess sides, a couple notable Vanguards, a pair of alluring Atlantics, and three tremendously unsubtle 1981 items from Guy's days with the British JSP label. ~ Bill Dahl Legendary Chicago bluesman Buddy Guy was one of the most progressive blues artists of the '50s and '60s who still maintained roots in the Windy City tradition pioneered by the likes of Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and B.B. King. This retrospective examines several phases of the singer/guitarist's career, from his earliest demos in 1957 to his early-'80s recordings, with stellar examples of what made Guy a legend in his own time. "When My Left Eye Jumps" is a haunting 1962 recording of an eerie Willie Dixon composition, with pianist Lafayette Leake supporting Guy's telling of the superstitious tale. "My Time After a While" showcases the urgent, emotive vocal and piercing, rapid-fire guitar that were Guy's trademarks. The 1970 version included here of one of Guy's earliest singles, "First Time I Met the Blues" is a tour-de-force, an unforgettable, scorching portrait of a man who cannot escape from the dark side of life. There are so many great tracks to choose from in Guy's catalog that no compilation could ever be truly comprehensive, but this one comes incredibly close.

Dirty Linen (Apr/May 93, p.87) - "...the title of this single CD is accurate; it is the perfect case brief for Guy's skills....The man is a master of the perfectly controlled intense guitar solo that works its way from a whisper to a scream..." Living Blues (Sept.-Oct./92, p.55) - "...does a good job of covering the breadth of Guy's career...an excellent introduction to his music..." Stereophile (2/93, pp.211-215) - "...the generous playing time isn't wasted on a single lame cut..."

Eric Clapton once called Buddy Guy "the greatest blues guitarist ever." Guy, along with contemporary Magic Sam, took the sounds of Chicago blues of the 1950s and ratcheted them up a notch, in the process creating a new form of controlled blues mayhem. Born in Louisiana, he moved to Chicago as a young man in 1957 and served an apprenticeship with Chicago blues king Muddy Waters while getting his own solo career underway. Guy's frequent collaborations with harmonica player Junior Wells are among his best work.

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