Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith is most often recalled as the longtime drummer in the Muddy Waters Band (he occupied the drum chair in the group from 1961 through 1980), but he was a harmonica player well before he was a drummer (his hard-charging harmonica can be heard on Bo Diddley's "Diddy Wah Diddy" from 1955) and he has led his own blues ensembles from time to time. Way Back, a pleasant set recorded in 2005 and produced by Bob Corritore, puts Smith front and center, and while no one would accuse him of being the equal of Muddy Waters as a bandleader, the 73-year-old Smith projects an intangible joy through the 11 songs here, half of which he wrote. Backed by what amounts to a superstar blues band, with the great, unsung Bob Margolin on guitar, a seemingly ageless 93-year-old Pinetop Perkins on piano, and guest shots by James Cotton and others, Smith delivers several variations on the good, old and undeniably durable Chicago blues shuffle, including the opener, a cover of Jimmy Reed's "Don't Say That No More" and a gleeful version of Waters' "Read Way Back," both of which feature Smith's steady and somehow endearingly fragile vocals, and his strong, unhurried harmonica lines. Smith does play drums on a pair of tracks, "Lowdown Blues" and "I Want You to Love Me (Trust Me)," as well, but most of the drumming is from Kenny "Beady Eyes" Smith, Willie's son. The clear highlight is a wonderfully simple, atmospheric, and haunting Willie Smith original, "Blues and Trouble," which builds powerfully on just Smith's vocal and harmonica and Margolin's brilliant electric slide guitar playing. Nothing here is going to reshape the contemporary blues world, and truthfully, these kinds of Chicago blues shuffles have been done a thousand times by a thousand blues bands. But maybe that's the point, actually. Smith is one of the musicians who helped create and shape those rhythms, and this album is evidence that he still knows what to do with them.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From kr133.33/month
Bob Margolin, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Jimmy Reed, ComposerLyricist - Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - James Cotton, Harmonica, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - James Oden, ComposerLyricist - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - McKinley Morganfield, ComposerLyricist - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Walter Jacobs, ComposerLyricist - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - James Cotton, Harmonica, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Drums, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Harmonica, Recording Producer, AssociatedPerformer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist - Billy Flynn, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Sonny Boy Williamson II, ComposerLyricist - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Bob Margolin, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Drums, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Harmonica, Recording Producer, AssociatedPerformer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - William Flynn, ComposerLyricist - Billy Flynn, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Vocals, Harmonica, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Bob Corritore, Producer, Recording Producer - Pinetop Perkins, Piano, AssociatedPerformer - Kenny Smith, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Willie Smith, ComposerLyricist - Bob Stroger, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Johnny Rapp, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Little Frank Krakowski, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Album review
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith is most often recalled as the longtime drummer in the Muddy Waters Band (he occupied the drum chair in the group from 1961 through 1980), but he was a harmonica player well before he was a drummer (his hard-charging harmonica can be heard on Bo Diddley's "Diddy Wah Diddy" from 1955) and he has led his own blues ensembles from time to time. Way Back, a pleasant set recorded in 2005 and produced by Bob Corritore, puts Smith front and center, and while no one would accuse him of being the equal of Muddy Waters as a bandleader, the 73-year-old Smith projects an intangible joy through the 11 songs here, half of which he wrote. Backed by what amounts to a superstar blues band, with the great, unsung Bob Margolin on guitar, a seemingly ageless 93-year-old Pinetop Perkins on piano, and guest shots by James Cotton and others, Smith delivers several variations on the good, old and undeniably durable Chicago blues shuffle, including the opener, a cover of Jimmy Reed's "Don't Say That No More" and a gleeful version of Waters' "Read Way Back," both of which feature Smith's steady and somehow endearingly fragile vocals, and his strong, unhurried harmonica lines. Smith does play drums on a pair of tracks, "Lowdown Blues" and "I Want You to Love Me (Trust Me)," as well, but most of the drumming is from Kenny "Beady Eyes" Smith, Willie's son. The clear highlight is a wonderfully simple, atmospheric, and haunting Willie Smith original, "Blues and Trouble," which builds powerfully on just Smith's vocal and harmonica and Margolin's brilliant electric slide guitar playing. Nothing here is going to reshape the contemporary blues world, and truthfully, these kinds of Chicago blues shuffles have been done a thousand times by a thousand blues bands. But maybe that's the point, actually. Smith is one of the musicians who helped create and shape those rhythms, and this album is evidence that he still knows what to do with them.
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 11 track(s)
- Total length: 00:47:49
- Main artists: Willie "Big Eyes" Smith
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: HighTone Records
- Genre: Blues/Country/Folk Blues
© 2014 Craft Recordings. ℗ 2014 Craft Recordings.
Improve album information
Why buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.