Alone & Acoustic

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Alone & Acoustic
Alone & Acoustic.jpg
Studio album by
Released1991
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]

Contents

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

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Calgary Herald A [5]
Chicago Tribune Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [12]
Robert Christgau Five Pointed Star Solid.svg [13]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [14]
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Orlando Sentinel Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [15]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [16]
Syracuse Herald American Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [6]

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

  1. "Give Me My Coat and Shoes" - 3:49
  2. "Big Boat (Buddy and Junior's Thing)" - 5:13
  3. "Sweet Black Girl" (Wells) - 3:32
  4. "Diggin' My Potatoes" - 4:28
  5. "Don't Leave Me" (Wells) - 3:43
  6. "Rollin' and Tumblin'" - 4:33
  7. "I'm in the Mood" - 3:22
  8. "High Heel Sneakers" - 4:56
  9. "Wrong Doing Woman" - 3:00
  10. "Cut You Loose" - 4:03
  11. "Sally Mae" - 2:30
  12. "Catfish Blues" - 3:33
  13. "My Home's in the Delta" - 3:05
  14. "Boogie Chillen" - 4:00
  15. "Medley: Baby What You Want Me to Do/That's Allright" - 5:44

References

  1. 1 2 Iglauer, Bruce; Roberts, Patrick A. (October 19, 2018). Bitten by the Blues: The Alligator Records Story. University of Chicago Press.
  2. 1 2 Heim, Chris (November 15, 1991). "Buddy Guy and Junior Wells 'Alone & Acoustic'". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. P.
  3. 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.
  4. ↑ White, Jim (December 15, 1991). "Entertainment". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. J5.
  5. 1 2 Wagamese, Richard (November 24, 1991). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C6.
  6. 1 2 Bourke, Brian G. (December 1, 1991). "Blues Musicians Returning to the Limelight". Stars. Syracuse Herald American. p. 27.
  7. 1 2 MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 244.
  8. ↑ McCarthy, John (November 29, 1991). "Alligator Celebrates with Some Hot Stuff". Northwest. The Lewiston Tribune.
  9. ↑ 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.
  10. 1 2 The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 234.
  11. 1 2 "Alone & Acoustic Buddy Guy, Junior Wells". AllMusic.
  12. 1 2 Litwiler, John (December 5, 1991). "Rave recordings". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
  13. 1 2 "Buddy Guy & Junior Wells: Alone and Acoustic". Robert Christgau.
  14. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 49.
  15. 1 2 Gettelman, Parry (January 24, 1992). "Buddy Guy & Junior Wells, Alone & Acoustic". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 8.
  16. ↑ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 296.
  17. ↑ 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.