Personnel: John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison (vocals, guitar); Luther Tucker, Ray McCarty, Paul Wood (guitar); Benny Rowe, Elvin Bishop (slide guitar); Michael White (violin); Charlie Musselwhite (harmonica); Mark Naftalin (piano); Robert Hooker (electric piano, organ, keyboards); Steven Miller (organ); Cliff Coultier (electric piano); Gino Skaggs, John Kahn, Mel Brown (bass); Ron Beck, Chuck Crimelli, Ken Swank (drums). Recorded at Wally Heider Recording, San Francisco, California on September 28 & 29, 1971. This 1971 release finds Hooker in superb, well-seasoned form. Old-school fans will be pleased to note that, even as the production on Hooker's albums was improving throughout the '70s, there was never any dilution of his hard-core traditional blues aesthetic. NEVER GET OUT OF THESE BLUES ALIVE is no exception, with slow, heavy-lidded blues shuffles like "Country Boy" fitted seamlessly beside such harder-driving jams as "Boogie With The Hook." A full electric band, fleshed out on a few tracks with piano, violin, organ, and slide guitar, adds textures that are at once swirling and down-home. Hooker is joined by guests as distinguished as Elvin Bishop, mouthharp master Charlie Musselwhite, and--surprise!--Van Morrison, with whom Hooker duets on the title track. Overall, NEVER is a strong addition to the Hooker catalog.

• Genre: Pop
• Released: 07/16/13
• Format: Vinyl