Release Date: 11/25/2003
Recording Date: 11/2003
Tracks: 16
Length: 00:51:12 Hrs
Label: Varese
Type: CD
- Genre/Styles
- Acoustic Blues, Acoustic Chicago Blues, Country Blues, Prewar Blues
Album Tracks (16)
Currently 0.0 / 5.0 Stars
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What the Critics Say
Actually a reissue of Absolutely the Best, which appeared on the Varese Sarabande in 2000, with the addition of �House Rent Stomp," this is far from the definitive Big Bill Broonzy (and certainly doesn't compare to the Trouble in Mind release on Smithsonian Folkways. Toward the end of his career, Broonzy slipped away from being the compleat bluesman who inspired Muddy Waters so much that he recorded a tribute to the master to become more of a folk singer, and that is more of the person reflected here. Granted, blues artists had a repertoire that extended beyond the blues, but �Down By The Riverside" and �In The Evening (When The Sun Goes Down)" feel more like folk singalongs, and even on �I Got Up One Mornin' Blues" there's no real sense of anguish -- he's more going through the motions. Perhaps the biggest problem is that Broonzy simply doesn't inject enough of himself into this material. He was one of the greats, although you'd be hard pressed to discover it from this set. Blues was indeed his business, but from the sound of this, it was time to retire. ~ Chris Nickson, All Music Guide
