Alone & Acoustic
| Alone & Acoustic | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 1991 |
| Genre | Blues |
| Label | Alligator[1] |
| Producer | Didier Tricard |
Alone & Acoustic is an album by the blues musicians Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, released in 1991.[2][3] It was recorded in 1981, in Paris, France, while the two were touring.[4][5]
The album has sold more than 100,000 copies.[1] Along with Damn Right, I've Got the Blues, it marked a return to commercial success for Guy.[6]
Production
The album was produced by Didier Tricard.[7] Guy played acoustic Guild guitars and Wells played harmonica; they both sang.[8][9][3] Guy wrote three of the songs, including the opening "Give Me My Coat and Shoes".[10] Ten tracks were originally released via an import album.[2]
Critical reception
Rolling Stone called Alone & Acoustic "reflective and subdued," writing that "a warm spontaneity runs through the album."[17] Robert Christgau praised ""High Heel Sneakers" and "Give Me My Coat and Shoes".[13]
The Orlando Sentinel determined that Guy's playing "on 12-and six-string acoustics is uncomplicated but as awesome as any daredevil run he has played on his Stratocaster."[15] The Chicago Tribune thought that "the extroverted Guy now sounds like a soft, lyrical Mississippi bluesman virtually singing to himself … Wells remains a strong, dramatic, post-Muddy Waters singer, but the intimacy of the setting leads to his widening his already impressive dynamic range."[12]
AllMusic wrote that "this is acoustic street-corner blues at its best, performed with incredible expressiveness, ease, and joy."[11]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Give Me My Coat and Shoes" | Buddy Guy | 3:49 |
| 2. | "Big Boat (Buddy and Junior's Thing)" | Junior Wells | 5:13 |
| 3. | "Sweet Black Girl" | Buddy Guy | 3:32 |
| 4. | "Diggin' My Potatoes" | Ernest Lawlars (Little Sunny Joe) | 4:28 |
| 5. | "Don't Leave Me" | Buddy Guy | 3:43 |
| 6. | "Rollin' and Tumblin'" | Hambone Willie Newbern | 4:33 |
| 7. | "I'm in the Mood" | 3:22 | |
| 8. | "High Heel Sneakers" | Robert Higginbotham | 4:56 |
| 9. | "Wrong Doing Woman" | Junior Wells | 2:59 |
| 10. | "Cut You Loose" | Mel London | 4:03 |
| 11. | "Sally Mae" |
| 2:30 |
| 12. | "Catfish Blues" | Robert Petway | 3:33 |
| 13. | "My Home's in the Delta" | McKinley Morganfield | 3:05 |
| 14. | "Boogie Chillen" |
| 4:00 |
| 15. | "Medley: Baby What You Want Me to Do/That's All Right" | Jimmy Reed / Arthur Crudup | 5:44 |
| Total length: | 59:30 | ||
References
- 1 2 Iglauer, Bruce; Roberts, Patrick A. (October 19, 2018). Bitten by the Blues: The Alligator Records Story. University of Chicago Press.
- 1 2 Heim, Chris (November 15, 1991). "Buddy Guy and Junior Wells 'Alone & Acoustic'". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. P.
- 1 2 Means, Sean P. (December 22, 1991). "Christmas Treats, Blues and an All-Star Tribute to a Cult Figure". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. E9.
- ↑ White, Jim (December 15, 1991). "Entertainment". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. J5.
- 1 2 Wagamese, Richard (November 24, 1991). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C6.
- 1 2 Bourke, Brian G. (December 1, 1991). "Blues Musicians Returning to the Limelight". Stars. Syracuse Herald American. p. 27.
- 1 2 MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 244.
- ↑ McCarthy, John (November 29, 1991). "Alligator Celebrates with Some Hot Stuff". Northwest. The Lewiston Tribune.
- ↑ Alger, Dean (April 15, 2014). The Original Guitar Hero and the Power of Music: The Legendary Lonnie Johnson, Music, and Civil Rights. University of North Texas Press.
- 1 2 The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 234.
- 1 2 "Alone & Acoustic Buddy Guy, Junior Wells". AllMusic.
- 1 2 Litwiler, John (December 5, 1991). "Rave recordings". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
- 1 2 "Buddy Guy & Junior Wells: Alone and Acoustic". Robert Christgau.
- ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 49.
- 1 2 Gettelman, Parry (January 24, 1992). "Buddy Guy & Junior Wells, Alone & Acoustic". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 8.
- ↑ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 296.
- ↑ Santelli, Robert (February 6, 1992). "Recordings – Damn Right, I've Got the Blues by Buddy Guy/Alone and Acoustic by Buddy Guy and Junior Wells". Rolling Stone. No. 623. p. 79.