Top 5 Best Blues Songs
Next to Hard Rock, the Blues is my second favorite genre of music styles. What they both have in common is the electric guitar. I’m a drummer and vocalist, but I’ve always wanted to learn to play the guitar. Perhaps, one day I will. The Blues is filled with singers with various cultural and ethnic backgrounds. From Chicago to Memphis, and Kansas City down to South Texas, the Blues can be heard in tiny bars all around. Most people aren’t aware of just how good this kind of music really is.
Here are my picks for the Top 5 Blues Songs of all time
The Sky is Crying, written and recorded by Elmore James in 1959
My choice for the best version of this incredible song is from none other than Mr. Stevie Ray Vaughan. Stevie Ray had so much soul in his white Texas body that he could hardly hide it. With every riff on the guitar his face would twist and contort as his eyes stayed shut. The music game from within him, and what came out has forever plugged me into the Blues. The first stanza starts with the line “the sky is crying, look at the tears roll down the street”. If you are ever in the mood to relax with a cigar and a glass of whiskey, this is a must for your playlist.
Three O’Clock Blues by Lowell Fulson
No doubt, the recording by Eric Clapton and B.B. King on the LP Riding with the King is my pick for the best rendition of this classic tune. It’s filled with a back and forth guitar duette by two of the most iconic guitar players in history. The playing of the music is really why I love this version so much. It’s easy to tell who is playing each guitar. Eric’s choice of tone is a crisp and clean professional vibe while B.B. uses his legendary bending of the notes that sounded slightly off key.
The best line in the song says “it’s three o’clock in the morning, and I can’t even close my eyes”
Sweet Home Chicago by Robert Johnson
“Come on baby don’t you wanna go” to “Sweet Home Chicago”. Oh yeah. This Blues masterpiece is an upbeat staple of the early days when Robert Johnson recorded it. This is the song that makes my fingers start snapping and my foot begin tapping. If any song will make you wanna dance, it’s this one. Record in 1936, Sweet Home Chicago was revived in 1990 by the Blues Brothers.
Hoochie Coochie Man by Muddy Waters
Widely considered the single best blues song ever recorded, Hoochie Coochie Man is the song for every man that wants to feel like he’s the truly the Man. Like Ric Flair in his sparkling robe walking into the ring as the crowd cheers, men everywhere want to feel this fantasy. It’s like being the GOAT. Like MJ walking onto the court, Ali into the ring, or Doc Holiday out to a gunfight. To be the man, you gotta beat the man.
My favorite line in the song says “I’m here, everybody knows i’m here”
Hold On, I’m Comin — the 1966 song by Sam & Dave
This song was a soul song but the blues version is far more incredible played by Clapton and B.B. King. playing guitar licks off one another… the sound of each guitar is easily recognizable by their unique playing and tone. Eric Clapton is most certainly in the top 10 greatest guitar players of all time. Slash is my favorite ever personally (biased, I know, as a Guns N Roses fan) This song makes you wish more duos would have teamed up for other classic Blues records.
Originally published at www.rocksmack.com on February 11, 2018.
