Lonnie Johnson - Steppin' on the Blues

File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Source: LL (from CD)
Released: 1990
Styles: Blues
Time: 58:28
Size: 134,6 MB
Covers: Full

(2:43) 1. Mr. Johnson's Blues
(2:59) 2. Sweet Potato Blues
(2:55) 3. Steppin' on the Blues
(3:00) 4. I Done Told You
(2:56) 5. Mean Old Bedbug Blues
(2:50) 6. Toothache Blues, Pt. 1
(3:22) 7. Toothache Blues, Pt. 2
(3:04) 8. Have to Change Keys (To Play These Blues)
(3:16) 9. Guitar Blues
(3:12) 10. She's Making Whoopee in Hell Tonight
(3:02) 11. Playing with the Strings
(3:02) 12. No More Women Blues
(3:04) 13. Deep Blue Sea Blues
(3:16) 14. No More Troubles Now
(3:25) 15. Got the Blues for Murder Only
(2:48) 16. Untitled
(3:01) 17. 6/88 Glide
(3:14) 18. Racketeer's Blues
(3:09) 19. I'm Nuts About That Gal

Groundbreaking guitar work of dazzling complexity that never fails to amaze -- and this stuff was cut in the 1920s! Lonnie Johnson's astonishingly fluid guitar work was massively influential (Robert Johnson, for one, was greatly swayed by his waxings), and his no-nonsense vocals (frequently laced with threats of violence -- "Got the Blues for Murder Only" and "She's Making Whoopee in Hell Tonight" are prime examples on this 19-cut collection) are scarcely less impressive. Johnson's torrid guitar duets with jazzman Eddie Lang retain their sense of legend over seven decades after they were cut. -- Allmusic.
Not only did Johnson pioneer single-string, blues-guitar improvisation, he still ranks as one of its greatest practitioners. His playing was remarkably fluent, sophisticated, and melodic, yet he never sacrificed emotion or bite. He was the first bluesman to make his mark as a virtuoso instrumentalist, despite his formidable vocals. These 19 early performances (1925-1932) include low-down blues, buoyant ragtime, and catchy hokum, plus examples of sheer instrumental wizardry. Victoria Spivey joins Johnson for the risque vocal duet "Toothache Blues" and Texas Alexander sings lead on a pair of songs, but the instrumentals inevitably remain the highlights. His two guitar duets with jazz great Eddie Lang plus his solo workout on "Playing With the Strings" are astonishing displays of technique. -- Amazon.

Steppin' on the Blues
Steppin' on the Blues artwork

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