The Real Deal: Greatest Hits, Vol. 1

Performer: Stevie Ray Vaughan
Producer: Bob Irwin (Compilation)
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: In his day, Stevie Ray Vaughan's explosive talent and passionate take on the blues not only impressed the hardcore genre enthusiasts but also reignited a public love affair--albeit brief--with the bluesman/guitar god archetype typified by Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. No traditionalist blues player has reached his height of stardom since. And given that early-2000s public adoration was reserved for minimalist avatars like Jack White and Nick Zinner, it's arguable that Vaughan was the last of his kind. THE ULTIMATE STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN: THE REAL DEAL, VOL. 1 strives to outdo previously released greatest-hits collections like Sony's THE ESSENTIAL STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN AND DOUBLE TROUBLE, and includes a mix of crisper hits like "Cold Shot," "Pride and Joy," and "The House is Rockin'" with more stretched-out fret odysseys like "Tin Pan Alley (A.K.A. The Roughest Place in Town)" and the live scorcher "The Sky Is Crying." There are glaring gaps here--most notably "Look at Little Sister" and his stirring covers of Stevie Wonder's "Superstition" and Hendrix's "Little Wing"--but one presumes that Epic is saving some choice cuts for Vol. 2. This is a fine 16-track introduction to Stevie Ray Vaughan. Here are the early rollicking blues hits like "Texas Flood," "Couldn't Stand the Weather," and "Cold Shot," to the middle period Hendrix-drenched "Say What?" "Come On, Pt. 3," and the late R&B-drenched tunes such as "Crossfire," "Tightrope," and "The House Is Rockin'." There is also a live version of Elmore James' "The Sky Is Crying" tagged on at the end that digs deep into blues history. This is a great introduction for novices and a cool comp for those who already have everything. ~ Thom Jurek

In the 1980s, many assumed blues rock was left for dead, but Stevie Ray Vaughan helped breath life back into it. More than a straight-ahead bluesman, Texas-native Vaughan was influenced as much by Jimi Hendrix as he was by Otis Rush, and the singer/songwriter/guitarist possessed jaw-dropping technical abilities and pure soul in equal amounts. With his trio Double Trouble (later expanded to include keyboardist Reese Wynans), Vaughan helped spearhead something of a blues revival in the '80s. Like his hero Hendrix, though, the flamboyant guitar hero died too soon, killed in a helicopter accident in 1990.

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