Search - John Lee Hooker :: The Best of John Lee Hooker 1965 - 1974

Rozena O. from BROCKTON, MA
Reviewed on 8/14/2006...

Excellent

Hooker's Best

Curtis J. George | Centreville, Maryland | 06/22/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Some "Best of" CDs really are not. This CD really is! This CD covers 16 of John Lee Hooker's greatest hits from 1965 to 1974, over 70 minutes of music. All of these songs were recoded in the `60s and `70s too, long before his gold and platinum album days. These are the same songs that would make Hooker famous 25 years later. Most of his better-known songs can be found on this disk. Throughout it all, Hooker's music remained unchanged. His rich and sonorous voice, full of ancient hurt, and his brooding and savage style remained hypnotic but unpredictable. To the strains of his own guitar, he sang of loneliness and confusion. Neither polished nor urbane, his music was raw, primal emotion. His one-chord boogie compositions and rhythmic guitar work were a distinctive sound that influenced rock 'n' rollers as well as rhythm and blues musicians. According to John shortly before his death, "I been doing the same things as in my younger days, when I was coming up, and now here I am, an old man, up there in the charts." During a career more than six decades long, the veteran blues singer from the Mississippi Delta estimated he recorded more than 100 albums. To have a "best of" CD with that much material to pick from is a hard task, but the producers have done well.If you only own one John Lee Hooker CD (if that is possible) this is the one to own."

Essential Hooker

Curtis J. George | 08/17/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is best collection of John Lee Hooker tunes that you can buy. It contains a lot of music (over 70 minutes) from Hooker's best, most fertile period, the 60's and 70's. Several of JLH's most well known tunes are here including One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer, Mr. Lucky, I'm In The Mood, and It Serves You Right To Suffer. The duet with Van Morrison is also a highlight. If you like John Lee Hooker and want a good collection of some of his best tunes, get this!!!"