Throwback Thursday: The Complete Recordings, by Robert Johnson

There is one man who is considered to be responsible for so many genres of contemporary music as we know it to this day. A man who supposedly sold his soul to the Devil at the crossroads for the gift of being able to play guitar well. A blues man known as Robert Johnson. Despite the fact that he died at the age of 27 in his short career he wrote a whole slew of songs that are considered blues standards 80 years later such as Crossroads Blues, I Believe I'll Dust My Broom, Sweet Home Chicago, etc.

The quality of the recordings in The Complete Recordings is pretty shoddy, but that is to be expected given the time all of these songs were recorded in and what little budget Johnson had to work with. Despite that however, Johnson's talent shines through as brilliantly (if not more so) than any Joe Shmo with Pro-Tools. No one since has ever had the tender feel that Johnson gave to these songs. There is a reason this man is pretty much the king of the blues.

Sweet Home Chicago is not the loud raucous song that many blues and rock musicians in modern times have made it. In fact, it is a very slow to moderate tempo sweet sounding song about a man simply wishing to return home to the place he knows and loves best out of anywhere else in the world. The crackle of the poor quality recording gives the song that much more warmth and genuine feel.

Crossroads Blues is another example of a song that many rockers (most notably Cream) took and transformed into something almost entirely different from the original thing. The slide in the original version is iconic and influenced generations upon generations of blues musicians to come. The singing is also pretty soulful and unique. No one else comes close to sounding the way Johnson did when it comes to vocals.

If you want to hear the true birth of rock, soul, R&B, etc. it's right here in The Complete Recordings, by Robert Johnson. For many it might not be the kind of album they would put on their iPods or stream from Spotify or Pandora, but it still is an experience that anyone who appreciates the true roots of good music to have. It is like traveling in a time machine for sure. Definitely worth every penny spent.

The Complete Recordings, by Robert Johnson receives 4 out of 5 stars.

Buy the album on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Complete-Recordings-Centennial-Collection/dp/B004OFWLO0/ref=dp_return_2?ie=UTF8&n=5174&s=music