John Lee Hooker gets some great treatment here – working in a loose, groovy style for the Bluesway label – and getting a nice dose of funk right down at the core! The set's produced by Ed Michel – who'd also done some great soul jazz work over the years – and in addition to great vocals and guitar from Hooker, the set also features extra guitar from the great Earl Hooker, piano and organ from Johnny Walker, and harmonica from Jeffrey Carp. Gino Skaggs plays electric bass, which gives the whole thing a nice kick – and titles include "Have Mercy On My Souil", "Lonesome Mood", "Bang Bang Bang Bang", "The Hookers", "Baby, Be Strong", and "I Wanna Be Your Puppy Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

BB King soars into the 70s with this smoking little set – a record that still holds onto all the raw energy of his best 60s recordings, but which also gives the whole thing an even more soulful focus too! There's no arranger credited for the core of the record – which is attributed to "everybody" in the group, which you can definitely hear in the wickedly spontaneous playing of the combo – especially the mighty drummer Herbie Lovelle, whose work here really gives King a new sort of kick. Bert DeCoteaux adds a bit of larger backings at points, but usually very gently – in ways that are hardly noticeable at all – as BB's guitar is right out front, wailing with lots of raw energy. Titles include "Key To My Kingdom", "Confessin The Blues", "No Good", "You're Losing Me", "So Excited", and the classic "Thrill Is Gone". LP, Vinyl record album

This famous pair in a late 60s date – with help from Panama Francis on drums, Ray Johnson on electric piano, and Jimmy Bond on bass – all of whom give things a bit more of a kick than usual for Brownie & Sonny! Titles include "Life Is A Gamble", "Long Way From Home", "Rock Island Line", "Big Question", and "Don't Mistreat Me". LP, Vinyl record album

Big blues from Little Milton, recorded with a mighty big sound as well – thanks to the cool criss-crossing of soul and blues that was going down at Chess Records in the 60s! Milton's got this raw, raspy style in his voice – a nasty edge that mixes perfectly with his own sharp guitar lines – and which gets an extra kick from the production and arrangements of Gene Barge, who still knows how to keep the core combo sound that makes the album cook! Sonny Thompson plays piano on most tracks, and Phil Upchurch adds in a second guitar at times – but the real star of the show is always Milton – shining more brightly here than on most of his later records! The album includes versions of "Please Please Please", "Have Mercy Baby", "Fever", "Sneakin Around", and "Reconsider Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

Mel Brown's fifth album – as we'd assume by the title – and a pretty darn tasty batch of funky numbers! There's still a bit of the bluesy playing that can sometimes ruin a Mel Brown record –but the best cuts are just super-dope guitar funk numbers, either chopping along at a tight funky pace, or kicking back and letting Mel open up in kind of an O'Donel Levy mode. Plenty of tasty nubmers – including "Good Stuff", "Time For A Change", "Cheap At Half The Price", and "Luv Potion". (Jazz, Blues) LP, Vinyl record album

Funky Bo Diddley – one of Bo's key early 70s sessions for Chess Records – all of which have him stepping out in a much harder groove than years past! The sound here is relatively tight – with Diddley guitar and vocals on top of some larger arrangements from Bob Gallo – backings that mix together sounds from contemporary rock and soul, but always with an ear for the roots that Bo inspired in the first place – put forward towards a new generation with nicely kicking rhythms and really fuzzy guitars! The standout number here is the break classic "Go For Broke" – a drum-heavy instrumental that's worth the price of the record alone – and other titles include the great original "Pollution", plus versions of "The Shape I'm In", "Down On The Corner", "Lodi", "Bad Side Of the Moon", and "Bad Moon Rising". LP, Vinyl record album