60 Shades of the Deep Blues by 
Mercury 
So for this chart I wanted to give a nice overview of some great, essential deep blues. If you want more discussion and history feel free to check out the corresponding "Genre Extravaganza: DEEP BLUES/COUNTRY BLUES" forum topic. It's really old now so it may be a challenge to uncover it. ; )
Also read books on it. I'd say the best introduction to the story of this amazing music is the book "Deep Blues" by Robert Palmer. It's what I stole the name of this chart from and it's one of my favorite books of any kind.
If you have any recommendations or questions or if you like some particular artist and want to know who/what to check out next - all those things should be made in to comments. And I promise oh get back with you.
Love you beautiful people.
Peace,
Ryan
- Chart updated: 06/12/2022 17:15
- (Created: 05/30/2014 22:56).
- Chart size: 60 albums.
There are 28 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and 60 Shades of the Deep Blues has an average rating of 95 out of 100 (from 61 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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Frank Stokes (January 1, 1888 – September 12, 1955) was an American blues musician, songster, and blackface minstrel, who is considered by many musicologists to be the father of the Memphis blues guitar style. Stokes was already playing the streets of Memphis by the turn of the century, about the same time the blues began to flourish. As a street artist, he built up a huge palate of different kinds of songs and styles. He was another one of these old timers who wasn't strictly blues, but a songster. Someone who could entertain anyone with all manner of music. As a street performer he needed a broad repertoire of songs. This album includes many treasures including blues as well as older pieces: "Chicken You Can't Roost Too High for Me," "Mr. Crump Don't Like It," an outstanding version of "You Shall" (commonly known as "You Shall Be Free"), and "Hey Mourner," a traditional comic anti-clerical piece. Stokes possessed a remarkable declamatory voice and was an adroit guitarist.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
1
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Scrapper and blues pianist Leroy Carr are usual associated. It was with Carr that Scrapper recorded much of his most notable sides. But also as a solo guitarist (featured here quite a bit) he was fabulous. He was a truly spectacular guitarist technically. Very jazz based, improvised and beautiful. And his single string soloing technique is pristine. You can't help but love this man and his music.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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I wasn't sure where to put this man. He so thoroughly stretches outside blues. He is an American legend, a myth, a man who helped to preserve the very best of American folk music, not just blues. Much like Lonnie Johnson, his genius and influence go far beyond blues. But truly the Delta blues he does on this is raw and real. He was just someone who could interpret any form and grant it it's most beautiful rendition.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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This dude was wild. Years before RJ did it, he claimed he sold his soul to the devil for his musical prowess. Note the album cover even says a common rumor spread about him - "Devil's Son In Law". And his song topics did nothing to temper that perception of him as a baaaaad man with subjects such as suicide, murder, alcohol and drug use, etc. he was like the original blues rebel. And his music is a dark thing, filled with the usual intense Delta fare. And although the one extant picture of him shows him with a guitar, he was actually a pianist. And a damn fine one at that. I definitely recommend this to y'all.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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Mr. Henry Thomas is something of a folk legend. He's so old that when he recorded his only records in the late 20s he was already in his early 50s! He is regarded as a Songster, so the songs and styles he sang covered many grounds - from spirituals, to ballads, to dance songs and of course the songs on this record here that would be called Blues. No matter the music he was playing, he had a very interesting style all his own. His guitar technique seems very simple, much more interested in making his music danceable than making it complex. And he also often played a very peculiar instrument called a Quill or a Panpipe. It is a simple instrument, indigenous to a few parts of the southern US and almost never used in blues records.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
Year of Release:
1974
Appears in:
Rank in 1974:
None
Rank in 1970s:
None
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Tommy was a can't-miss gravel-throated growler. He had passion and fire and fury in spades and a propulsive guitar attack. This whole collection is a pretty down and dirty, no frills affair that will probably win you over completely. Absolutely, no doubt, he is one of the most criminally underrated of the whole delta blues bunch.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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A good-natured finger-picking guitarist, Anderson played for about 30 years as part of a medicine show. He did make a couple of sides for Columbia in the late '20s with Simmie Dooley, but otherwise didn't record until a 1950 session. Finally as the folk revival commenced in the early '60s he began to record albums (this one included) He's a more than worthy exponent of the Piedmont school, versed in blues, ragtime, and folk songs, Pink is really one of the greatest an most versatile bluesmen you'll hear. A songster of the higher order.
And it will entertain you BEAers to know that Anderson also became an unusual footnote in rock history when young, unknown at the time, Syd Barrett combined Pink's first name with the first name of another obscure bluesman (Floyd Council) to name his rock group, Pink Floyd, in the mid-'60s. [First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
And it will entertain you BEAers to know that Anderson also became an unusual footnote in rock history when young, unknown at the time, Syd Barrett combined Pink's first name with the first name of another obscure bluesman (Floyd Council) to name his rock group, Pink Floyd, in the mid-'60s. [First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
28. (=)
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The Mississippi Sheiks were a string band blues act who's most legendary song "Sittin' On Top Of The World" has been covered by about a million acts. They also had a beautiful, rich sound and style that took their Mississippi delta blues style and stretched it into other forms of country blues and ballads. This collection is a perfect 1 disc representation of their at times joyous and always warm sound.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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He's equal parts Chicago blues and delta. He influenced MASSIVELY a generation of blues guitarist. But his heart in in the Mississippi and underneath all that amplification is just about the greatest Robert Johnson disciple ever. I imagine if RJ had survived, he would have packed up and gone to one of the big cities, plugged his acoustic in and sounded like Elmore here.
[First added to this chart: 05/31/2014]
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JT Funny Paper Smith, along with Blind Lemon Jefferson, probably did more to define and influence the early Texas blues guitar sound than anyone else. He developed a signature sound distinguished by complex, fluid melodic lines and cool, repetitive bass riffs. He was also a very good early blues songwriter. he was known by some as Howling Wolf a full 20 years before the much more well Known Howlin' Wolf (aka Chester Burnett) claimed the name in the 40s. His career suddenly came to a close in the mid 30s when he was imprisoned for killing a man. He died in his cell some years later. Still, murderer or not, it's highly recommended you hear this man play.
[First added to this chart: 11/09/2014]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank in 1971:
None
Rank in 1970s:
None
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 60. Page 3 of 6
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60 Shades of the Deep Blues composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 2 | 3% | |
| 1960s | 2 | 3% | |
| 1970s | 7 | 12% | |
| 1980s | 8 | 13% | |
| 1990s | 34 | 57% | |
| 2000s | 6 | 10% | |
| 2010s | 1 | 2% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Various Artists | 4 | 7% | |
| Lightnin' Hopkins | 1 | 2% | |
| Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup | 1 | 2% | |
| The Mississippi Sheiks | 1 | 2% | |
| Tommy Johnson | 1 | 2% | |
| Clifford Gibson | 1 | 2% | |
| Bukka White | 1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
60 Shades of the Deep Blues chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 4 from 12th to 8th Steppin' On The Blues by Lonnie Johnson |
| Up 3 from 8th to 5th Ragtime Guitar's Foremost Fingerpicker by Blind Blake (US) |
| Up 2 from 13th to 11th The Original 1928 Recordings by Mississippi John Hurt |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 4 from 2nd to 6th King Of The Country Blues by Blind Lemon Jefferson |
| Down 4 from 9th to 13th The Complete Library Of Congress Sessions 1941-1942 by Son House |
| Down 3 from 7th to 10th Founder Of The Delta Blues by Charley Patton |
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- Genre Favorites #3: Electric Blues by
NickVolos (2014) - Top 11 Music Albums of 1960 by Mercury (2021)
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Mercury (2023)60 Shades of the Deep Blues ratings
95/100 (from 61 votes)
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Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 61 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 85/100  | 09/02/2021 17:55 |  rockbluesfolkjaz | | 87/100 |
| 85/100 | 06/11/2021 14:38 |  Timestarter | | 90/100 |
| 100/100 | 11/08/2020 05:02 | DJENNY | | 100/100 |
| 95/100 | 09/07/2020 16:38 |  arthurbittencour | | 90/100 |
| 100/100 | 03/18/2020 16:21 |  Jameth | | 96/100 |
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This chart is rated in the top 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 94.9/100, a mean average of 95.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 96.4/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 7.2.
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60 Shades of the Deep Blues comments
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From Mercury 09/07/2020 16:46
Mercury 09/07/2020 16:46
@arthurbittencourt - lol I get it. I love the wild. I am not familiar with a deep delta blues album of his. Pre-war mostly acoustic blues is the center of this chart. I have another chart which I’ve not finished after years of procrastination which is about my fave post WWII mostly electric blues which howlin Wolf is high on cuz he is one of the greats.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From arthurbittencourt 09/07/2020 16:38
arthurbittencourt 09/07/2020 16:38
95 / 100 just because no Howlin' Wolf.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From Jameth 03/18/2020 16:37
Jameth 03/18/2020 16:37
Document Records cut their albums straight, which is why they’re so noisy. You can find comps for Tommy Johnson and others which have lower noise levels. Another important example of this is the more recent Centennial Collection for Robert Johnson, which contains all of the tracks found on The Complete Recordings (plus two more), but is much more listenable. Anyways, I thought I’d mention this because it might be better to steer people new to the blues or pre-war recordings towards the lower noise recordings. Or even to post-war tape recordings for those artists that are fortunate enough to have recorded to tape, such as Son House and Blind Willie McTell.
Thanks for helping the cause of the blues with this awesome chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From crimson 12/18/2019 03:49
Man, one of the greatest charts in this site. A loooot to be discovered by the common man in here.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
Boltzmann 12/17/2019 22:05
Boltzmann 12/17/2019 22:05
Damn, my blues doesn't go that deep, but I'm glad someone is willing to take the effort to make such a chart. It wouldn't be bad for me to get educated on blues and see where it overlaps with and how it evolved into rock 'n' roll. My previous efforts have been tiresome and unfruitful (everything is hard to find), maybe your chart will be good guidance.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From Steppenwolf666 12/17/2019 13:22
Very informative. A subject i don't know too much about.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From 
StefanR10 07/05/2019 07:42
StefanR10 07/05/2019 07:42
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -3 votes (0 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
95/100
From arthurbittencourt 03/08/2019 05:27
arthurbittencourt 03/08/2019 05:27
How old are you my good friend? and how long have you been listening to blues?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From boppare 01/21/2019 21:16
I thought I knew all there was to know about the Pre-war "deep blues", but this chart just made me add a few albums to my wishlist. Some excellent selections and comments.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
Jasonconfused 11/15/2018 23:57
Jasonconfused 11/15/2018 23:57
What an undertaking! I'll have to get to work on this immediately.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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We work very hard to ensure our site is as fast (and FREE!) as possible, and we respect your privacy.