Rating: 
Summary: An Introduction to thr Blues
Review: Four and a half stars. If you are new to the blues, or if you want a quick reference to your favorite music, this is the book for you. It gives you background on both legendary artists and and current musicians. You will also find lists of blues clubs, web sites and albums. I docked it one half star because of the limited mention of David "Honeyboy" Edwards. The only mention of "Honeyboy" is in regard to the death of Robert Johnson. "Honeyboy" is still alive and preforming, including him would have certainly added to this reference.
Rating:
Summary: An Introduction to thr Blues
Review: Four and a half stars. If you are new to the blues, or if you want a quick reference to your favorite music, this is the book for you. It gives you background on both legendary artists and and current musicians. You will also find lists of blues clubs, web sites and albums. I docked it one half star because of the limited mention of David "Honeyboy" Edwards. The only mention of "Honeyboy" is in regard to the death of Robert Johnson. "Honeyboy" is still alive and preforming, including him would have certainly added to this reference.
Rating: 
Summary: It's got it all
Review: I always wanted to learn about the blues but never knew where to start, what records to buy. Some blues records that I heard I really liked, but others I didn't, and I was never sure whether it was the artist, or the song, or the blues themselves that I liked. This book explains all the different kinds of blues music, and it introduces all the artists. I found out a lot about the ones I already liked, got tips on who else I'd probably like (the CD was a big help), and also a complete overview of the history and development of the blues. My roommate has been trying to explain the blues to me for the last year, and now I UNDERSTAND! Even he likes it a lot, by the way, and he knows 9000 times more about the blues than I do.
Rating:
Summary: Now I know the Blues!
Review: I always was interested in the Blues, but not enough to actually figure out what made one kind of blues different from another or how they got that sound. It was also hard to know how to buy good blues records, because once you get beyond the obvious classics you basically have to rely on whatever the record store clerk personally thinks is good, unless you know someone who's really into the blues. And I've never seen a Blues book that came with a CD before, so you just had to imagine the songs they were describing. This book was a lot of fun to read, and with the CD, I really "got" what it was talking about. I'm getting it for Christmas for some people because it's really ideal for people who want to explore the blues but don't know where to start.
Rating: 
Summary: Good book ,could be better!
Review: I enjoyed reading this book .I especially enjoyed the accompaning CD.I think it was a compehensive book about the Blues.
My concern is that it failed to convey the love of music,the distinguised authors obviously have.It has a who is who chapter which I belive is comphensive but still It reads like,for lack of a better description,a phone book.
I have listened to performers performing on a stage tell their own stories or events in Blues music that are fascinating and that just stick in ones mind.And soul and flavor of the music just comes through.Ofcourse performing is not the exactly writing.
Rating:
Summary: An indespensible guide for blues lovers
Review: I have found this an indespensible guide for promoting my novel, "Forever Retro Blues." I've been on 8 radio programs as a guest and with a title like "Forever Retro Blues," I'm expected to know something. Conveying the Blues through fiction when I had plenty of time to research was one thing. But now I may only get a few hours to buff up on someone the host mentions when they schedule the interview. I grab this book along with "All Music Guide to the Blues" and throw the CD on. The CD is great additon to any collection. I love that this book even has suggestions for introducing blues to kids. Unfortunately, the website are out-of-date.
Rating:
Summary: An indespensible guide for blues lovers
Review: I have found this an indespensible guide for promoting my novel, "Forever Retro Blues." I've been on 8 radio programs as a guest and with a title like "Forever Retro Blues," I'm expected to know something. Conveying the Blues through fiction when I had plenty of time to research was one thing. But now I may only get a few hours to buff up on someone the host mentions when they schedule the interview. I grab this book along with "All Music Guide to the Blues" and throw the CD on. The CD is great additon to any collection. I love that this book even has suggestions for introducing blues to kids. Unfortunately, the website are out-of-date.
Rating: 
Summary: Buy the music, read better books, live the blues...
Review: I really resent the titles of the "XXXX for Dummies," since as a teacher I think it creates self-images of inadequacy... The book is OK. Man, the blues is music. Get out there, get the CDs, Hound Dog Taylor, Rev. Gary Davis, Miss. John Hurt, Muddy, etc. Listen and enjoy and support your local blues organizations and clubs. Books for dummies. Nah.
Rating:
Summary: enthusiastic comprehensive coverage of blues music
Review: I, too, was put off by the "Dummies" word. I should not have been. The book is a comprehensive, knowlegable and enthusiastic coverage of blues - the artists [today's and yesterday's], where to find the blues, recordings. Everyone - from newcomer to experienced blues musician will find interesting and insightful information here. (The authors are themselves accomplished blues players). I have only two very minor quibbles: - The title could be considered a mite misleading. Although it does include advice on guitars, amps and harmonicas it does not tell you how to start to PLAY the blues. It does tell you how to put a band together but, if you are ready to do that, you are definitely past the "Dummy" stage. - There is a nice CD included, but... One track is credited as "Walkin the boogie" by John Lee Hooker and is decribed as a re-write of his "Boogie Chillen". To me it sounds nothing like John Lee's hit (which I bought, as a kid, in France in 1960). The track sounds to me to be nothing other than Champion Jack Dupree's "Walkin the Blues". Also, the CD's version of Hoochie Coochie Man by Muddy Waters is a quietened-down (though very nice) version compared with the livelier version that most people are probably familiar with.
Rating:
Summary: enthusiastic comprehensive coverage of blues music
Review: I, too, was put off by the "Dummies" word. I should not have been. The book is a comprehensive, knowlegable and enthusiastic coverage of blues - the artists [today's and yesterday's], where to find the blues, recordings. Everyone - from newcomer to experienced blues musician will find interesting and insightful information here. (The authors are themselves accomplished blues players). I have only two very minor quibbles: - The title could be considered a mite misleading. Although it does include advice on guitars, amps and harmonicas it does not tell you how to start to PLAY the blues. It does tell you how to put a band together but, if you are ready to do that, you are definitely past the "Dummy" stage. - There is a nice CD included, but... One track is credited as "Walkin the boogie" by John Lee Hooker and is decribed as a re-write of his "Boogie Chillen". To me it sounds nothing like John Lee's hit (which I bought, as a kid, in France in 1960). The track sounds to me to be nothing other than Champion Jack Dupree's "Walkin the Blues". Also, the CD's version of Hoochie Coochie Man by Muddy Waters is a quietened-down (though very nice) version compared with the livelier version that most people are probably familiar with.
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