Elmore James - The Sky is Crying: The Ultimate Collection

2019 CD collection.

Elmore's last great recordings occurred in the 1960s when he was signed by New York producer/label-owner Bobby Robinson (Fire, Fury & Enjoy Records). Unlike many of his contemporaries, James seemingly got better as the years progressed. These recordings have surfaced on so many different compilations - all with varying levels of sound quality. Fortunately, to make things easier we have this three-disc 58-song box set rounding up at least one extant take of everything Elmore recorded with Robinson at the helm.

Along with standards, "Dust My Broom, " "The Sky Is Crying" the classic "One Way Out, " the majority of this box set breaks new ground and stands as some of Elmore's most emotion-laden work. Included our Elmore's last sessions before his death and several tracks he cut as a session guitarist for Bobby Robinson. On May 24, 1963, James suffered a heart attack, which took his life at the age of 45. The musicians he inspired include The Allman Brothers, Jimi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac, and Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones are just a few of the many musicians that he influenced in the course of their careers. In 1980 he was elected into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, and in 1994 Elmore was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame. Rollling Stone magazine has placed him in the list of top 30 guitarists of all time!

    - Disc 1 -

    1 The Sky Is Crying
    2 Held My Baby Last Night
    3 Bby's Rock
    4 Dust My Broom
    5 Baby Please Set a Date
    6 Rollin' and Tumblin'
    7 I'm Worried
    8 Done Somebody Wrong
    9 Fine Little Mama
    10 I Can't Stop Lovin' You
    11 Early One Morning
    12 I Need You
    13 Strange Angel
    14 She Done Moved
    15 Something Inside Me
    16 Stranger Blues
    17 Anna Lee
    18 Bleeding Heart

    - Disc 2 -

    1 Standing at the Crossroads
    2 One Way Out
    3 Got to Move
    4 Person to Person
    5 So Unkind
    6 My Kind of Woman
    7 My Baby's Gone
    8 Find My Kinda Woman
    9 Look on Yonder Wall
    10 Shake Your Moneymaker
    11 Mean Mistreatin' Mama
    12 Sunnyland
    13 Go Back Home Again
    14 You Know You're Wrong
    15 Hand in Hand
    16 I Have a Right to Love My Baby
    17 Everyday I Have the Blues
    18 It Hurts Me Too

    - Disc 3 -

    1 Talk to Me Baby
    2 Can't Stop Loving My Baby
    3 She's Got to Go
    4 Pickin' the Blues
    5 Twelve Year Old Boy
    6 Up Jumped Elmore
    7 I Believe
    8 I Gotta Go Now
    9 Make My Dreams Come True
    10 Find My Kinda Woman (Alt) (Mono Version?Lots of Echo)
    11 Mean Mistreatin' Mama (Alt)
    12 You Know You Done Me Wrong (Alt of You Know You're Wrong)
    13 Up Jumped Elmore (Blacksnake Blues) (Alt)
    14 (Poor Little) Angel Child - Sam Myers
    15 Little Girl - Sam Myers
    16 You Can Do It If You Want to - Marshall Jones (Maybe Homesick James)
    17 Woke Up Happy - Marshall Jones (Maybe Homesick James)
    18 Back in Mississippi (A Conversation)