Sonny Boy Williamson

Features1 month ago

‘Crusade’: When John Mayall Completed A Blues Hat-Trick

His third UK Top 10 album in a year proved just how successfully Mayall had taken blues to the British masses.

B.B. King Publicity Photo - Hiroyuki Arakawa Universal Music Archives

Features1 month ago

B.B. King: Still The King Of The Blues

Along with his beloved guitar 'Lucille', B.B. King brought the blues out of the margins and into the mainstream of America.

100 Greatest Blues Albums - A close-up of BB King's guitar

Features1 month ago

The 120 Best Blues Albums: Classic Records You Need To Hear

From Muddy Waters to B.B. King and Koko Taylor to Shemekia Copeland, discover the records that made it onto our list of the best blues albums ever.

Muddy Waters Hoochie Coochie Man featured image web optimised 1000

Features3 months ago

Best Chess Blues Records: An Essential Top 10

Chess Records laid the foundation for rock’n’roll, and its influence can still be felt today, as this guide to the 10 best Chess blues records shows.

In-Depth3 months ago

DIY Music: How Musicians Did It For Themselves

The notion of DIY music stretches back to 19th-century flutes made from bird bone, through punk anarchy and the digital revolution.

Features3 months ago

‘The Beano Album’: John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers And Eric Clapton Create A Classic

Affectionately known as ‘the Beano album,’ Bluesbreakers forever changed the landscape of rock music.

News4 months ago

James Cotton: Blues Harmonica Great, Muddy Waters Collaborator

Cotton also collaborated with a remarkable array of stars of both rock and blues, including Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin and B.B. King.

Pop Music The World'sMost Important Art Form featured image web optimised 1000

In-Depth4 months ago

Pop Music: The World’s Most Important Art Form

Many people mistake pop music as disposable. But from the blues to The Beatles, some of the most important artistic statements have been wrapped up in the world’s most popular songs.

Features5 months ago

The 25 Best Chess Albums To Own On Vinyl

Start your journey into one of the most influential labels in music with our list of the best Chess albums to own on vinyl.

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Features7 months ago

The 50 Best Chess Singles Of All Time

From blues and jazz to rock'n'roll and soul, here are the 50 best Chess Records singles to discuss and debate, but mainly to love.

Features9 months ago

‘Live At Leeds’: The Who Create A Live Classic On Campus

'Live At Leeds' was a definitive in-concert album and 'a very valid bit of plastic,' as Roger Daltrey said.

Features9 months ago

Jonny Lang: Young Bluesman, Old Soul

The guitar virtuoso from Fargo, North Dakota started kicking up a storm on disc at the age of 14.

Features1 year ago

Remembering Chess Records First Hit: Gene Ammons’ ‘My Foolish Heart’

Chess Records had its first hit record on 29 July 1950, Gene Ammons' ‘My Foolish Heart’, then went on to provide the soundtrack to Black America in the 1950s.