I'm John Lee Hooker

I'm John Lee Hooker is an album by blues musician John Lee Hooker, compiling seven tracks originally released as singles between 1955 and 1958 along with five new tracks recorded in 1959, that was released by the Vee-Jay label.[1]

I'm John Lee Hooker
Compilation album by
John Lee Hooker
ReleasedAugust 1959 (1959-08)
Recorded1955–1959
StudioChicago, Illinois
GenreBlues
Length32:25
LabelVee-Jay
Producer
John Lee Hooker chronology
House of the Blues
(1959)		 I'm John Lee Hooker
(1959)		 The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker
(1959)

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of The Blues[3]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings[4]

The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings said "When Hooker's Vee-Jay sides first appeared, as singles, they were heartening indications that honest and ungimmicky blues were still being made; heard at intervals, as they were, they gave a hard-won pleasure that one might not stop to examine the detail. Taken at a draught, decades later they are a little less compelling. Putting Hooker with an efficient band was presumably intended to relieve him of rhythmic chores and give him room to flex vocal or instrumental muscle, but he gains little from it; he is always his most interesting rhythm provider, and neither his singing, nor his guitar playing is particularly enhanced by having free rein. Indeed in most group contexts he is ill equipped to be a lead guitarist at all. Still, there are many worthwhile performances to be found".[4]

AllMusic reviewer Lindsay Planer stated: "I'm John Lee Hooker was first issued in 1959 during his tenure with Vee Jay and is "the Hook" in his element as well as prime. ... Time has, if anything, only reinforced the significance of the album. It belongs in every blues enthusiast's collection without reservation".[2]

Track listing

All compositions credited to John Lee Hooker

  1. "Dimples" – 2:14
  2. "Hobo Blues" – 2:48
  3. "I'm So Excited" – 2:53
  4. "I Love You Honey" – 2:33
  5. "Boogie Chillun" – 2:35
  6. "Little Wheel" – 2:34
  7. "I'm in the Mood" – 2:42
  8. "Maudie" – 2:17
  9. "Crawlin' King Snake" – 2:41
  10. "Everynight" – 2:58
  11. "Time Is Marching" – 3:01
  12. "Baby Lee" – 2:48
  • Recorded in Chicago on October 19, 1955 (track 11), March 27, 1956 (tracks 1, 10 & 12), March 1, 1957 (track 3), June 23, 1957 (track 6), June 10, 1958 (track 4) and January 22, 1959 (tracks 2, 5 & 7-9)

Personnel
  • John Lee Hooker – guitar, vocals
  • Jimmy Reed – harmonica (track 11)
  • Eddie Taylor – guitar (tracks 1, 3, 6-8 & 10-12)
  • Frankie Bradford (track 6), Joe Hunter (track 4) – piano
  • Everett McCrary (tracks 4 & 6), George Washington (track 1 & 10-12), Quinn Wilson (track 3) – bass
  • Richard Johnson (tracks 4 & 6), Earl Phillips (track 7), Tom Whitehead (tracks 1, 3 & 10-12) – drums
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References
  1. "I'm John Lee Hooker". johnleehooker.com. Retrieved August 14, 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Planer, Lindsay. John Lee Hooker: I'm John Lee Hooker – Review at AllMusic. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  3. Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues. London: Random House. p. 280. ISBN 9781448132744.
  4. Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. London: Penguin. p. 269. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
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