Product Description

Quite possibly the only electric blues/rock guitarist to come near rivalling Jimi Hendrix, Vaughan, who, like Hendrix, died tragically, was so good he was ridiculous. He was lacking in really good material, and his own compositions were mainly guitar workouts, such as "Rude Mood", although he showsgreat feeling on the instrumental "Lenny". He is much more comfortable singing non-originals, and on this album he covers Buddy Guy's "Mary Had A Little Lamb" and Howlin Wolf's "Tell Me", but the listener is still waiting for the bit wherethe guitar solo comes in. Poor Double Trouble barely get a look in.

Track Listing

1. Lovestruck Baby
2. Pride And Joy
3. Texas Flood
4. Tell Me
5. Testify
6. Rude Mood
7. Mary Had A Little Lamb
8. Dirty Pool
9. I'm Cryin'
10. Lenny

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12597 in Music
• Released on: 1999-03-22
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
This legendary 1983 debut by the fallen torchbearer of the 1980s-90s blues revival sounds even more dramatic in its remixed and expanded edition. Stevie Ray Vaughan's guitar and vocals are a bit brighter and more present on this 14-track album. Texas Flood captures Vaughan as rockin' blues purist, paying tribute in his inspired six-string diction to his influences Larry Davis (who wrote the title track), Buddy Guy, Albert King, and Jimi Hendrix. His own contemplative "Lenny", a tribute to his wife at the time, also suggests a jazz-fuelled complexity that would infuse his later work. --Ted Drozdowski

Customer Reviews

This popped into my Amazon 'Recommendations' box
I'd never bought anything before purely 'cause Amazon recommended it. I'd always heard some of the stuff by the artist or seen them on TV somewhere. I was oblivious to SRV though so I popped it on my 'Wish List' while I mulled over the pros and cons. All of the reviews were very positive drawing comparisons to Hendrix. I was curious and attracted to this man described as a seminal blues guitar hero so I summoned up the courage and added it to an order to make up my £15 for free delivery.

What a treat! Deep southern blues done with sincerity and affection. Innovative and fluid guitar work, beautiful rich tones, solid riffs. It's very much a one man band, bass and drums add squat, but what a man. The bonus live tracks are great too and, once you're in the groove, it all sounds wonderful. Sure, the first coupla tracks sounded like just another blues album, but this has a depth and richness that make it just that bit special and highly listenable.

Genius
What else is there to say? Stevie Ray Vaughan is the greatest blues guitarist ever - no-one else even compares. I still can't decide which album of his os my favourite, but it might well be this one.

Having laboured in obscurity (well, he was known is Texas, but nowhere else) for several years, Stevie Ray Vaughan caught the eye of David Bowie, and SRV was the lead guitarist for his 1982 album, 'Let's Dance' (don't get it - it's awful.) The funds from his session work with the British pop legend, coupled with his signing by A&R man John Hammond, allowed Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (his band) to release an album. And a new guitar hero was born.

1. Love Struck Baby - 9/10 - Very good opener
2. Pride And Joy - 10/10 - Brilliant song with a solo to match
3. Texas Flood - 10/10 - Best song on here. Re-done cover of an old forgeotten song. And what a solo
4. Tell Me - 9/10 - As basic as SRV gets, cool riff
5. Testify - 10/10 - Two amazing guitar solos in one of his best instrumentals
6. Rude Mood - 10/10 - Words simply fail me to describe this
7. Mary Had A Little Lamb - 10/10 - Shows Buddy Guy how it's done
8. Dirty Pool - 10/10 - How can you play that fast on one string? (deep breaths)
9. I'm Cryin' - 9/10 - Very good
10. Lenny - 10/10 - Beautiful instumental, reminds me slightly of 'Little Wing'.

The guitar playing on here is amazing. Albert King spoke of those who can play fast but have no soul (we all know the culprits) but SRV had soul. Not only that, he could outplay any of those shredders. The guitar solos on here are some of my favourites, and he just got better and better.

10/10.

Pure Magic!
Every guitarist searches for 'THE SOUND'. That one, special sound that holds so much emotion, so much feeling, so much soul. Stevie Ray Vaughan had that in abundance. Every note he played, you can tell he meant it.
It is one of my biggest regrets that I never got the chance to see SRV live.
This is one of the truest blues albums I've ever heard. No matter what the song, subject matter, Stevie gives it his all. Albert King talked about people who play fast but without any soul. SRV HAD soul and it shows here.