The Grove Press guide to the blues on CD /

Admittedly, this compact discography is not intended to be "a complete, inclusive, exhaustive handbook to what's currently available by recording artists in the compact disc configuration." It is, in fact, a guide to blues (including country) and blues-related items found in the personal collections of the four contributors, all of whom contribute to rhythm and blues and other music-related publications. Unlike Frank Scott's The Down Home Guide to the Blues (CH, Mar'92), a 3,500-item mail order catalog of blues recordings (phono records, cassettes and CDs), and The Blackwell Guide to Recorded Blues, with CD supplement, (1991), this smaller and highly personalized collection cites approximately 810 briefly annotated singles and anthologies. Employing a rather curious and personal rating system, each descriptive/critical entry is assigned from one to five stars: 1 star (the lowest rating) = accurst; 5 stars (the highest) = sterling. The guide has two parts: (1) an alphabetical listing by artist, with recordings arranged chronologically by recording date; and (2) anthologies arranged alphabetically by title. The guide contains a worthy collection of blues and blues artists; but "anyone wanting to take full measure of the innumerable CDs in print is advised to seek out the catalogs and/or 'updates' offered by [mail order firms]." While the guide may be useful for individual collectors, it is not recommended as a first purchase for libraries. G. T. Johnson; Central State University (OH)

Defining the blues as a "common language of virtually all American musics," this guide to compact-disc recordings includes not only traditional blues music, but also rhythm and blues, country and western, rock and roll, and jazz. The preface also makes clear that author Hadley, a frequent contributor to Down Beat and other music publications, has nothing against phonograph recordings--which he admits can be more authentic, if less clear, than the laser technology of compact discs. The work's publisher, Grove Press, should not be confused with the company that issues the family of New Grove music dictionaries. Alphabetically arranged by performer, The Grove Press Guide to the Blues includes more than 700 entries for recent or reissued compact discs. Each entry consists of the album name, the recording company, a star rating (from one to five stars) by Hadley and three contributors, a two- to four-sentence descriptive and critical annotation, the running time, and the year of issue or a note that the recording is a reissue. The range of covered artists is great--from Bessie Smith and Muddy Waters to such current musical performers as Wynton Marsalis, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and even rock-and-roll performer Eric Clapton. The book also includes a 30-page section of compact disc-anthology entries, arranged alphabetically by title of compact disc. An index of album titles provides further access to all the guide's entries. Intended as the first of a series of inexpensive books that highlight the best compact-disc recordings, this low-cost guide provides an informative, discerning, and reliable analysis of this increasingly popular and influential music genre. It is recommended for public libraries, academic libraries supporting music studies, and specialized music libraries. It is even appropriate for high school libraries serving students with blues interests. Public libraries should also consider a duplicate copy for their circulating collections. (Reviewed May 1, 1993)