Customer Reviews

Muddy Mississippi Waters (Dig)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The original seven-track Muddy 'Mississippi' Waters Live" album was a nice, but ultimately inessential record.
However, this 2003 deluxe edition (similar in design to the deluxe edition of the Allman Brothers Band's "Live At Fillmore East") restores the truncated mixes of the originally released songs, it adds another disc of previously unreleased material, and both discs have been digitally remastered. The drums and the bass may have been left a little too much in the background at times, but the vocals, the guitars, the harmonica and the piano are superbly crisp and clear, notably better than on the original CD release.

Disc one has been fleshed out a little bit...the original mixes have been scrapped in favour of new and usually better ones, something which is particularly audible on the leadoff track, "Mannish Boy", which is two minutes longer than on the 1979 LP (and the original CD issue) due to the inclusion of a verse sung by Johnny Winter.

Other highlights include the slow groove of "Streamline Woman", and a swaggering nine-minute "Deep Down In Florida", and Muddy's take on Sonny Boy Williamson's "Nine Below Zero" is terrific; less tense and punchy than Sonny Boy's, but solidly swinging on harpist Jerry Portnoy's wonderful riffing and a swaggering backbeat by drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith.
The tight and muscular band includes Johnny Winter on several songs, but even with four guitarists the musicians manage not to step on each others toes too much, or engage in meaningless flailing...with the possible exception of Waters himself, actually. I hate to say it, and I don't deny that Muddy used to be a really good slide guitarist before the 1970 traffic accident that almost killed him, but some of these lenghty "solos" are pretty much just noise. Ugly, screeching sounds. Ugh!

Still, that is a minor complaint, and it is just about the only one I can come up with. Well, maybe we've heard "Baby Please Don't Go" a few too many times, and Muddy himself sounds less than excited about it as well.
Anyway, disc one is quite strong, but disc two will certainly hold the most interest for longtime fans, of course, since this material, which was recorded at the same series of August, 1978 shows as the songs on disc one, has not previously seen the light of day.
Opening with a lenghty soliloqui by Muddy Waters, and a "Stormy Monday Blues" which doesn't quite match T-Bone's original, it features a swinging "Trouble No More", an interesting "Champagne And Reefer", and the irresistable piano-driven "Corrine, Corrina".
This rendition of "Hoochie Coochie Man" has a lot of power as well, and the mix is one of the best on the entire album, finally bringing the bass and the drums to the forefront. And the rarely heard "She Moves Me", an early track from the Aristocrat days, is a nice inclusion, as is the slow, intense "Mad Love (I Want You To Love Me)", and Joe "Pinetop" Perkins' nimble performance of Clarence "Pinetop" Smith's classic "Pinetop Boogie Woogie".

You'd think that a nine-minute "Kansas City" would likely overstay its welcome, but it doesn't, mostly thanks to the wonderful band and a couple of great guitar solos. And the album finally winds down with the great, up-tempo swing of "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" (sung in part by Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson), and a fast, aggressive "Got My Mojo Working" with a nice, meaty harmonica solo and some superb drumming.

This double-disc reissue includes an essay by Muddy-guitarist Bob Margolin, as well as Muddy Waters encouraging the audience to "smoke a little reefer, people", and it would be a nice addition to any Muddy-fan's collection. It is not necessarily better than some of the other excellent live recordings left behind by Muddy Waters (like "The Lost Tapes", "Mojo", "Chicago 1979" and of course the Newport album), mainly because it doesn't really add anything new to Muddy's vast legacy...almost all of these tracks have been issued before in equally fine live versions (musically, at least).
But 4 1/2 stars anyway, because it's just so good! Even if there are other, less highly touted live recordings of the legendary Muddy Waters band which are just as good, or, in some cases, just a little bit better.

When this first came out, it was deservedly recognized with grammy nominations. The set featuring Johnny Winters is so good, you hardly notice the distraction Winters represented. "Mannish Boy," "She's 19," and "Deep Down in Florida" are remarkable workouts. Winters has an annoying slide guitar in his own catalogue, but here, trying to squeeze in among Muddy's sidemen, he's kept in check. He did a great job on the production and remastering, and the set has a presence it did not have digitally at first. There is a comment among the reviewers that prefers the vinyl, but I'd say this remaster is better.
However, it's the second disc that makes this essential listening. Stripped of the record label presence, and allowed to do their thing, this is a more accurate reading of just how incendiary Muddy Waters and his band were on any given night. Be it the loose boogie of "Pinetop's Boogie" or the white hot tear down of "Mojo", this set just blazes, smokes and leaves the first disc in the dust. That's true of most of that vinatge of Chicago bluesmen: the whiteboys should have stayed at the bar. They tended to slow things down and dilute the feral power. "Champagne and Reefer" and "Hoochie Coochie Man" fry the audience on both sides. This is a terrific club set and well worth the price all by itself.
Muddy Waters was so importnat to post WW2 music that you ought to seek out any of his recordings. But it was live that set him apart from everyone else. Both of these discs illustrate that categorically.

This one's worth every penny. Had it been the new disk that had been issued originally, then IT would have won a Grammy. Best "deluxe edition" I've ever bought.

As I have become more fully aware of Muddy, and the incredible impact his music had on our generation, it took me awhile to get to this recording. (I think there are at least 19 other Muddy CDs on my shelf) I am so glad I did. The re-issue here is wonderful, and Bob Margolin, who played a big part in this re-issue gives us some great background history in the nicely designed CD booklet. The first CD is top-notch live material, but as other reviewers made aware, the second CD is gold. I happen to like Johnny Winter, and am thankful that he played an integral role in bringing Muddy into a "second-coming" of his career in the late 70's. I believe Johnny truly loved and admired Muddy, and contrary to what others have written, I like Winter's presence on the first CD. However, if you are one who doesn't, he's not on the second disc at all. At any rate, this is a set that I know I will keep coming back to for many years. I highly recommend spending the little bit extra to get this 2 CD version of Muddy Live.

I had this on vinyl LP and it is one of my all time favorite blues album. I was very excited that this has been remastered with additional tracks. Johnny Winters revived Muddy's career in the mid 70s with three studio releases and this live release. It remains a blues classic.

However -- the first disc is supposed to be the original single LP release, and the second disc is the bonus cuts. I could tell from the first cut that the first disc IS NOT exactly like the original release. The version of Mannish Boy is either a completely different take or an extended version that includes Johnny Winters sharing lead vocals with Muddy. The original LP version doesn't have Winters taking the lead vocals on a few verses.

The remastering is incredible and brings out the detail of what is perhaps Muddy's greatest backing band. With Bob Margolin, Pinetop Perkins, James Cotton, Big Eyes Smith, and Guitar Jr. Johnson in addition to Johnny Winters behind him, Muddy cuts loose with all his mojo power! Margolin re-produced this set. The booklet and photos are great, but ol' Bob made sure he appeared in almost all of them. Yeah, Bob, you played in Muddy's band, we got it.

The second disc includes some absolutely stunning tracks that feature the incomparable Pinetop Perkins on piano on Kansas City and Pinetop's Boogie Woogie. There is more give and take among the musicians on the 2nd disc thanks to the laidback club atmosphere. The only low point is She Moves Me, which sounds suspiciously similar to Streamline Woman on disc one.

(EDIT - How embarassing it is to re-read these old reviews! She Moves Me is a low point? I must be some kind of idiot! She Moves me is one of my favorite Muddy tracks. Streamline Woman is nothing like it, but is still a good song. May the blues gods forgive me!)

If this isn't in your blues collection, get it today!

Got My hands on this album less than three weeks ago and I've played nothing else ever since! Not only does this album present a great selection of Muddy-songs, but also in excellent audio quality! The band is outstanding, just listen to all the good harmonica played by Jerry Portnoy! If you aim at buying only one live-album of Muddy Waters, this should be it!

If you are a blues fan you will love this album!!! This is the greatest bluesman at his best. A passion for the music hits you like the blast from a shotgun.

This is the blues in it's most basic setting played with a passion that is just overwhelming.

Plug in your headphones sit back and relax and let the music take you away!!!! My personal favorite is "Champagne & Reefer" along with "Down in Florida". God this music is great!!!!!

The blues is the most underaprreciated music of all the genre's and Muddy Waters might be one of the most underappreciated musicians of all time!!!!

This is a great album !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am not leaving a long detailed review for this album. I just wanted say that this is an amazing set. Johnny and Bob compliment Muddy so well. I love this album. I played it nonstop for like six months. If you love Muddy Waters, or are just a lover of the blues, you will absolutely love this album. Plus the remastered quality of this recording make it a joy to listen too. I dare you to try and not move your head and stomp your feet when have this disc in.

This is the best blues vocalist ever, and the 2nd disc with its more laid back atttiude is better. Excellent sound, excllent band.

I guess I must have not read Muddys biography enough or didn't put two and two together. I thought with the Chess Box 3 CD set I have almost all of his recordings.

But I wasn't thinking.

Muddy got me into the Blues. Live in Newport was the first blues CD I bought.... I think probably around in 1989.

I bought this one just now, June 2004 and I am still in love with the blues. And with Muddy.

This album is great. I always prefered his live material... I love concerts and to feel the music as you can in this CD and to imagine to be there. Amazing. I do agree with the review of anders_pj... some arrangements and esp on the 2nd CD the obvious Champagne and Reefer influence make some of the songs not work quite as good as some other recordings.

But all in all a must for any Muddy fans. And some which want to discover THE father of Electric Blues.