The Essential Jimmie Vaughan is overdue. Had
Jimmie been anybody else's guitar-playing brother, he would have been a legend in his own right. As a musician he deserves that notoriety because he is one of the few links between the great legacy of electric Texas bluesmen and later generations. Legacy has compiled 16 tracks from
Vaughan's deep career in electric blues: two kickers from his stint with
the Fabulous Thunderbirds -- "Extra Jimmies" and "Tuff Enuff" -- and a pair off the
Vaughan Brothers album. The rest come out his of his solo recordings for Epic, his lone (thus far) Artemis album, a soundtrack, and one previously unreleased cut, a burning cover of
Chris Kenner's "I Like It Like That" from Austin City Limits. There are plenty of all-stars backing
Vaughan on these sides, but it might as well have been kids in some Austin bar. The reason is obvious after one listen:
Vaughan's truly unbelievable diversity and many faceted approach to lead, rhythm, fills, soloing, and comping is so inspired, so uncompromising that he would lift the profile of any band he played with. Dig his rolling and tumbling with
Dr. John on "Boom Bapa Boom," or his razor-wire solo that keeps perfect time on "Dengue Woman Blues," off the
From Dusk Till Dawn soundtrack, or the greasy funky blues riffing and percussive comping in tandem with
Bill Willis' B-3 on "Dirty Girl." In each case,
Vaughan defies expectations for modern blues music. His playing is timeless, rooted in the past but standing firmly in the present and pointing to a future blues that even extends the grand Texas tradition. Fully aware of the hate mail this may generate, it is not too soon nor is it inaccurate to place
Vaughan in the same pantheon with
Freddie King,
T-Bone Walker, and
Albert Collins.
Vaughan's deep soul roots move through the staid playing of his own peers and root his brand of Texas blues in a continuum of not only his chosen genre, but R&B, gospel, rockabilly, and country as well.
The Essential Jimmie Vaughan is just that for blues junkies: essential.