The Big Book of Blues: A Biographical Encyclopedia

This is a great biographical guide to blues musicians and their careers, but it's time for an updated edition. The book contains 600+ entries with fairly detailed bio info in each, with musicians ranging from Bessie Smith to Robert Cray, and even including crossover groups like the Yardbirds. But the book predates the CD era somewhat, with the "essential listening" section for each musician lacking in CD listings. For some, this is a major omission (I'm thinking of the 1,000 or so Document CDs that could have been accessed with so many of the pre-war musicians). Books like this often impel people to go through them to note who was left out as well as who made it in. Some of the earlier female blues singers who recorded many important sides in the 1920s seem under represented: Viola McCoy, Josie Miles, Monette Moore, and Merlene Johnson (The Yas Yas Girl) were all left out, though each recorded dozens of sides. Of course, artists who have come on the scene since 1993, when the book was published, are not included either (Keb Mo, Jerry Ricks, and Corey Harris to name just three come to mind). No book, obviously, that is documenting an on-going subject will ever be complete, but this one is valuable enough to warrant a revised edition. Hopefully one is in the planning stages. In the meantime, this is (along with Harris's BLUES WHO'S WHO, which also needs updating) an important reference book for lovers of the blues. A must-have book.

This is a great book to have in your collection if you're a fan of blues music and history. By far, it's not the ONLY book out there. There are a number of notable artists this book is missing. Hopefully, future editions of this book will begin to fill some of the gaps. That being said, this is a very good reference just the same.

The information provided in the biographical encyclopaedia is a good referance when reading other publications on the "Blues" or listening to recordings by a performer with whome you may not be familiar. Whilst the referances are not complete, it is nevertheless a source of sound information on numerous blues performers from the 1890's to the present. (I found I had a number of recordings in my collection made in the 1920's and 1930's by individuals not referenced in the book.) The book is a very good "handbook" to have by your side when you want to learn or simply recap on some details of an individual whose story you may be absorbing either through reading or listening.

The information provided in the biographical encyclopaedia is a good referance when reading other publications on the "Blues" or listening to recordings by a performer with whome you may not be familiar. Whilst the referances are not complete, it is nevertheless a source of sound information on numerous blues performers from the 1890's to the present. (I found I had a number of recordings in my collection made in the 1920's and 1930's by individuals not referenced in the book.) The book is a very good "handbook" to have by your side when you want to learn or simply recap on some details of an individual whose story you may be absorbing either through reading or listening.

I recently picked up a copy of "The Big Book of Blues" by Robert Santelli at the Delta Blues Museum bookstore in Clarksdale Mississippi. Billed as "a biographical encyclopedia with more than 600 entries covering classic blues, country and urban blues, rhythm and blues, and blues rock", the author has achieved his daunting goal of creating a definitive reference for both the uninitiated and the true blues aficionado. Rather than a dry, vital statistics only type of approach, Robert Santelli's comprehensive reference presents a brief vignette of each artist's career and their influences, along with in depth discussion and subjective observations on their style of playing and songwriting. The entry for Robert Johnson is a great example of the folksy storytelling style employed by the author. It tells of Johnson's illegitimate birth in 1911 and his untimely death from poisoning by a jealous husband in 1938, and covers all the significant highlights of his short career including details of the infamous "crossroads" myth. The author also includes "essential listening" for each artist. These lists of recordings are not complete discographies as found in some references, compilation of which would take years for such a diverse group of artists whose recordings appear on the most obscure labels imaginable. Instead, the "essential listening" references cover the artist's major works and significant career milestones, and represent the best examples of the artist's style. From world renowned performers such as B. B. King and John Lee Hooker to more obscure local club players like Cripple Clarence Lofton, the author covers a lot of ground and has done extensive research into the lives and times of nearly every artist who ever played the blues. The author's extensive knowledge and resourcefulness is clearly evident in this informative, entertaining, and well researched volume, which appears to be a true "labor of love". I highly recommend this book