Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Shake For Me (Live)
2. Rude Mood/Hide Away (Live)
3. Love Struck Baby
4. Pride And Joy
5. Texas Flood
6. Mary Had A Little Lamb
7. Lenny
8. Scuttle Buttin'
9. Couldn't Stand The Weather
10. The Things (That) I Used To Do
11. Cold Shot
12. Tin Pan Alley (aka Roughest Place In Town)
13. Give Me Back My Wig
14. Empty Arms
15. The Sky Is Crying (Live)
16. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) (Live)

Disc 2:

1. Say What!
2. Look At Little Sister
3. Change It
4. Come On Part III
5. Life Without You
6. Little Wing
7. Willie The Wimp (Live)
8. Superstition (Live)
9. Leave My Girl Alone (Live)
10. The House Is Rockin'
11. Crossfire
12. Tightrope
13. Wall Of Denial
14. Riviera Paradise
15. Telephone Song
16. Long Way From Home
17. Life By The Drop

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3199 in Music
• Released on: 2003-02-10
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .25 pounds

CD Description
Like a comet streaking across the sky, the late Stevie Ray Vaughan's time here was snuffed out far too quickly. Although other posthumous compilations have honoured his legacy, including a pair of GREATEST HITS collections and a number of live releases, THE ESSENTIAL serves as a lighter alternativeto the heftiness of the SRV box set. Vauhan was blessed with a distinct tone and a versatility on guitar that often found him going from bending strings just short of breaking to lightly playing with the delicacy of a baby's touch, often within the same song. This two-CD set does a fine job of representing the late legend's broad range.
Always generous in crediting his myriad of influences, (Double Trouble's namewas taken from an Otis Rush song), SRV ended up covering artists ranging from Buddy Guy ("Mary Had A Little Lamb"), Earl King ("Come On [Part III]"), and Hank Ballard ("Look At Little Sister") to Jimi Hendrix ("Little Wing") and close friend Doyle Bramhall ("Change It"). Live, Vaughan's might was equally impressive, and he still astounds with a segment of his breakthrough 1982 Montreux performance ("Rude Mood/Hide Away") along with in-concert versions of "Superstition" and "Voodoo Child [Slight Return]".

Customer Reviews

4½ stars. A terrific introduction to the finest blues guitarist to emerge since the 60s
First of all, yes, there are more Stevie Ray Vaughan compilations out there than original studio releases. But there are only a few of them which are really any good, and this is one of them.

There are 33 tracks here, excactly one more than on the obvious alternative of "The Real Deal: Greatest Hits vol. 1" and "The Real Deal: Greatest Hits vol. 2" combined. And almost all of Stevie Ray's must-have songs are here: The swaggering "Pride And Joy", the scorching blues "Texas Flood", the melodic "Cold Shot", the rollicking boogie of "Look At Little Sister", the wonderful riff-rocker "Willie The Wimp", and several other career highlights, including the intense and touching acoustic "Life By The Drop", and a sizzling cover of Hound Dog Taylor's "Give Me Back My Wig".

The slow blues tunes "Dirty Pool" and "Ain't Gone 'n' Give Up On Love" are missing, however, and the delightful rocker "Lookin' Out The Window" is, too, and that's a minus for this one and a plus in the "Real Deal" column. (Which one did I choose? Well, I have all of the original albums, so I don't really need a compilation on top of that, but now that "The Real Deal vol. 1" has replaced the original lousy 11-track "Greatest Hits" album from 1995, I might be tempted to lean towards the "Real Deal" vol. 1 and 2 double. But it's damn close!)

I would've given a clean five stars here if those three songs that I just mentioned had been included, and I almost did anyway, because the stuff that _is_ here is excellent, absolutely stellar. You'll rarely find a 33-track compilation which maintains such an amazing level of quality all the way through, nor such a varied and yet completely cohesive collection of songs. And if you don't want to invest in the even more fabulous "SRV"-box set, you should either go for this one or the two "Real Deal" CDs right away.

Texas' Pride And Joy
If you've never heard SRV, you'll probably wonder what all the fuss is about, especially if you read guitar magazines (where his name crops up quite frequently).

In a nutshell: he's the complete package. Tone, technique and a magnificent singing voice that wouldn't be out of place on a soul record.

This recording offers a full spectrum of his rercorded work: the straight-ahead blues songs such as Pride And Joy (the intro still floors me every time), to the technique-laden stomps (Scuttle Buttin'), to the gentler, more melodic (Lenny). After this, you may well wonder if guitar music will ever seem the same again.

The 2 CDs of this compilation are as good a place to start as any, offering a larger selection than Texas Flood or The Sky Is Crying (both of which are still essential purchases). I personally think that SRV is an artist who many have yet to discover and enjoy. Try and see for yourself, even if you're not a blues fan - it's hard not to be impressed.

The Greatest From The Greatest
When you think of great guitarists, the names roll off of the tongue with ease...Hendrix, King, Clapton, Allman...

But what about Stevie Ray Vaughan. Well, in my humble opinion, this man is possibly the greatest guitarist (behind Hendrix of course) that probably ever did. King is 'samey', Clapton is inconsistent, Allman was tragically cut short. Stevie was however versatile, technically unbelievable and judged by his peers as the greatest blues guitarist of all time.

This album encompasses the greatest of the greatest. From the roots of Vaughan in Texas Flood and Pride and Joy to the sophisticated funk of Couldnt Stand The Weather. After the two discs, I doubt you'll regret ever buying it. I couldn't go to the gym without it. In fact, I couldn't live without Stevie.