Although his early
Columbia
albums brought him worldwide stardom, it was this modest little album (first released on
Imperial
before the
sides) that first brought
Johnny Winter
to the attention of guitarheads in America. It's also
Winter
at the beginning of a long career, playing the
blues
as if his life depends on it, without applying a glimmer of
rock
commercialism. The standard classic repertoire here includes
"Rollin' and Tumblin',"
"I Got Love if You Want It,"
"Forty-Four,"
"It's My Own Fault,"
and
"Help Me,"
with
mixing it up with his original Texas trio of
Red Turner
on drums and
Tommy Shannon
(later of
Stevie Ray Vaughan's Double Trouble
) on bass. A true classic, this is one dirty, dangerous, and visionary album. The set was issued in a sonically screaming 24-bit remastered edition on CD by
Capitol
in 2005. It contains no bonus tracks, but it leaves the original crummy CD issue in the dust. ~ Cub Koda & Thom Jurek