June 27, 1997
British Blues -- Part Two
No quick resume of the British Blues scene would be complete without some mention of Eric Clapton. Occasional lapses in quality should not detract from some of his early blues work with the Yardbirds and, in particular, the most famous blues rock trio in the world Cream. Blessed with musical partners at least his equal (some would argue superior talent) he produced some of the most compelling blues-based music of the late '60s.
His partners in crime can be found on the Net and Jack Bruce in particular is reasonably well represented. Try this for starters but also drop in on this Jack Bruce page as well.
As for Eric, there are a number of sites you can try -- visit The Eric Clapton Page first. It's probably the most comprehensive, and allowing the user to choose their own Clapton background music is a nice touch. Be aware that it is frames-based however.
Other Clapton sites you may wish to try can be found Here and Here.
One of the great stalwarts of the British Blues scene was and still is John Mayall. Not particularly well-represented on the web, at least as far as I can tell, you will find a little about him at the Best Music In The World site, along with another early pioneer who went on to superstardom (Jimmy Page).
Of the more recent British-based additions to the blues musical canon, one of the most respected on both sides of the Atlantic is the vocalist and harmonica virtuoso Paul Lamb whose record company can be found Here. Black mail is also the home of tribute releases to the late and great Alexis Korner, a man little known outside his native shores (and not that well-known within them, to be honest). A man who did have some commercial recording success with the atypical group CCS, Korner was critical to the development of British Blues and provided opportunities for a number of leading players, including Mick Taylor, Jimmy Page, Long John Baldry, Charlie Watts and others -- he deserves to be better remembered.
See You Next week
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The Blue Highway
The Blue Highway was one of the first and is still probably the best Blues site on the web. It tells the story of the music and its difficult evolution, setting the blues in a historical context, as well as providing excellent biographies, sound samples and a fine 'blues links' section. A superb resource.
BluesWEB (King Biscuit Time)
King Biscuit Time takes a while to get into - its design means you are scrolling down the page for an awfully long time. But it's worth it - you are continually greeted with wonderful performer profiles, excellent sound samples and a section on the oft neglected subject of blueswomen
Blues and Soul Music Primer
A Blues and Soul Music primer designed to attract people to these wonderful music genres - apologies for including my own site, but there is precious little on the web devoted to soul music, and these pages have been developed to bring a new audience to both blues and soul, without boring to death the diehard fan. I think it works.
Jazz Station
Superb site featuring a wealth of information on the jazz form. Plenty to interest the R&B; fan, including a solid history of the jazz genre which takes in the blues influences. Very well put together - a pleasure to surf and although the site is fairly graphic intensive, they are well used and a joy to surf. Informative and good fun!
Electric Gallery:Jazz & Blues
Superb portraits and excellent design are the hallmarks of this site. The artwork is excellent and in my view captures the spirit of the performers represented. You also get sound to accompany the art work which adds to the overall quality feel of the site. If you like pictures as well as sound, take a trip here!
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Rhythm and Blues
