Junior Kimbrough "All Night Long" LP

A beautifully packaged edition of Junior Kimbrough's first album, recorded live in the converted church that replaced Kimbrough's original wooden shack juke joint. The lineup is Kimbrough on vocals and guitar, Garry Burnside on bass, and Kenny Malone on drums (it's a family business around this area, and you'll find Burnsides and Malones all over Fat Possum's releases). All Night Long is a big, scruffy racket of an electric blues album, and it's fantastic material, a mix of charging, biting rhythms, intense slow blues, hollerin', stompin' and moanin'. The lack of studio polish is a big plus here -- producer Robert Palmer was absolutely right to give this to us flubs and all -- and the energy is wonderful. A great electric blues portrait that's getting widespread attention at last -- and deserves it all.