The title's an apt one here, as Jimmy Rogers was one of the many bluesmen who started out in the south, but headed to Chicago for greater fame – which was a good thing for Chess Records, who managed to come some of these great sides in the 50s! Rogers both sings and plays guitar – the later of which has a sometimes snakey quality that almost echoes a slight bit of jazz – a mode that recalls some of the inventions T Bone Walker was putting down at the time, but a little bit rootsier overall. Players on these sessions include Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Otis Spann, and Willie Dixon – and tracks include "Money Marbles & Chalk", "Ludella", "You're The One", "Back Door Friend", "I Used To Have A Woman", "Sloppy Drunk", "Blues Leave Me Alone", and "Walking By Myself". LP, Vinyl record album

A real classic from blues giant Joe Turner – a singer who burst back to the mainstream on 50s Atlantic Records, thanks to a host of R&B singles that burned up the charts – but who here returns to his roots, and lays down a great set of jazzy tunes that get back to his roots in the Kansas City scene of the 30s! The shift is a bit like that Ray Charles made at the end of the 50s on Atlantic – R&B to more of a jazz-based groove – and Joe works here with great help from Pete Brown on alto, Pete Johnson on piano, Joe Newman on trumpet, and Lawrence Brown on trombone. After the raw hard R&B of Joe's bigger hit sides for Atlantic, the album's a compelling change – a reminder that Turner had roots that went much deeper than his rock and roll fame – and a depth of delivery that would keep his career strong, long after some of his 50s R&B contemporaries faded! The mix of modes – R&B and jazz – is a bit like some of the later Ray Charles albums on Atlantic – and tracks include "Low Down Dog", "Roll Em Pete", "Cherry Red", "How Long Blues", and "Morning Glories". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent 2LP set that brings together 28 early 50s recordings by T-Bone Walker – crucial sides that link together jazz and blues traditions, with incredible work on guitar that would go onto influence both genres tremendously. The fact that Walker became a huge influence on soul jazz guitarists like Billy Butler, George Freeman, and Wild Bill Jennings is probably not lost on Blue Note – who included the set here as the only non-jazz set in their 2LP 70s reissue series. Titles include "Blue Mood", "Alimony Blues", "The Sun Went Down", "Cold Cold Feeling", "Strollin With Bones", "Street Walkin Woman", "You Don't Love Me", "Party Girl", "Life is Too Short", and "News For You Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

Born in Mississippi, raised in Tennessee, but recorded in California with some mighty great grooves! The album's a great mix of the rootsy blues of John Lee Hooker and some of the best production modes ABC Records was using at the time – no hoke or attempt to dampen the energy of the core music – but just the key addition of fresh elements from players who include Clifford Coulter on piano, Sugarcane Harris on violin, Oscar Brashear on trumpet, Mel Brown on bass, George Bohannon on trombone, and John Klemmer on electrified sax with effects! These players all have a great ear for messing up jazz, blues, soul, and funk – and help Hooker to make the set one of his hippest ever – a record that nods strongly at the new generation, yet never panders to it at all. Titles include "Younger Stud", "King Of The World", "Tell Me You Love Me", and "Going Down". LP, Vinyl record album

Born in Mississippi, raised in Tennessee, but recorded in California with some mighty great grooves! The album's a great mix of the rootsy blues of John Lee Hooker and some of the best production modes ABC Records was using at the time – no hoke or attempt to dampen the energy of the core music – but just the key addition of fresh elements from players who include Clifford Coulter on piano, Sugarcane Harris on violin, Oscar Brashear on trumpet, Mel Brown on bass, George Bohannon on trombone, and John Klemmer on electrified sax with effects! These players all have a great ear for messing up jazz, blues, soul, and funk – and help Hooker to make the set one of his hippest ever – a record that nods strongly at the new generation, yet never panders to it at all. Titles include "Younger Stud", "King Of The World", "Tell Me You Love Me", and "Going Down". LP, Vinyl record album

A great early album from Junior Wells – and one that really opens up that more soulful side of his talents that was becoming a Chicago hallmark at the time! The set was produced by Samuel Charters, but has none of the rootsy vibe of his earlier work on Folkways – and instead matches the harmonica and raw vocals of Wells with a bit of horn backings on a few tunes by the great Ed Bland (of previous Sun Ra cinema fame, and later funk arrangements) – blown by the unlikely mix of Tom McIntosh on trombone, with trumpets by Clark Terry, Wallace Davenport, and Jimmy Owens! The core group has the mighty Buddy Guy on guitar, with Walter Williams on rhythm guitar and Douglas Fagan on tenor – and Junior knocks it out of the park, on tunes that include "So Sad This Morning", "When My Baby Left Me", "Stop Breakin Down", "Somebody's Tippin In", "You Don't Love Me", "Little By Little", and "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man". CD