Heritage of the Blues: Skull & Crossbones Blues

Performer: Johnny Shines
Engineer: Pete Welding
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Personnnel: Johnny Shines (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars); Luther Allison, Philip Walker (electric guitar); Big Walter Horton (harmonica); David Li (baritone saxophone); Otis Spann, Nat Dove (piano); Lee Jackson, Prince Candy (bass); Fred Below, Bill Brown (drums). Producers: Pete Welding, Bruce Bromberg, Frank Scott, John Harmer. Includes liner notes by Dave Alvin. This is part of Hightone's Heritage of the Blues series. Personnel: Johnny Shines (vocals, guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Luther Allison, Phillip Walker (electric guitar); Big Walter Horton (harmonica); David Li (baritone saxophone); Nathaniel Dove, Otis Spann (piano); Fred Below, Bill Brown (drums). Audio Remasterer: Bob Stone. Recording information: Altadena, CA (06/1966-11/1970); Los Angeles, CA (06/1966-11/1970); Onederful Studios, Chicago, IL (06/1966-11/1970); Vault Studio (06/1966-11/1970). Photographer: Frank Scott. Arranger: Johnny Shines. As part of the Heritage of the Blues series on Hightone Records, Skull & Crossbones Blues provides a well-rounded retrospective of blues guitarist and onetime Robert Johnson cohort Johnny Shines. These 12 tracks capture Shines in a number of different settings, including both acoustic and electric, solo, and fronting a legendary Chicago band with Big Walter Horton, Otis Spann, and Fred Below. Shines' Robert Johnson influence is investigated on versions of "Standing at the Crossroads" and "Rollin' & Tumblin'," while material recorded in Los Angeles in the 1970s includes a snippet of guitarist Luther Allison at the beginning of his career. The tracks have been digitally remastered and lovingly compiled by fan and Hightone artist Dave Alvin. ~ Al Campbell

Delta bluesman Johnny Shines is most famous for having traveled and performed with Robert Johnson in the '30s, but his career extended several decades beyond Johnson's. He eventually wound up in Chicago, where he recorded for Job Records, but like many blues players of his generation Shines drifted out of music. In the late '60s he was among those whose careers were given a fresh start via "rediscovery" by the folk-revival generation. Shines began recording and performing again with a vengeance, his gritty voice and slide guitar still powerful. Failing health slowed him down in the early '80s, but even then he continued to play until his death in 1992.

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