| What You See Is What You Get | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1992 | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Label | Alligator [1] | |||
| Producer | Bruce Iglauer, Ed Williams | |||
| Lil' Ed Williams chronology | ||||
| ||||
What You See Is What You Get is an album by the American musician Lil' Ed Williams, released in 1992. [2] [3] He is credited with his band, the Blues Imperials. [4] Williams supported the album with a North American tour. [5] Following the tour, Williams temporarily broke up the band to concentrate on solo work. [6]
The album was coproduced by Bruce Iglauer. [7] Williams wrote 12 of the album's 14 tracks; he employed a pinky slide on many of the songs. [8] [9] What You See Is What You Get includes a cover of his uncle J. B. Hutto's "Please Help". [10] [8] "Upset Man" was written by the band's bass player, James "Pookie" Young. [11] Eddie McKinley joined the band on saxophone. [12]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [13] |
| Chicago Tribune |  [14] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [6] |
| MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide | [15] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [12] |
The Chicago Tribune called much of Williams's music "one-dimensional contemporary blues," but acknowledged that McKinley "mercifully brightens the shuffle-heavy grooves." [14] The St. Petersburg Times said that "the band can really dig into a stomping groove, accented by Ed's slide guitar, greasy as a just-lubricated truck axle." [16]
The Washington Post concluded that the Imperials "sound like every other baby-boomer, blues 'n' boogie bar band in the land." [10] The Los Angeles Times opined that "the Imperials are something of a detriment to Williams' purity, lacking the personality and sense of tradition that Williams so easily possesses." [17] The Houston Chronicle determined that Williams "has a seriousness of purpose that, combined with his intuitive understanding and exuberant attack, make this one of the most listenable 'classic' blues albums of recent years." [18]
AllMusic deemed the album "hard-driving good-time electric blues." [13]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Life Is Like Gambling" | |
| 2. | "Find My Baby" | |
| 3. | "Older Woman" | |
| 4. | "Please Help" | |
| 5. | "Toothache" | |
| 6. | "Living for Today" | |
| 7. | "Travellin' Life" | |
| 8. | "Out of the House" | |
| 9. | "Upset Man" | |
| 10. | "Long, Long Way from Home" | |
| 11. | "What You See Is What You Get" | |
| 12. | "Bluesmobile" | |
| 13. | "What Am I Gonna Do?" | |
| 14. | "Packin' Up" |
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, giving rise to the term bottleneck guitar 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 be placed on the player's lap and played with a hand-held bar.
McKinley Morganfield, known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-World War II blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago blues". His style of playing has been described as "raining down Delta beatitude".
Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the Living Blues magazine in Chicago in 1970.
Herman "Junior" Parker was an American blues singer and harmonica player. He is best remembered for his voice which has been described as "honeyed" and "velvet-smooth". One music journalist noted, "For years, Junior Parker deserted down home harmonica blues for uptown blues-soul music". In 2001, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Parker is also inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame.
The Anthology: 1947–1972 is a double compilation album by Chicago blues singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. It contains many of his best-known songs, including his R&B single chart hits "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man", "Just Make Love to Me ", and "I'm Ready". Chess and MCA Records released the set on August 28, 2001.
Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie is an American drummer, and an influential R&B, soul and funk musician. He is known for his precise musical time-keeping and his signature use of triplets against a half-time backbeat: the "Purdie Shuffle." He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2013.
Joseph Benjamin Hutto was an American blues musician. Influenced by Elmore James, Hutto became known for his slide guitar playing and declamatory style of singing. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame two years after his death.
Hot Number is a studio album by the American blues rock band the Fabulous Thunderbirds, released in 1987. It peaked at No. 49 on the Billboard 200. The band supported the album by touring with Crosby, Stills & Nash.
Lil' Ed Williams is an American blues slide guitarist, singer and songwriter. With his backing band, the Blues Imperials, he has built up a loyal following.
Live at Mister Kelly's, often stylized as "Live" , is a live album by blues musician Muddy Waters released by the Chess label in 1971.
Rumble is the second album by the American band Tommy Conwell and the Young Rumblers, released in 1988. It was the band's first album for a major label.
Don't Let the Bossman Get You Down! is an album by the American musician Elvin Bishop, released in 1991.
Honor Among Thieves is the debut album by the American band the Brandos, released in 1987. The first single was "Gettysburg", which was a minor hit on radio and MTV.
Sexual Telepathy is an album by the American musician Earl King, released in 1990. King supported the album with a North American tour.
All My Life is an album by the American musician Charles Brown, released in 1990. It was Brown's first album for Bullseye Blues, and part of a comeback effort that began with his previous release, One More for the Road. Brown supported the album with a North American tour.
Where There's Smoke There's Fire is an album by the American musician Buckwheat Zydeco, released in 1990. Zydeco and his band, Ils Sont Partis, supported the album with a North American tour. The album peaked at No. 140 on the Billboard 200.
Heads Up! is an album by the American musician Lil' Ed Williams, released in 2002. It was his fifth album for Alligator Records. He is credited with his band, the Blues Imperials. Williams supported the album with North American, European, and Asian tours. Heads Up! debuted at No. 14 on Billboard's Top Blues Albums chart.
Standing My Ground is an album by the American musician Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, released in 1989. Brown supported the album with a North American tour. Standing My Ground was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Recording.
I'm the Man is the debut album by the American musician Sherman Robertson, released in 1994. It was initially released by Indigo Recordings, in 1993. Robertson supported the album with European and North American tours.