Little Walter: The Best Of Little Walter

The melancholy, lamenting, sometimes aggressive tones of the harmonica are an indispensable ingredient of the blues sound. After 1945 however, the circle of virtuosi on this tiny instrument dwindled. While the majority of harp players withdrew from the limelight into the wings, the number of top performers was reduced to just a handful, with Marion Walter Jacobs at the fore.
Little Walter’s ascent to becoming one of the greatest exponents of the sound known as Chicago blues began in 1951 when he became a fixed member of Muddy Waters’ band. Two years later he established his own group and rocketed to the top of the rhythm-and-blues charts with smash hits such as Juke, Sad Hours and My Babe. Along with his virtuoso technique and his love of experimenting with echo effects, Walter is noted for his clear, unfussed style which occasionally brings back memories of Louis Jordan’s saxophone melodies, thereby taking up influences from popular jazz.
It is astonishing that Walter’s heritage is so small. Of the 100 recorded titles he recorded, only about half of them were ever released.
The present album offers a portrait of the “King of the pocket organ” and covers the whole spectrum of his playing, his instrument sometimes sounding like the human voice, a saxophone, or a snarling electric guitar. Harp fans and lovers of traditional blues certainly shouldn’t hesitate to secure their copy of this album.