Short Cuts

At risk of sounding like a broken record, original blues vinyl pressings are cousins to jazz and soul LPs in terms of scarcity and availability in super-clean condition. That is why they are often super-expensive propositions in the collector’s marketplace. This makes these four truly outstanding Acoustic Sounds-pedigreed reissues from Verve/UMe and Craft Recordings’ Bluesville series all the more important — in effect, bringing this quartet of classic LP rarities back into more widespread availability in a high-quality manner, in turn making for some impressive listening. In short, the four LPs I’m reviewing here from John Lee Hooker, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mississippi John Hurt, and Lonnie Johnson With Elmer Snowden are all outstanding editions — true smokers in their own right!

Before I get to the play-by-play on each album, let’s recap the DNA of these outstanding releases. From official materials issued by Verve and Craft Recordings, we have learned that all four titles share some similar background. They are mastered in an all-analog process from the original analog tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl, packaged in high-quality tip-on gatefold jackets that replicate the original packaging, and have been mastered and cut to lacquer by Matthew Lutthans at the Mastering Lab at Quality Record Pressings (QRP).

All of these titles were crafted in conjunction with respected audiophile vinyl authority Acoustic Sounds, and the LPs were manufactured at their QRP facility (which, AP editor Mike Mettler adds, was recently featured in an excellent New York Times profile of Chad Kassem). While Craft’s titles feature faithfully reproduced tip-on style single-pocket jackets, and the Verve albums are presented in deluxe gatefold form, all feature classic (and classy!) deluxe vintage-style glossy laminated covers.

The SRPs on the two Verve/UMe gatefold releases (Hooker and Hopkins) are $38.99 each, while the pair of Craft/Bluesville single-pocket titles (Hurt and Johnson) come in at $32.99 each. All four of them are available to order from Music Direct via the respective MD link graphics that follow each individual review (and if any of them happen to be currently sold out, you can put in a reserve request to be notified when they’re being restocked).

And now, let’s get hip-deep into the blues, four times.

JOHN LEE HOOKER
IT SERVE YOU RIGHT TO SUFFER
180g 1LP (Impulse!/Verve/UMe)
MUSIC: 10
SOUND: 10

Of the four albums reviewed here, 1966’s It Serve You Right to Suffer is easily my favorite. [Mine too! —AP ed. MM] John Lee Hooker albums have often intrigued me, but few have floored me right from the start. Suffer is a knockout, and I think it has to do with the combination of excellent production quality — which original label Impulse! was renowned for — and a great support band of seasoned jazz players. Hence, Hooker’s rawness here is buoyed by a deeper, more swinging drive. Featuring session icons Panama Francis on drums, Milt Hinton on bass, and Barry Galbraith on guitar, I can concur with the official press materials issued for this release that states, “this collaboration delivers some of the finest John Lee Hooker material ever recorded with a full band.”

In short, this LP rocks!

Some of my favorite tracks on Suffer are “Shake It Baby” (Side 1, Track 1), “Bottle Up and Go” (Side 1, Track 3), a swingin’ boogie take on Berry Gordy Jr.’s “Money” (Side 2, Track 3) — replete with Dicky Wells’ New Orleans-flavored trombone support! — and the title track that wraps up the album so perfectly (Side 2, Track 4).

Not surprisingly, It Serve You Right to Suffer is one of those in-demand rare blues albums, so super-clean originals are elusive. Only one copy of the 1967 stereo repress edition is available on Discogs at the time of this posting — with the early orange cross-style Impulse! label, no less — selling for about $170 in NM condition. Meanwhile, 1968 red-ring-designed label copies are more plentiful, but only in VG+ condition and selling between $25 and $90. There is also an excellent 2023-released 2LP 45rpm edition from Analogue Productions going for $60, but there’s no doubt this excellent, and quite affordable, 180g 1LP Suffer reissue was much-needed!

LIGHTNIN’ HOPKINS
LIGHTNIN’ STRIKES
180g 1LP (Verve Folkways/UMe)
MUSIC: 9
SOUND: 9

Another fine LP from 1966, Lightnin’ Hopkins’ Lightnin’ Strikes finds a now-iconic blues musician backed by session greats — Jimmy Bond on bass, Earl Palmer on drums, and Don Crawford on harmonica — and this set offers some killer tunes from the get-go, such as the spunky “Mojo Hand” (Side A, Track 1). But for me, one of the joys of Lightnin’ Strikes is its overall feel of being in the studio with Hopkins and his tight trio. Captured in a lovely, simple stereo soundstage, Lightnin’s vocals sound uncannily forward and rich, while Palmer’s drums, Bond’s bass, and Hopkins’ own guitar will envelope you.

I’m not 100-percent sure, but I suspect Hopkins is playing a hollow-body acoustic-electric guitar here, so there is this nice blend of the wood of the instrument and the pure tone of it being electrified through his amplifier coming through. The band is supremely in tune with Hopkins’ vibe, sitting back and delivering a steady, sympathetic driving groove so he could easily plunk out stinging solos between his vocalized verses.

And while there are plenty of songs of woe along the way — such as “Cotton” (Side A, Track 3) and “Hurricane Betsy” (Side B, Track 1) — there is also much simple joy coming through on more upbeat tunes like “Take Me Back, Baby” (Side A, Track 4).

Like the aforementioned John Lee Hooker Suffer album, original Lightnin’ Strikes copies can be a pricey proposition — if you can even find one in nice condition, that is. Original 1966 Verve Folkways LP pressings range from about $40 to $70 in VG+ condition on Discogs. So, this nice reissue will make sense for a lot of fans who just want to hear Lightnin’ Strikes music in its original form factor, both sounding and looking as good as possible.

MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT
TODAY!
180g 1LP (Vanguard Stereolab/Craft Recordings)
MUSIC: 10
SOUND: 9

This was the only one of the four albums reviewed here that I owned previously, and I’m very pleased how this new edition sounds and looks. A somewhat quiet album comprised of Mississippi John Hurt’s solo voice and guitar folk-blues recordings, 1966’s Today! — his first for Vanguard, and among the first recordings issued after his 1963 rediscovery — I definitely appreciated this reissue’s dead-quiet noise floor, which allowed the music to jump out of my speakers more dramatically than my (likely) late- ’60s/early-’70s pressing. For this new edition, Craft Recordings went to the trouble of reproducing the orange Vanguard “Stereolab” label that was found on original pressings — a cool bit of detailing collectors like myself and AP editor Mike Mettler truly appreciate. (Mettler also tells me his copy of Today! was a wee big snug on the spindle, but he had no issues with actual playback.)

Some of my favorite songs here include “Candy Man” (Side One, Track 3), “Corrinna, Corrinna” (Side One, Track 6), and perhaps — most significantly — “Coffee Blues” (Side Two, Track 1), with its distinctive “my lovin’ spoonful” chorus. For those who may be wondering — yes, the legendary hit-making 1960s Greenwich Village, New York folk-rock band The Lovin’ Spoonful got their name from this song. (See how all these dots connect?) <>p> Original pressings of Today! are not super-rare, but the trick is finding one that isn’t what I call “well-loved” — i.e., heavily played and/or scuffed, but still enjoyable. There are only two NM copies on Discogs at the time of this posting that ask for between $120 and $150, so this high-quality, $33 reissue of Today! is a welcome relative bargain.

LONNIE JOHNSON WITH ELMER SNOWDEN
BLUES & BALLADS
180g 1LP (Prestige Bluesville/Craft Recordings)
MUSIC: 9
SOUND: 8.5

Of the four artists reviewed here, Lonnie Johnson is the one I’m least familiar with, though he is a revered artist. Hey, part of the joy of discovery in music is that there is always something new to learn about when going deep into certain genres—especially when it comes to the blues!

Blues & Ballads, Johnson’s 1960 album with Elmer Snowden on acoustic guitar, is also among the most elusive and collectible among those reviewed here, with only a handful of copies available at the time of this posting with prices ranging from about $70 to $225 on Discogs, and in no better than VG+ condition. Again, clearly a good quality reissue of this Chris Albertson/Rudy Van Gelder production was long overdue.

This interesting release has a curious early stereo approach to the mix — with Johnson’s vocals hard-panned to one side, and Snowden’s support guitar to the other, while Wendell Marshall’s bass is softly spread across both. That said, some of the instrumental tunes on Blues & Ballads sound a bit more balanced, such as the lovely “Savoy Blues” (Side B, Track 2).

There are plenty of aching moments that will make you forget the mix and just enter Johnson’s universe, such as the spooky album opener “Haunted House” (Side A, Track 1), sung from the perspective of a dead man lamenting lost love left behind. Eubie Blake’s “Memories of You” (Side A, Track 2) follows as a nostalgic love ballad, with Johnson’s delivery reminding me a wee bit of a Hoagy Carmichael recording — the latter being the writer of standards like “Stardust” and “Georgia on My Mind.” (Mettler adds that he feels Bob Dylan’s current, well-lived-in 21st century singing style owes more than a bit to Johnson’s approach on “Memories” and the Side B opener, “I’ll Get Along Somehow,” as well.)

Like Lightnin’ Hopkins’ Lightnin’ Strikes album above, Blues & Ballads is an education in laid-back band restraint, with Johnson’s two support players holding way back and allowing the singer’s vocals and electric guitar to set the pace.

This has been a grower of an album for me — I quite like it, but I think I’ll come to love it the more I spin it. Now that I think about it, I’ve got to dig through my collection, as I’m pretty sure I have some other Lonnie Johnson recordings in there somewhere. Blues & Ballads is full of good stuff that’s simply recorded, and lovingly performed. Just listen to “Jelly Roll Baker” (Side B, Track 5) to feel the pure joy coming through in Johnson’s performance — such a great way to end the album!

Mark Smotroff is an avid vinyl collector who has also worked in marketing communications for decades. He has reviewed music for AudiophileReview.com, among others, and you can see more of his impressive C.V. at LinkedIn.