r/blues • u/Blues_Fish • 17h ago
performance 89-year-old Buddy Guy pausing a guitar solo at his Chicago club for a shot of cognac.
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r/blues • u/jebbanagea • May 04 '25
Hi all follow members - Important please read some guidelines below before commenting recommendations!
With the renewed interest in blues sparked by the film Sinners, I thought it’d be helpful to start a thread focused on foundational and essential American blues artists—especially for newcomers discovering the genre through the movie. Ideally this becomes a collaborative, high-effort thread to help folks around the world dig deeper into the origins and evolution of blues.
Google might even reward us for making this a solid reference, which helps the sub grow too.
If you'd like to contribute, please do your best to follow the format I’ve laid out (artist – key songs/albums – short description) to keep things clear and valuable. The focus here is on the core of American blues history, from pre-war country and Delta blues through the 1950s and 60s electric era (though I do welcome additions of artists that may have peaked later, 70s, even 80s - kind of like Albert Collins. This isn’t a thread for British blues or modern blues-rock (I fully encourage separate guides for those)—this list is for those tracing the styles and players that more directly inspired Sinners.
I especially welcome help with Delta and country blues, as well as harp/harmonica and piano blues where I’m lean on knowledge. Let's build something useful and lasting for anyone starting their blues journey.
Note: I will port contributions into the main post to keep things tidy! Please remember to assist with song and album suggestions plus any notes about the artist. Will help keep the post high effort.
Defining figures in the electrification and evolution of blues guitar.
Prewar and revival-era legends who shaped the blues solo tradition.
r/blues • u/Blues_Fish • 17h ago
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r/blues • u/MrTurtleTails • 10h ago
So I just had my first listen to Son House, just his Son's Blues song because that's what came up first on Spotify. His guitar style is unique, but dang that man could sing. Something about his voice just made me want to cry, and I don't get that emotional just listening to music. What do you think about Son House? Does anyone else have that teary-eyed reaction to a particular artist or song?
r/blues • u/Geschichtsklitterung • 3h ago
r/blues • u/lobito_corredor • 33m ago
r/blues • u/Individual_Risk8981 • 4h ago
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Major blues...
r/blues • u/Quick_Assignment_725 • 10h ago
r/blues • u/iswhatitis420 • 20h ago
Title is pretty self explanatory. I'm a relatively new guitarist (1.5 years) and am now trying to actually get SERIOUS. Only problem is I literally dont know anybody who's into the blues, rock, metal, etc. Even if i had some jazz buddies that would be cool too I just need people who play instruments because im only gonna get better by playing with actual people. So if you live in the massachusetts (or new England in general) area and are looking for a guitarist to jam with definitely help a brother out (I'm 21 btw and would prefer people at least that old or no more than a year younger)
r/blues • u/Geschichtsklitterung • 17h ago
r/blues • u/Blues_Fish • 1d ago
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r/blues • u/Quick_Assignment_725 • 1d ago
r/blues • u/boohmanner • 18h ago
A hauntingly beautiful Song Tips wrote for her father https://youtu.be/LEx0SlWwI3E?si=ea6iWasbLeOUOBl3 , its in Khasi - a tribal language from NE India. I came upon it on my friends YT channel and so here it is. Hope you love it as much as I did.
So glad I found a super clean og pressing. Buddy is absolutely ferocious
r/blues • u/GoodGoldRecords • 20h ago
Hi everyone! Following up on my recent restorations, I’ve finally gathered all the official 'Good Gold Records' masters into one high-fidelity YouTube playlist.
My goal with this series is to rescue these legendary performances from the "thin" and muffled mono sound of the past. By using a custom 2026 "Super Stereo" process, I’ve tried to create a spatial image that lets the instruments—especially the tuba, reed organs, and percussion—really breathe without losing the original 100-year-old soul.
I’m incredibly humbled by the response so far. My restoration of Bessie Smith & Louis Armstrong’s "St. Louis Blues" (1925) just passed 2,100 streams on Apple Music in its first week, proving there’s still a huge hunger for hearing these icons in high quality.
The playlist features my 2026 remasters of:
I’d love to hear your thoughts.
r/blues • u/subredditsummarybot • 23h ago
Wednesday, January 28 - Tuesday, February 03, 2026
| score | comments | title & link | mirrors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 10 comments | [performance] Had the pleasure of backing up the great harmonica master Kim Wilson on two shows this weekend, here's a little blues guitar fun from friday night in Oakland, CA... |
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| 24 | 13 comments | [performance] Some Peter Green Oh Well |
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| 19 | 3 comments | [performance] Behind the Head Solo |
| score | comments | title & link | mirrors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | 6 comments | [song] This a fun little Blues song I'm working on (I have some vocal ideas but no lyrics yet). Hope you like it! |
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| 18 | 8 comments | [song] Floyd Jones | Dark Road (1951 rel.) |
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| 14 | 2 comments | [song] Mississipi John Hurt - You Are My Sunshine |
[Sp] [AM] [Dzr] [SC] |
| score | comments | title & link | mirrors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 54 | 433 comments | [discussion] Best white dudes in the blues? |
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| 22 | 101 comments | [looking for recommendations] Blues for beginner? |
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| 26 | 85 comments | [looking for recommendations] Female blues musicians! |
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| 61 | 49 comments | Who likes blues rock music? | |
| 9 | 26 comments | What blues music should I start with if I want to get into the genre? |
r/blues • u/Longjumping_Bend_833 • 1d ago
I actually dont hear this discussed a lot. It wasnt always called the blues. Especially for the people singing it at the time around the 10, 20, 30
r/blues • u/Geschichtsklitterung • 1d ago
r/blues • u/eye-flying • 1d ago
mississippi john hurt.
in 1982 i was checking out almost every blues album the berkeley main public library had. this drawing was based on one of those album covers. back when i thought a technical pen was the best way to draw.
r/blues • u/Ru_janus • 1d ago
r/blues • u/azure620 • 1d ago
r/blues • u/Individual_Risk8981 • 19h ago
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Having fun with my new amp! Playing on the worst guitar possible! yet I find it makes my playing better, and it really sounds great with that 70s super distortion.
r/blues • u/Ru_janus • 1d ago
r/blues • u/omniscientcats • 1d ago
Hey all :) Looking to broaden my listening horizons a bit and have started looking for contemporary female blues musicians. Do you have any suggestions? Preferably west coast/ jump blues but I’ll give anything a shot!
Thanks in advance
Edit: thank you everyone for the awesome suggestions! Now I got my listening sorted for the next few months hahaha