Blues is when a good person feels bad.

Rejection and loneliness, crying and melancholy, the bitterness of life, seasoned with burning passion, from which the heart is excited - this is the blues. This is not just music, this is real, true magic.

Overflowing with good sadness Bright Side collected two dozen legendary blues compositions that have stood the test of time. Naturally, we could not cover the entire vast layer of this divine music, so we traditionally suggest sharing in the comments those compositions that do not leave you indifferent.

Canned Heat - On The Road Again

Blues enthusiasts and collectors have revived Canned Heat in their work great amount forgotten blues classics of the 1920s and 30s. The group achieved its greatest fame in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Well, their most famous song was On The Road Again.

Muddy Waters - Hoochie Coochie Man

The mysterious expression “hoochie coochie man” is known to everyone who loves the blues even a little, because this is the name of a song considered a classic of the genre. "Hoochie coochie" was called sexy women's dance, which captivated audiences during the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. But the expression “hoochie coochie man” came into use only after 1954, when Muddy Waters recorded a Willie Dixon song that instantly became popular.

John Lee Hooker - Boom Boom

Boom Boom was released as a single in 1961. By that time, Lee Hooker had been playing at the Apex Bar in Detroit for quite some time and was constantly late for work. When he appeared, the bartender Willa would say, “Boom boom, you’re late again.” And so every evening. One day Lee Hooker thought that this “boom boom” might make a good song. And so it happened.

Nina Simone - I Put A Spell On You

Songwriter Screamin Jay Hawkins originally intended to record I Put A Spell On You in the style of a blues love ballad. However, according to Hawkins, “the producer got the whole band drunk and we recorded this fantastic version. I don't even remember the recording process. Before that I was just a regular blues singer, Jay Hawkins. Then I realized I could make more destructive songs and scream to death.”

In this collection we have included the most sensual version of this song performed by the magnificent Nina Simone.

Elmore James - Dust My Broom

Written by Robert Johnson, Dust My Broom became a blues standard after it was performed by Elmore James. Subsequently, it was covered more than once by other performers, but, in our opinion, the best version can be called the version by Elmore James.

Howlin Wolf - Smokestack Lightnin'

Another blues standard. Wolfe's howl can make you empathize with the author, even if you don't understand the language in which he sings. Incomparable.

Eric Clapton - Layla

Eric Clapton dedicated this song to Pattie Boyd, his wife George Harrison ( The Beatles), with whom they secretly met. Layla is an incredibly romantic and touching song about a man hopelessly in love with a woman who also loves him, but remains unavailable.

B.B. King - Three O'Clock Blues

It was this song that made Riley B. King, a native of the cotton plantations, famous. This is a common story like: “I woke up early. Where did my woman go? A true classic performed by the King of the Blues.

Buddy Guy & Junior Wells - Messin' With The Kid

Blues standard performed by Junior Wells and virtuoso guitarist Buddy Guy. It's simply impossible to sit still with this 12-bar blues.

Janis Joplin - Kozmic Blues

As Eric Clapton said, “The blues is the song of a man who has no woman or whose woman has left him.” In the case of Janis Joplin, the blues turned into a real frantic emotional striptease of a hopelessly in love woman. The blues in her performance is not just a song with repeated vocal parts. These are constantly changing emotional experiences, when plaintive pleas move from quiet sobs to a hoarse desperate cry.

Big Mama Thornton - Hound Dog

Thornton was considered one of the coolest performers of her time. Although Big Mama was famous for only one hit, Hound Dog, it remained at the top of the Billboard rhythm and blues lists for 7 weeks in 1953 and sold out worldwide. total almost two million copies.

Robert Johnson - Crossroad Blues

For a long time, Johnson tried to master the blues guitar in order to perform with his comrades. However, this art was extremely difficult for him. For some time he parted with his friends and disappeared, and when he appeared in 1931, the level of his skill increased many times over. On this occasion, Johnson told a story that there was a certain magical crossroads at which he made a deal with the devil in exchange for the ability to play the blues. Maybe the damn cool song Crossroad Blues is about this particular crossroads?

Gary Moore - Still Got The Blues

The most famous song in Russia by Gary Moore. According to the musician himself, it was recorded in the studio the first time from start to finish. And we can safely say that even those who have absolutely no understanding of the blues know it.

Tom Waits - Blue Valentine

Waits has a distinctive, husky voice, described by critic Daniel Dutchhols as: "It's like it's been soaked in a barrel of bourbon, like it's been left in a smokehouse for months and then ridden over when it's taken out." His lyrical songs are stories, often told in the first person, with grotesque images of seedy places and characters battered by life. An example of such a song is Blue Valentine.

Steve Ray Vaughan - Texas Flood

Another blues standard. The 12-bar blues performed by a virtuoso guitarist touches the soul and gives you goosebumps.

Ruth Brown - I Don't Know

Song from the wonderful film "Moonlight Tariff". She plays at the very moment when main character, nervous before the meeting, lights candles and pours wine into glasses. Ruth Brown's soulful voice is simply captivating.

Harpo Slim - I'm A King Bee

A song with simple lyrics, written in best traditions blues, helped Slim become famous overnight. The song was covered many times by different musicians, but no one did it better than Slim. After the Rolling Stones covered the song, Mick Jagger himself said: “What's the point of hearing I'm A King Bee performed by us when Harpo Slim sings it best?”

Willie Dixon - Back Door Man

In the American South, the title "back door man" referred to a person who meets with married woman and leaves out the back door before her husband gets home. It is about such a guy that the magnificent Willie Dixon’s song “Back Door Man”, which became a classic of Chicago blues.

Little Walter - My Baby

With his revolutionary harmonica technique, Little Walter ranks alongside blues masters such as Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix. He is considered the performer who set the standard for blues harmonica playing. Written for Walter Willie Dixon, My Baby showcases his superb acting and style.

The blues world is full of brilliant musicians who gave their all on every album, and some of them became legends without ever releasing a single record! JazzPeople has chosen the 5 best blues albums recorded by great musicians that influenced not only their own life and creativity, but also influenced the entire development of music in this genre.

B.V. King – Why I Sing the Blues

"King of the Blues" for his many years creative career released more than 40 albums and forever remained in the hearts of millions of fans around the world. In 1983, his 17th album, Why I Sing the Blues, was released, which literally answered the question of why King sings the blues.

The tracklist includes such famous musician compositions as Ain’t Nobody Home, Ghetto Woman, Why I Sing the Blues, To Know You is To Love You, and of course, the first of them was the famous The Thrill is Gone, which at one time received enormous popularity and many awards. The music of the blues maestro has always evoked deep emotions and reciprocal feelings in listeners, and on this disc, King’s most “tart” songs were collected, essentially allowing us to “enter into conversation” with the bluesman and listen to his exciting story, in this case, more than one.

Robert Johnson – King of the Delta Blues Singers

The great Robert Johnson, who according to legend sold his soul to the devil in exchange for learning to play the blues, for his short life(Johnson died at the age of 27) did not record a single album, but nevertheless, his music is not only alive to this day, it haunts how famous musicians, and blues fans. The guitarist's entire life was shrouded in an aura of mysticism and strange coincidences, which was directly reflected in his work.

In addition to numerous remakes and re-releases of his compositions, the 1998 album (the official re-release of the 1961 album) definitely deserves attention. King of the Delta Blues Singers. The cover of the record itself already sets the mood for solitary listening and complete immersion in the complex world of Robert Johnson, as if still alive. If you want to try to understand the blues, start with Johnson, with his soul-stirring Cross Road Blues, Walking Blues, Me and the Devil Blues, Hellhound on My Trail, Traveling Riverside Blues.

Stevie Ray Vaughan – Texas Flood

Tragically killed (he crashed in a helicopter in 1990 at the age of 35), he still managed to leave a tremendous mark on the history of blues music. The work of the singer and guitarist stood out for its originality and powerful manner of performance. The musician collaborated and performed in concerts with many of the same famous figures blues, for example, like Buddy Guy, Albert King and others.

In any improvisation, Vaughn conveyed his feelings and emotions with brilliance and genuine openness, thanks to which the world blues was replenished with new hits.

His colorful album Texas Flood, recorded with the Double Trouble team and released in 1983, included the most famous compositions that later brought the greatest popularity to the musician, including Pride and Joy, Texas Flood, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Lenny, and of course, languid, leisurely Tin Pan Alley. The bluesman shares with his listeners not just his music, but a part of his soul in every tune he performs, and all of them are certainly worthy of close attention.

Buddy Guy – Damn Right, I've Got the Blues

It is not surprising that a bluesman with such musical talent was quickly noticed and taken under his protection. Buddy Guy's unique, virtuoso playing and charisma quickly brought him fame and respect from colleagues and listeners around the world, and an album with a flashy title Damn Right, I've Got the Blues received a Grammy Award in 1991.

The record is replete with excellent lyrics, unique performances and emotional transmission in the compositions, and in style - electro-blues, Chicago, and at times even archaic blues. The dynamics and character of the record are set immediately by the first song – Damn Right, I’ve Got the Blues, continues in Five Long Years, There Is Something on Your Mind, takes us to night world musician in Black Night, after which he awakens with the dynamic Let Me Love You Baby, and at the end of the disc, the musician pays tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughn, who died in 1990, in the track Rememberin’ Stevie.

T-Bone Walker – Good Feelin'

You can get into the spirit of real Texas blues by listening to the album of the temperamental T-Bone Walker, Good Feelin’, recorded in 1969 and received a Grammy a year later. The disc contains the artist’s great tracks – Good Feelin’, Every Day I Have the Blues, Sail On, Little Girl, Sail On, See You Next Time, Vacation Blues.

The bluesman had a significant influence on the work of many talented musicians, including Otis Rush, Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, Freddie King and many others. The album reveals Walker's true character, showcasing the greatness of his playing, virtuosity and vocal technique. What makes the record special is that it begins and ends with Walker's informal narration, in which he accompanies himself on the piano. The musician greets the audience and invites them to focus on what comes next.

Many, many rock musicians were inspired by the blues. His sadness, sincerity and openness to the hearts of ordinary people. And wherever the blues sounded, whether on plantations, on river levees, or in a freight train car, he was the friend of the toiler and the wanderer, singing about his misadventures, skillfully moving his hand all over the fretboard. So we take a moment to honor the genre by listing the Top 5 great bluesmen according to the site website. At the end of the article, a bonus is the opportunity to download for free the blues of famous bluesmen, which this article is about.

Blues on guitar. Top 5 great bluesmen according to the website site

5. T-Bone Walker

The blues wouldn't be what it is today without T-Bone Walker and his innovative electric guitar sound. T-Bone Walker's development as a musician was greatly influenced by the musical roots of his family. His stepfather taught him to play the guitar. By the age of 15, T-Bone was already performing professionally, and in 1929 he made his first recordings. His distinctive style: smooth phrasing, vibrato and blues bends. Playing Gibson guitars, Walker left a great legacy in this genre of music. Listen to T-Bone Blues, or find this composition in the collection “Blues on Guitar Tabs” (at the end of the article) and then you will not confuse Walker’s playing with someone else.

4. Robert Johnson (Robert Johnson)

Many famous rockers, including Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Ry Cooder, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith and others, learned about the world of guitar sound while performing this musician’s compositions. The feature film Crossroads (1986), in which another guitar genius, Steve Vai, starred, is dedicated to the figure of Robert Johnson.

The life and work of Robert Johnson is shrouded in many myths and idle speculation. In particular, there is a legend that for the sake of the ability to play the guitar, this man sold his soul to the Devil, making a deal at a magical crossroads. Robert Johnson is one of the first musicians (if not the first!) to use a slide (bottleneck) when playing. A slide is a hollow tube, most often the neck of a bottle (hence the name - bottleneck), which slides along the strings, emitting specific guitar sounds, which in their expression are comparable only to the human voice. Johnson is said to have played Stella and Kalamazoo guitars. To understand the peculiarities of Robert Johnson's style, listen to his Cross Road Blues. The gtp tabs of this musician will help you learn the blues.

3. Eric Clapton (Eric Clapton)

Eric Clapton is known for the variety of styles in which he worked, but the blues has always remained in the heart and soul of this musician. Eric was brought up in musical family and started playing guitar at the age of 13. Blues has become an integral part of the musician's career. Among the guitarists who influenced his work, Eric names BB King, Freddie King and Robert Johnson. Clapton used many guitars during his long musical career. Including Gibson Les Paul and Fender Stratocaster. Listen to Eric Clapton's style in Bell Bottom Blues.

2. Stevie Ray Vaughan (Stevie Ray Vaughan)

Steven Ray Vaughn is from Dallas, Texas. The maestro began pouring out his soul to the guitar at the age of 7. Steve's style is recognizable by his distinctive lever and tremolo work. right hand. Jazz, blues and rock are the styles in which Steve Ray Vaughn's talent was most clearly revealed. The musician primarily plays Fender Stratocaster guitars. The composition Texas Flood will help you hear first-class blues from Steve. Now hurry up for the blues gtp tabs to try to adopt this unsurpassed presentation!

1. BB King

This man is considered by many to be the most influential guitarist of all time. And these are not empty words, if you remember how many talented musicians BB influenced. The story of his life is, in essence, the story of the electric blues. A native of Mississippi, B.B. King sang in church choir. But music really began to speak to him at the age of 12, with the advent of the guitar in his life. Thanks to his long career, the great bluesman has released over 50 albums. BB King became famous thanks to his special sound style, which is characterized by a refined vibrato and smooth bends. Multiple Grammy Awards, induction into the Blues Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and universal love made King a legend during his lifetime. Plays B.B. King on the Gibson ES-355 guitar he named female name Lusssil. Listen to the King of the Blues on one of his most iconic themes. The Thrill Is Gone. The passion is gone, baby!

Blues performers have almost never enjoyed the same popularity as the kings of pop music, and not only in our country, but also in the homeland of this style - in the USA. Complicated sound, minor melody and peculiar vocals often repel the mass listener who is accustomed to simpler rhythms.

Musicians who adapted this music of the black South and created more accessible derivatives (rhythm and blues, boogie-woogie and rock and roll) gained great fame. Many superstars (Little Richard, Ray Charles and others) began their careers as blues performers and returned to their roots many times.

Blues is not just a style and a way of life. Any narcissism and thoughtless optimism are alien to him - traits characteristic of pop music. The name of the style is derived from the phrase blue devils, literally meaning “blue devils”. It is these bad inhabitants of the underworld that torment the soul of a person for whom everything is wrong in this life. But the energy of the music demonstrates a reluctance to submit to difficult circumstances and expresses complete determination to fight them.

Folk music, stylistically formed throughout the 19th century, became known to mass listeners in the twenties of the next century. Huddy Ledbetter and Lemon Jefferson, first popular artists blues, in in a certain sense broke the monolithic cultural picture of the “jazz age” and diluted the dominance of big bands with a new sound. Mamie Smith recorded the album Crazy Blues, which suddenly became very popular among white and colored people.

The thirties and forties of the 20th century became the era of boogie-woogie. This new direction was characterized by an increased role in the use of organs, faster tempo and increased expressiveness of vocals. The overall harmony remained the same, but the sound was as close as possible to the tastes and preferences of the mass listener. blues of the mid and late forties - Joe Turner, Jimmy Rushing - created the basis for what a few years later would be called rock and roll, with all the characteristic features of this style (a powerful rich sound created, as a rule, by four musicians, a dance rhythm and in an extremely exalted stage manner).

Blues performers of the early forties and sixties, such as B.B. King, Sony Boy Williamson, Ruth Brown, Besie Smith and many others, created masterpieces that enriched the treasury of world music, as well as works virtually unknown to modern listeners. This music is enjoyed only by a few fans who know, appreciate and collect recordings by their favorite artists.

Many popularize the genre contemporary performers blues Foreign musicians such as Eric Clapton and Chris Rea perform compositions and sometimes record joint albums with older classics who made a huge contribution to the formation of the style.

Russian blues musicians ("Chizh and Co", "Road to Mississippi", "Blues League", etc.) went their own way. They create their own compositions, in which, in addition to the characteristic minor melody, ironic lyrics play an important role, expressing the same rebellion and dignity of a good person who feels bad...

Blues singers can be called freedom singers. In their songs and in their music they sing about life itself, without embellishment, but at the same time with hope for brighter times. In front of you best blues performers of all time, according to the JazzPeople portal.

Top Blues Artists

They say that the blues is when a good person feels bad. We have collected the most famous blues singers, whose work reflects the structure of this difficult world.

B.B. King

King called all his guitars "Lucille". There is a story associated with this name from concert activities. One day, during a performance, two men started a fight and knocked over a kerosene stove. This caused a fire, all the musicians hastily left the establishment, but B.B. King, risking himself, returned for the guitar.

Monument to B.B. King in Montreux, Switzerland

Later, having learned that the cause of the fight was a woman named Lucille, he named his guitar that way as a sign that no woman was worth such nonsense.

For more than 20 years, King fought diabetes mellitus, which caused his death at the age of 89 on May 14, 2015.

Robert Leroy Johnson

- a bright but quickly passing star in the world of blues music - was born on May 8, 1911. IN teenage years he met famous blues musicians Sun House and Willie Brown and decided to start playing blues professionally.

Robert Leroy Johnson

Several months of training with the team only resulted in the guy remaining a good amateur. Then Robert swore that he would play great and disappeared for several months. When he reappeared, his level of play became noticeably higher. Johnson himself said that he contacted the devil. The legend of a musician who sold his soul for the ability to play the blues has spread throughout the world.

Robert Leroy Johnson died at age 28 on August 16, 1938. He was allegedly poisoned by his mistress's husband. His family had no money, so he was buried in the municipal cemetery. Johnson's legacy is difficult to count - although he recorded very little himself, his songs were often performed by many world-famous stars (Eric Clapton, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, Bob Dylan).

Muddy Waters

- founder of the Chicago school - born on April 4, 1913 in the small town of Rolling Fork. As a child, he learned to play the harmonica, and in his teens he mastered the guitar.

Muddy Waters

Simple acoustic guitar didn't really suit Muddy. He really started playing only at the moment when he switched to an electric guitar. The powerful rumble and abrupt voice glorified the aspiring singer and performer. In essence, Muddy Waters' work straddles the line between blues and rock and roll. The musician died on April 30, 1983.

Gary Moore

- famous Irish guitarist, singer and songwriter - born April 4, 1952. In his career he experimented a lot with in various directions music, but still gave preference to the blues.

Gary Moore

In one of his interviews, Moore admitted that he likes the dialogue that arises between vocals and guitar in blues. This opens up a wide field for experimentation.

Interestingly, although Gary Moore was left-handed, he learned to play the guitar as a right-hander from childhood and performed this way throughout his life until his death on February 6, 2011.

Eric Clapton

- one of the most influential figures British rock– born March 30, 1945. The only musician to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame three times - twice as part of bands and once as a solo artist. Clapton played various genres, but always gravitated towards the blues, which made his playing recognizable and characteristic.

Eric Clapton

Sonny Boy Williamson I and II

Sonny Boy Williamson, American blues harmonica player and singer, was born on December 5, 1912.

There are two famous Sonny Boy Williamsons in the world. The fact is that Sonny Boy Williamson II took the pseudonym of the same name in honor of his idol - Sonny Boy Williamson I. The fame of the second Sonya greatly overshadowed the legacy of the first, although it was he who was an innovator in his field.

Sonny Boy Williamson I

Sonny Boy was one of the most famous and original harmonica players. He is distinguished by a special style of performance: simple, melodic, smooth. The lyrics of his songs are subtle and lyrical.

Sonny Boy Williamson II

Williamson II valued personal comfort rather than fame, so he sometimes allowed himself to disappear for a couple of months to rest, and then reappear on stage. Sonny Boy Williamson II passed away on May 25, 1965.