Customer Reviews

Live Bootleg Series, Volume Two

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you are a fan of the Blues - or simply a Guitar fan in general, GET THIS DISC, as well as "Live Bootleg Series Vol. 1". You will NOT be disappointed - trust me! Johnny's rare/live version of the Jimi Hendrix classic "Red House", is worth the modest (Amazon) price of the disc itself. Johnny's playing is on fire here performing the blues classics "Parchman Farm" & "Mississippi Blues". If you know nothing about Johnny Winter - this set would be a fantastic place to start. Warning: Once you get hooked on Mr. Winter's legendary slide guitar style (and you will), you'll want to collect everything he has officially released for your personal library - and most of it is available for purchase here on Amazon.com - at great prices.

You know better than me that there are lots of good blues albums you would like to have but that you can live without and others that you just must have. This is (believe me) one of the greatest blues CD I have ever come across, simply unbelievable! If there is somewhere a must have blues album this is the one. The 14 minutes plus of Mississippi Blues are pure bliss, and probably the best blues cut ever recorded in history, not to mention the jaw dropping version of JH classic Red House. However the entire set smokes from start to finish and all the live material included here is top quality blues. This CD is the proven proof that Jonny Winter is not just one of the best blues guitarists ever lived but one of the greatest blues artists of all time. Absolutely an essential addition to your blues collection. Five stars plus!

the music? c'mon it's mr. Winter, who else like him? Unfortunately, the sound is terribly...MONO. Sorry guys, if you're looking for historical recordings this is a terrific one, but if you like your musical history at least with a modest stereo and decent sound, stay away. Seven stars for johnny, the 3 stars are for whoever never mentioned that MONO detail in the cd cover.

Johnny Winter is a musical icon who is so underrated. We are so fortunate that he is still with us, and still making great music. I know Johnny personally and I am always awe struck by this man's talent and ability. Thank God he now has a great manager(Paul Nelson) and his career is finally on the right track. To really appreciate Johnny and his music, you have to see him live. His band is great too, they have never sounded tighter. It will be an experience you'll never forget. I think it's great that Johnny is opening up his personal archives and sharing all these fantastic "live" recordings from years gone by. The songs here clearly show the genius and spirit of his performances when he was in his prime as an artist. I hope Johnny will continue to release more live performances in this series. Long live Johnny Winter, the "Blues Man".

This "album" is highly recommended! This is a must-have for any fan of Johnny Winter or blazing guitar playing. The band's music overcomes any shortcomings in the sound quality. (Volume 1 is a better recording, but volume 2 may have more innovative playing.) After all, these are live recordings, from an era before sophisticated remote music equipment. Don't let the warts spoil a fantastic musical experience. Sit back (if you can) and enjoy! The licks aren't as polished (occasionally) as his studio albums, but the improvisation is fantastic. This group puts out an amazing sound for three members.

This is bias review. If and when Live Bootleg Series, Volume 982 comes out, I will buy it. Although the fidelity of the recordings are not great, I have resorted to turning up the volume...and been quite pleased. For once and for all, these recording clearly put JW on the top shelf of rock guitarist, on par with Jimi, Page, and Clapton. The sad fact is that this global recognition will never come true. Not to worry, JW is joining a long list of fellow bluesmen that have been grossly overlooked by the industry. How could he be a true bluesman if this were not true? Final comment: when the space aliens come to earth we should play this album and if they don't instantly love it, send them packing....they've got no soul.

If you felt that there were a few too many rock n' roll numbers taking up space on Johnny Winter's first "Live Bootleg" album, you'll be happy to find that volume two is almost pure blues. And even if you didn't, you should still enjoy this magnificent display of first-class blues guitar playing.

Johnny Winter fronts his late-70s-early-80s power trio on these six artist-approved selections...yeah, a 54 minute-CD of compiled performances is a bit of a downer, I know, but it's better than having these wonderful recordings sitting in a vault somewhere. And the record company makes more money this way, too...
Anyway. The disc is produced by Winter himself, and the fidelity is generally very good, although the opener, a scorching, Elmore James-like "Black Cat Bone", sounds a bit fuzzy. But things clear up right after that, with a tough, riff-driven "Parchman Farm" burning with several fiery but tasteful solos. And that one is followed by a swaggering, hard rock-inspired rendition of the classic blues "Rock Me, Baby" (credited to B.B. King, although I doubt if that's were it originated to begin with). Winter's gruff, throaty vocals are strong and confident, and then comes a grand, fifteen-minute "Mississipi Blues", all gritty electric slide guitar and some terrific amplified harmonica played by bassist Jon Paris, and finally the drums enter at the 5½ minute mark. You'd think that a fifteen-minute blues number would wear out its welcome halfway through, but in this case you'd be wrong!

Robert Johnson's "Crossroads" opens with a powerful, up-tempo solo, and thunders ahead driven by a huge riff which Winter expands and elaborates on along the way, and the disc finally winds down with a slow, grinding, rumbling cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Red House" sizzling with magnificent fills and solos. No meaningless shredding or showy finger-tapping here (well, almost)...just heavy blues guitar as sharp as shards of broken glass.

The "Live Bootleg"-series just keeps getting better, and every Johnny Winter-fan, with the possible exception of those who only like "Rock n' Roll Hoochie Coo", ought to pick this one up right away. It's a treat!

More great live music from the real king of texas blues. This material is killer. BUT, when they say bootleg, they mean it... The mix sounds if taken from a sound board and maybe ran thru a sound enhancer. Not sure if it is just my cd, but the treble is way up -sounding like it is maxed out to hide the hiss. You have to turn it down -which on my car deck is a pain. But then again, you have to take the bad with the good when it comes to a legend like Johnny Winter. If you are like me, you will buy everything he puts out -and relish it. Which is exactly what I do - and you should too. They do not make them like Johnny Winter anymore. He was and still is the one first real and true Texas blues guitar slinger! Apoligies to SRV, but without Johnny Winter, there would be no Stevie Ray. Rock me baby, crossroads, and red house??? Come on!!! This IS the BLUES!!! I can't wait for for bootleg vol III, IV, and V!!!!

I grabbed The bootleg series volume 1, I loved it and saw number 2 came out and did the same.
Don't let the small amount of tracks mis lead you. Johnny Winter in this 3 piece band from the same time period fills the air with music. The chemistry and teh energy is excellent. The sound could be better, but as with any great archive release a true music fan can forgive some sound deficiency's for a great performance. I won't bore with you with a track by track review. I will just say please have the fire departments number handy because it's combustible.

so nice to have another volume so soon after the first. its also a compilation of live tracks. i would have prefered one concert like they did on the second winter legacy edition released a few years back but i'll live. my other beef is that there is no recording info? wassup with that. i should be happy with it and i am and you will to if you love what this man does with his guitar.