The n "n'SIG TH%rE,p.RS IN Student And youthKept It RobustRoad Scholars BY CHRIS MORRIS

ALnd a little child shall lead "Don't Look Back" (Pointblank). Soul - them. luminary Johnnie Taylor's megasmash During 1997, Bill- "Good Love!" (Malaco), one of the abiding board's Top Blues blues titles of 1996, rested near the top of chart bore the the pack for '97 as well. And such venerated names of both legendary veterans and talents as Taj Mahal, Etta James, Buddy vaunted contenders, but the biggest splash Guy, Tyrone Davis, Denise Lasalle and of the year was made by a teenage (and quintessential '80s blues debutante who blew past all the competi- star ) also made their mark. tion- including the late Stevie Ray Some of the year's most interesting blues Vaughan, the axe -slinger who inspired recordings didn't leap to the summit of the : No. 1 Blues Artist. "Lie To Me" is the No. 1 Blues . him. Top Blues Albums chart, but these records Jonny Lang was only 16 when his A &M do summon an idea of the expressive possi- Records debut, "Lie To Me," first hit the bilities within the genre. They include gui- Top Blues Artists Top Blues Imprints chart in February. The album, which fea- tarist Kelly Joe Phelps' "Roll Away The tured the Minnesota Stone" (Rykodisc), a gospel - youngster's prodigious tinged exposition of pure Pos. ARTIST (No. Of Charted Albums) Imprint/Label Pos. IMPRINT (No. Of Charted Albums) axework and some crisply acoustic -blues beauty; R.L. composed original songs, Burnside's "Mr. Wizard" (Fat 1 JONNY LANG (1) A &M 1 A &M (1) held sway at or near the Possum), on which the septua- 2 AND DOUBLE 2 EPIC (3) top of the chart for most genarian Mississippi bluesman TROUBLE (2) Epic 3 MISS BUTCH (3) of the year. Lang's closest again explores the loud left 3 PEGGY SCOTT -ADAMS (2) Miss Butch /Mardi 4 VIRGIN (1) competition among in- wing of the Delta -bred style; Gras 5 MALACO (3) strumentalists in the year- and Dave Hole's "Ticket To 4 (1) Giant/Warner end tally came from the Chicago" (Alligator), where Bros. late legend Vaughan and the phenomenal Australian (1) Revolution /Warner Bros. his band Double Trouble, slide guitarist is mated with 5 BOZ SCAGGS (1) Virgin whose "Greatest Hits" some brazen practitioners of 6 JOHNNIE TAYLOR (1) Mataco (Epic) proved a durable Stevie Ray Vaughan the Windy City style. The '97 7 KEB' MO' (2) Okeh /Epic Top Blues Labels commodity throughout catalog best-sellers serve as an 8 COREY STEVENS (2) Eureka /Discovery '97. indicator of the diversity of approaches to 9 JOHN LEE HOOKER (2) Pointblank/Virgin Pos. LABEL (No. Of Charted Albums) The blues youth movement was apparent the blues: , , 10 ROBERT CRAY (2) Mercury in the presence of other gifted newcomers , B.B. King, ZZ Top and John 1 EPIC (5) near the peak of the year -end chart: Lee Hooker were among the artists topping 2 A &M (1) Guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepard -at the the back catalog list. Top Blues Albums 3 MARDI GRAS (3) age of 20, a veritable blues greybeard, com- In all, it was a year of mixed blessings for 4 VIRGIN (3) pared to Lang -saw his 1996 Giant debut, the blues. As Billboard reported in March, Pos. TITLE-Artist -Imprint /Label 5 WARNER BROS. (3) "," hold sway through while some major labels appeared to be back- the year (and wound things up ing off from their 1 LIE TO ME -Jonny Lang -A &M with a strong entry for his sopho- commitment to the 2 GREATEST HITS -Stevie Ray Vaughan And more Revolution set, "Trouble genre, it remains in Double Trouble -Epic epic Is...," billed to the Kenny Wayne robust health, 3 HELP YOURSELF -Peggy Scott -Adams -Miss Shepherd Band). Acoustic blues - thanks in no small Butch/Mardi Gras man Keb' Mo' also witnessed part to an ongoing 4 LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL -Stevie Ray Top Blues Distributors strong sales for his second, more interest in young Vaughan And Double Trouble -Epic pop- inflected Okeh release, talents like '97's 5 COME ON HOME -Boz Scaggs- Virgin Pos. DISTRIBUTOR (No. Of Charted Albums) "Just Like You." Farther down defining new star 6 GOOD LOVE!- Johnnie Taylor -Malaco in the pack, but closing in on Lang. There was 7 LEDBETTER HEIGHTS -Kenny Wayne 1 PGD (12) stardom, is up- and -coming gui- also room for strik- Shepherd- Giant/Warner Bros. 2 SONY (5) tar man Corey Stevens. ing career rebirths; 8 JUST LIKE YOU -Keb' Mo'-Okeh/Epic 3 INDEPENDENTS (16) But if you think that the blues the renaissance of 9 DON'T LOOK BACK -John Lee Hooker- 4 WEA (6) these days is strictly a young - guitarist Luther Pointblank/Virgin 5 EMD (4) man's game, cock an eye at some Allison, a close 10 A TRIBUTE TO STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN- 6 BMG (7) of the road scholars whose latest friend and mentor Various Artists-Epic 7 UNIVERSAL (4) releases lit up the chart. One of of Lang, was one 11 TROUBLE IS... -Kenny Wayne Shepherd the major carryover hits from of the most hearten- Band-Revolution /Warner Bros. 1996 was "Help Yourself" (Miss ing stories of 1996- 12 SWEET POTATO PIE-The Robert Cray Band - Butch /Mardi Gras) by vocalist 97. Sadly, Allison's Mercury Peggy Scott -Adams, who sudden passing in 13 ROAD TO ZEN -Corey Stevens - notched her first R &B hits in the August from can- Eureka /Discovery '60s and returned to fame with cer, at the height 14 LIVE FROM CHICAGO'S HOUSE OF BLUES - the steamy novelty "Bill." The Peggy Scott -Adams of his popularity, Blues Brothers And Friends-House Of Blues indefatigable Boz Scaggs served as a som- 15 SENOR BLUES -Taj Mahal -Private returned to the blues full -force with his ber footnote for the year, which also saw the Music/Windham Hill recital "Come On Home" (Pointblank) and exit of such gifted bluesmen as Jack Owens, scored both a critical and commercial hit. , Fenton Robinson and John Lee Hooker, author of countless Jimmy Witherspoon, while Junior Wells and albums during a career spanning six Johnny Adams were both stricken with seri- decades, struck paydirt with his latest, ous illnesses.

BILLBOARD DECEMBER 27, 1997 YE-79