Mean Old World: The Blues from 1940 to 1994 (1996)

About this title: A four-CD, 80-song box set that, in line with similar Smithsonian productions, outlines the history of blues spanning over 50 years, with cuts by major performers who represent its stylistic evolution. The set is stuffed with classics by the likes of Muddy Waters, Louis Jordan, T-Bone Walker, Little Walter, Big Mama Thornton, Howlin' Wolf, Elmore James, B.B. King, and Buddy Guy, with plenty of slightly lesser-known artists like Lil' Son Jackson, Billy Branch, Big Maybelle, J.B. Lenoir, Doctor Clayton, and Junior Kimbrough. The selections are a tad conservative (if very good), and it's likely ... read more

Tracks:

1. Ma Rainey [McCoy]
2. I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town [Razaf/Weldon]
3. Mean Old Frisco [Crudup]
4. Bourgeois Blues [Leadbelly]
5. Mean Old World [Walker]
6. Evil Gal Blues [Feather/Hampton]
7. I Wonder [Gant/Leveen]
8. Blood on the Moon [Page]
9. Chicago Breakdown [Merriweather]
10. Angels in Harlem [Clayton]
11. Billie's Blues [Holiday]
12. Hoodoo Hoodoo [Williamson]
13. Good Rockin' Tonight [Brown]
14. Chicken Shack Boogie [Cullum/Milburn]
15. Trouble Blues [Brown]
16. Crawlin' King Snake [Besman/Hooker]
17. When Things Go Wrong With You (It Hurts Me Too) [Whittaker]
18. Cairo Blues [Jackson]
19. Black Angel Blues (Sweet Black Angel) [McCollum]
20. Mardi Gras in New Orleans [Byrd]
21. Every Day I Have the Blues [Memphis Slim]
22. Double Crossing Blues [Otis]
23. Rollin' and Tumblin', Pt. 1 [Morganfield]
24. Mother Earth [Memphis Slim/Simpki]
25. Please Send Me Someone to Love [Mayfield]
26. Dust My Broom [James/Johnson]
27. How Many More Years [Howlin' Wolf]
28. Black, Brown and White [Broonzy]
29. Rocket 88 [Brenston]
30. Juke [Little Walter]
31. Five Long Years [Boyd]
32. Mean Old World [Little Walter]
33. I Smell a Rat [Leiber/Stoller]
34. Gabbin' Blues (Don't Run My Business) [Kirkland/McCoy]
35. (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man [Dixon]
36. The Things That I Used to Do [Guitar Slim [Eddie]
37. Eisenhower Blues [Lenoir]
38. Okie Dokie Stomp [Davis]
39. Come Back Baby [Charles]
40. How Long, How Long Blues [Carr]
41. Cherry Red [Turner/Johnson]
42. San Francisco Bay Blues [Fuller]
43. I Can't Quit You Baby [Dixon]
44. Three Hours Past Midnight [Watson/Ling]
45. Freight Train [Cotten]
46. Junker Blues [Dupree]
47. Sweet's Blues [Ciminelli]
48. Livin' With the Blues [McGhee]
49. Shake 'Em on Down [McDowell]
50. Spoonful [Dixon]
51. Pardon Denied Again [Williams]
52. Freddie [Lipscomb]
53. Hide Away [King]
54. Going Back to Florida [Hopkins]
55. Trust My Baby [Williamson]
56. Driving Wheel [Sykes]
57. Bright Lights, Big City [Reed]
58. Stormy Monday Blues [Walker]
59. Tongue Lashing [Hollistar]
60. Worry, Worry [Live] [Davis/Taub]
61. Baby Scratch My Back [Harpo]
62. Think [McCracklin/Malone]
63. Wang Dang Doodle [Dixon]
64. Early in the Morning [Traditional]
65. Sweet Home Chicago [Johnson]
66. Crosscut Saw [Ford]
67. Every Night and Every Day [McCracklin]
68. Why I Sing the Blues [Clark/King]
69. Your Turn to Cry [Malone/Caple]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.