| Simply the Truth | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1969 | |||
| Recorded | New York City, September 17 & 18, 1968 | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Length | 37:49 | |||
| Label | BluesWay | |||
| Producer | Bob Thiele | |||
| John Lee Hooker chronology | ||||
| ||||
Simply the Truth is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker released by the BluesWay label in 1969. [1]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings |  [3] |
AllMusic reviewer Richie Unterberger stated: "Overseen by noted jazz producer Bob Thiele, this session had Hooker backed by some of his fullest arrangements to date ... The slightly modernized sound was ultimately neither here nor there, the center remaining Hooker's voice and lyrics. ... Another of his many characteristically solid efforts, although it's not one of his more interesting albums". [2]
All compositions credited to John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues that he developed in Detroit. Hooker often incorporated other elements, including talking blues and early North Mississippi hill country blues. He developed his own driving-rhythm boogie style, distinct from the 1930s–1940s piano-derived boogie-woogie. Hooker was ranked 35 in Rolling Stone's 2015 list of 100 greatest guitarists.
Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos that reflect characteristics of the human singing voice. It typically involves playing the guitar in the traditional position with the use of a slide fitted on one of the guitarist's fingers. The slide may be a metal or glass tube, such as the neck of a bottle. The term bottleneck was historically used to describe this type of playing. The strings are typically plucked while the slide is moved over the strings to change the pitch. The guitar may also be placed on the player's lap and played with a hand-held bar.
"Boogie Chillen'" or "Boogie Chillun" is a blues song first recorded by John Lee Hooker in 1948. It is a solo performance featuring Hooker's vocal, electric guitar, and rhythmic foot stomps. The lyrics are partly autobiographical and alternate between spoken and sung verses. The song was his debut record release and in 1949, it became the first "down-home" electric blues song to reach number one in the R&B records chart.
"Dimples" is a song written and recorded by blues singer-songwriter John Lee Hooker in 1956. It is an ensemble piece, with Hooker accompanied by Jimmy Reed's backup band. Eight years after its first release, it became Hooker's first record to appear in the British record charts. Called a "genuine Hooker classic" by music critic Bill Dahl, it is one of his best-known songs, with interpretations by several artists.
Endless Boogie is a studio album by American blues musician John Lee Hooker, released in 1971 through ABC Records. Produced by Bill Szymczyk and Ed Michel, the double album was recorded at Wally Heider Recording with session musicians such as Jesse Ed Davis, Carl Radle, Steve Miller, Gino Skaggs and Mark Naftalin.
The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker, released by Vee-Jay Records in August or September 1961. Hooker recorded most of the songs on January 4, 1961, in Chicago, with two recorded live at the Newport Folk Festival June 25, 1960.
The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded in Detroit in 1959 and released by Riverside Records in January 1960.
Burning Hell is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker that was recorded in Detroit in 1959 at the same sessions that produced The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker, but not released by the Riverside label until 1964 in Europe.
Concert at Newport is a live album by the blues musician John Lee Hooker, recorded at the Newport Folk Festival and released by the Vee-Jay label in 1963.
The Real Folk Blues is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker that was recorded in Chicago in 1966 and released by the Chess label. Additional tracks from the sessions were released as More Real Folk Blues: The Missing Album in 1991.
Live at Cafe Au Go Go is a live album by blues musician John Lee Hooker with members of Muddy Waters Blues Band. It was recorded at the Cafe Au Go Go in New York City and released by BluesWay Records in 1967.
If You Miss 'Im...I Got 'Im is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker with his cousin Earl Hooker released by the BluesWay label in 1970.
Live at Soledad Prison is a live album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded at the Soledad State Prison in Monterey County, California on June 11, 1972 and released by the ABC label later that year. It is not available in its original form on compact disc, but in 1996, MCA Records released a compilation of Hooker's 1966 live album Live at Cafe Au Go Go with the last five songs of Live at Soledad Prison, under the title Live at the Café au Go-Go .
Live at Sugar Hill is a live album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded in California in 1962 and released by the Galaxy label. The album was reissued in 1974 by Fantasy as the first disc of the double LP Boogie Chillun which added ten additional previously unreleased recordings from the same concerts.
The Cream is a live album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded in California in 1977 and released by the Tomato label in 1978.
Don't Turn Me from Your Door, subtitled John Lee Hooker Sings His Blues, is an album by the blues musician John Lee Hooker, compiling six songs originally recorded for De Luxe Records in 1953 along with six new tunes recorded in 1961. Atco Records released the album in 1963.
Get Back Home in the U.S.A.is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker that was recorded in France in 1969 and originally released by the French Black & Blue label. The album was reissued with 6 additional tracks in 1988 as Get Back Home.
That's Where It's At! is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded in 1961 collecting five tracks originally released on a split album by Guest Star Records in 1966 along with five unreleased tracks, that was issued by the Stax label in 1969.
Sittin' Here Thinkin', also released as Sad and Lonesome, is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker recorded in 1961 and released by the Muse label in 1979.
Jealous is an album by the blues musician John Lee Hooker. Produced by Hooker, it was recorded in 1982 but was not released until 1986, when it was issued by Pausa Records. The album won a W.C. Handy Award and was nominated for a Grammy Award. The album was reissued on CD in 1996 by Point Blank Records.