Search - Luther Johnson :: Live at Rynborn

Solid concert from Muddy Waters band alumnus

Docendo Discimus | 06/12/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Let us not take for granted the solid, no-frills, blues artistry of Chicago's Mr. Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson - he's the real thing in an era of teenage guitar "sensations." When Johnson (now the pride of New England) is "on," as he shows here, he's one of the tastiest guitar pickers around. Better still, he has developed into a top-flight singer. This is a welcome re-release of what had been a rarity put out by the club itself. It also marks his first solo live release. His studio work with Rooster, Bullseye and Telarc labels is probably the better place to start, but this is a decent live snapshot of a fine performer."

Nice live Luther

Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 08/29/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Something of an "elder statesman" of the blues, Luther Johnson played guitar in the Muddy Waters band for seven years, and his own band, the Magic Rockers, (almost) manages to produce the same tough, swinging groove that the great Chicago combos of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf and Elmore James laid down in their heyday.



This is straight-ahead, unpretentious electric blues anchored by a good rhythm section and a great piano player, and if Luther's vocals lack the power of Muddy's, his rock-solid guitar playing goes a long way towards making up for it.

The songs are somewhat crudely edited (probably an attempt to give the impression that they all came from the same set when they obviously didn't), and the back-to-back slow blues which finish off the set rob it of some of its intensity.

Oh, and the liner notes are lousy, too.

But the music is really good, occationally even great, like Luther's rendition of "You Don't Have To Go" and "What You've Been Putting Down" (great solo), a fun, swinging cover of Fats Domino's "Hello Josephine", and the one-time Bobby Bland single "It's My Life Baby".

Not everything is equally remarkable, of course, but there is certainly no need to skip anything either, and even somewhat predictable numbers like "I Don't Know Why" and "Love Me Baby" sound great when set to a lively boogie beat and played by a band as competent as this. Love that piano!



If you've been listening to "Muddy Waters At Newport" or "Howlin' Wolf Live At Alice's Revisited" all week, this album may disappoint you just a little bit at first, but give it a chance. It's a really enjoyable slide of Chicago blues played by one of the genre's most reliable performers."