The Ultimate Collection (1948-1990) [Box]

Performer: John Lee Hooker
Artist: Jimmy Reed; Otis Spann; Willie Dixon; Memphis Slim; The Vandellas; Milt Hinton; Eddie Taylor; Bonnie Raitt
Producer: James Austin (Compilation)
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: This set comes packaged in a thick 6" x 12" box with deluxe booklet. The selections span the period between 1948's "Boogie Chillun" and Hooker's 1990 performance of "I'm In The Mood" with Bonnie Raitt and Roy Rogers at the "Tribute To Roy Orbison" concert. Most of the 32 original tracks appear on CD for the first time. Personnel includes: John Lee Hooker, Eddie Kirkland, Bonnie Raitt (vocals, guitar); The Vandellas (vocals); Alan Wilson (guitar, harmonica); Eddie Taylor, Eddie Burns, Muddy Waters, Sammy Lawhorn, T-Bone Walker, Luther Johnson, Henry Vestine, Roy Rogers (guitar); Louis Myers (harmonica); Hank Cosby (tenor sax); James Watkins, Lafayette Leake, Otis Spann (piano); Tom Parker (organ); Sam Jones, George Washington, Milt Hinton, Willie Dixon, Pete Cruickshank, Eddie Taylor, Mac Arnold, Antonio de la Barreda (bass); Louis Hayes, Tom Whitehead, David "Panama" Francis, Fred Below, Dave Boorman, Al Duncan, Jump Jackson, Francis Clay, Adolfo de la Parra (drums). Includes liner notes by Greg Dust. Digitally remastered by Bill Inglot and Ken Perry. JOHN LEE HOOKER, THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION lives up to the promise of its title. The 32-song, two-CD set brings together more than four decades of material from the bluesman's illustrious career, from a track that appeared on Hooker's first foray into vinyl in 1948, to a live track with Bonnie Raitt that was recorded at a 1990 concert. On the spare, sexual-innuendo-suffused "Terraplane Blues," (the most recent bit of studio work included in the collection) Hooker's voice has an aged, leathery quality. Roy Rogers provides silky acoustic slide-guitar accompaniment. "Let's Go Out Tonight" chronicles the search for an alternate, alfresco setting in which to engage in behavior normally reserved for the bedroom. The muted growl of Hooker's guitar provides the backdrop for most of these tales of broken love and general despondency. THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION would be an ideal addition to the collection of any John Lee Hooker fan and a thorough introduction for a neophyte.

Mojo (Publisher) (10/01, p.168) - "...This is what Doctor Blues ordered..."

John Lee Hooker is the most elemental of the electric blues giants. His spooky musical minimalism--plaintive yet powerful vocals coupled with guitar work alternately haunting and toe-tapping--has inspired countless artists, from contemporaries like Slim Harpo to acolytes the Rolling Stones. Few, however, can summon up the inexplicable erotic charge at the heart of Hooker's best performances. The patented "boogie" rhythm upon which seemingly every blues-rock and hard rock band of the 1970s wrought variations was virtually invented by Hooker. One of the most-recorded post-war bluesmen, Hooker released records on countless labels, working much of the time in Detroit and Chicago. He kept working well into his eighties, his style growing ever more refined and penetrating.

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