Lightnin' Hopkins - Blues & Rhythm Series 5079: The Chronological Lightnin' Hopkins 1949-1950 (2003)

If you want some early sides by the great Lightnin' Hopkins, this is a good place to come. Or, rather, it's one of the good places; you could just as easily get the Arhoolie compilations, which duplicate many of the titles on this disc. Drawn mainly from Hopkins' stay on the Gold Star label, there's no doubt it's all quality stuff, showcasing the way the man could improvise a lyric in the studio and make it seem as if it had been around forever. He'd juxtapose those with older blues, and the two would sit perfectly well side by side. But he was also an eccentric performer, one who could work a theme for a couple of verses then drift off, or change tempo at will during a guitar break, making for strange listening at times. But in that is also some charm -- it's impossible to dislike him, or even find him mean-spirited. ~Chris Nickson