Elmore James - King Of The Slide Guitar (CD)

Issued with 16-page booklet.

Elmore's last great recordings occurred in the 1960s when he was signed by New York producer/label-owner Bobby Robinson. Unlike many of his contemporaries, James seemingly got better as the years went by and while none of the sides feature a slide guitar anywhere near as nasty as his early Modern and Flair recordings, he's still obviously giving it all on each and every side. These recordings are the ones most commonly issued on James and have surfaced on so many different compilations -- all with varying levels of sound quality--that it would be futile to list them all here. Fortunately, to make things easier we have this two-disc 50-song box set rounding up at least one extant take of everything Elmore recorded with Robinson at the helm. While some of the material are recuts of his best known tunes ("Dust My Broom" resurfaces here in two versions from two different sessions and the version of "It Hurts Me Too" included here -- it was originally cut for Chief in the late '50s -- became a posthumous hit for him), the majority of it breaks new ground and stands as some of Elmore's most emotion-laden work. Nice essays in the booklet make up for the disgusting art work that adorns the box.

John A. Williamson (aka: Homesick James)

Format: CD

Media Condition:  Very Good Plus (VG+)
Sleeve Condition: Very Good Plus (VG+)
Country:    US  
Released:  26 May 1994
Genre:       Blues
Style:         Chicago Blues

Track listing:

1-1. The Sky Is Crying
1-2. Baby Please Set A Date
1-3. Held My Baby Last Night
1-4. Dust My Broom
1-5. Bobby's Rock
1-6. Rollin' And Tumblin'
1-7. Done Somebody Wrong
1-8. Something Inside Of Me
1-9. I'm Worried
1-10. Fine Little Mama
1-11. I Need You
1-12. Early One Morning
1-13. I Can't Stop Loving You
1-14. Strange Angel
1-15. She Done Moved
1-16. My Baby's Gone
1-17. Stranger Blues
1-18. Anna Lee
1-19. (My) Bleeding Heart
1-20. Standing At The Crossroads
1-21. One Way Out
1-22. My Kind Of Woman
1-23. Person To Person
1-24. Find My Kind Of Woman (Previously Unreleased Alternate Take)
1-25. Find My Kind Of Woman
1-26. So Unkind
2-1. Got To Move
2-2. Shake Your Moneymaker
2-3. Look On Yonder Wall
2-4. Sunnyland Train
2-5. Mean Mistreatin' Mama
2-6. Go Back Home Again
2-7. You Know You're Wrong
2-8. You Know You Done Me Wrong
2-9. I've Got A Right To Love My Baby
2-10. Every Day I Have The Blues
2-11. Dust My Broom
2-12. It Hurts Me Too
2-13. Talk To Me Baby
2-14. Can't Stop Loving My Baby
2-15. She's Got To Go
2-16. Hand In Hand
2-17. Pickin' The Blues
2-18. Twelve Year Old Boy
2-19. I Believe
2-20. I Gotta Go Now
2-21. Up Jumped Elmore
2-22. Make My Dreams Come True
2-23. Back In Mississippi (A Conversation)
2-24. Blacksnake Blues

Credits: 

Art Direction, Design, Design [Booklet] - Kim Champagne
Baritone Saxophone - Paul Williams (9)
Bass - Homesick James
Bass - James Williamson (2)
Bass - Sammy Lee Bully
Bass - Unknown Artist
Compilation Producer - Diana Reid Haig
Coordinator [Special Projects] - Mark Pucci
Design [Booklet] - Michael Diehl
Drums - Belton Evans
Drums - Earl Williams
Drums - King Mose
Drums - Odie Payne
Drums - Sam Myers
Drums - Unknown Artist
Engineer - Dick Charles
Guitar - Riff Ruffin
Guitar - Wild Jimmy Spruill
Guitar, Vocals - Elmore James
Harmonica - Sam Myers
Illustration - Josh Gosfield
Liner Notes - Chris Morris (15)
Liner Notes [Introduction] - Phil Walden
Liner Notes, Research, Compiled By - Diana Reid Haig
Mastered By [Digital] - Lee Herschberg
Photography By [Elmore James] - Georges Adins
Piano - Johnny "Big Moose" Walker
Piano - Johnny Acey
Piano - Little Johnny Jones
Piano - Walking Willie
Producer, Engineer - Bobby Robinson
Saxophone - J.T. Brown
Saxophone - Paul Williams (9)
Saxophone, Piano - Unknown Artist
Tenor Saxophone - George Coleman
Trombone - Dickie Harris
Trumpet - Danny Moore