In March, 1937, Vocalion released Robert Johnson s first '78. The record was an immediate hit. The most mysterious thing about Robert Johnson is not that he left Robinsonville as a mediocre guitarist one day in 1930 to return two years later as the undisputed king of the Delta Blues. Whether, to reach this aim he sold his soul to the devil, or received lessons from some obscure benefactor does not tell us anything about the impact the rediscovery of his work as of 1959 was to have. In the space of 7 months, Robert Johnson left to posterity 29 tracks which, over a century later, still fascinate an ever growing audience. The most important blues musician who ever lived (in Eric Clapton s words) never knew anything of this since he never returned to the studio again: he was poisoned to death on the 16th of August, 1938 in Greenwood, Mississippi. BLUES CHARACTERS, a prestigious new 30-volume collection, invites the listener to discover the work of the great men and women who made blues history; the pioneers of one of the greatest musical adventures of the twentieth century. Released as an 3-panel Digipack, each volume of the collection includes 2 CDs (nearly 2 1/2 hours of listening) and is accompanied by a 36-page booklet containing biographies and notes in French and English, with original photos and illustrations. Blues Characters will make a truly wonderful addition to any blues collection. The first 10 volumes of this authoritative collection are presented here, with 20 further volumes to follow in 2016.
