Live! The Real Deal

Live! The Real Deal

Silvertone Records has done a smart job of resurrecting Buddy Guy's career. When the label signed the Chicago blues guitar master in 1990, the 54-year-old legend hadn't had an American release in nine years. Silvertone introduced him to a new audience by having him play duets with such rock-star admirers as Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, and Jeff Beck on the 1991 album, <I>Damn Right, I've Got the Blues</I>. In 1996 the label unleashed the hardcore Buddy Guy stretching out on vintage blues numbers in a live setting on <I>Live! The Real Deal</I>. The payoff is not only a terrific blues album but also an album built on the kind of financial foundation that will insure many more to come. <I>--Geoffrey Himes</I>