What are some good OLD blues songs?

Question

Im looking for songs along the lines of Ray charles "Georgia" and more upbeat like "swanee river" any old blues/soul is good ...

Answer 1

it's probably not what you're looking for, but Roosevelt Sykes's "Boot That Thing" is a fantastic little blues tune.

Answer 2

1. I'm So All Alone - Memphis Slim
2. Three Women Blues - Memphis Slim
3. Big Black Cadillac Blues - Lightnin' Hopkins
4. Coffee House Blues - Lightnin' Hopkins
5. Ridin' On Down - Big Bill Broonzy
6. I Got Up One Mornin' - Big Bill Broonzy
7. I'm A Stranger Here - Brownie McGhee/Sonny Terry
8. Blues For The Lowlands - Brownie McGhee/Sonny Terry
9. Jinx Blues - Big Joe Williams
10. Old Saw Mill Blues - Big Joe Williams
11. Guitar Blues - Ray Charles
12. Jammin' The Blues - Ray Charles
13. My Man - Billie Holiday
14. Lover Man - Billie Holiday
15. Heebie Jeebies - Louis Armstrong
16. Black And Blue - Louis Armstrong
17. Wednesday Evening Blues - John Lee Hooker
18. Maudie - John Lee Hooker
19. How Long - Sonny Terry/Leadbelly
20. I've Got A Pretty Flower - Leadbelly

Answer 3

Firstly, neither Georgia nor Swanee River are really considered blues songs. I think what you are looking for is Boogie-Woogie Blues. Some examples are John Lee Hooker and Willie Dixon. However, both of these musicians wrote the slower, more "depressing" traditional Blues music as well so dont be surprised if you buy one of their CD's and you get a mix of the two styles. John Lee Hooker's "Burnin' Hell" was performed both ways but the version on a CD called "Best of Hooker & Heat" is one of my favorites. It rocks and so do about half of the other tracks on there, its a great CD! Also, Willie Dixons "I Am the Blues" CD is a good one. It is made up almost entirely of songs that were made famous by white rock & roll bands like the Rolling Stones & Led Zeppelin years later so you probably know most of them already, anyway. Nina
Simone wasnt exclusively a Blues musician but she might be of interest to you, as well, good luck!

Answer 4

Here's a few you might enjoy: (dates are close approximates)

1920 - Crazy Blues - Mamie Smith
1923 - Guitar Rag - Sylvester Weaver
1923 - St. Louis Blues - W.C. Handy
1923 - T'ain't Nobody's Business if I Do - Bessie Smith
1924 - Down Hearted Blues - Bessie Smith
1925 - Careless Love Blues - Bessie Smith & Louis Armstrong
1925 - Taint None o Your Business - Butter Beans & Susie
1926 - Black Snake Moan - Blind Lemon Jefferson
1926 - West Coast Blues - Blind Blake
1927 - A Handful of Riffs - Lonnie Johnson and Eddie Lang
1927 - Backwater Blues - Bessie Smith
1927 - Billy Lyons & Stack-O-Lee - Furry Lewis
1927 - Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground - Blind Willie Johnson
1927 - High Sheriff Blues - Charley Patton
1927 - In My Time of Dying - Blind Willie Johnson
1927 - Ma Rainey's Big Black Bottom - Ma Rainey
1927 - Match Box Blues - Blind Lemon Jefferson
1927 - Muddy Water [A Mississippi Moon] - Bessie Smith
1927 - Nobody's Fault but Mine - Blind Willie Johnson
1927 - Savoy Blues - Louis Armstrong
1927 - Stack O'Lee Blues - Long Cleve Reed & Little Harvey Hull
1927 - You Gonna Quit Me Blues - Blind Blake
1928 - Big Leg Blues - Mississippi John Hurt
1928 - Canned Heat Blues - Tommy Johnson
1928 - Chump Man Blues - Blind Blake
1928 - Corrina Corrina - Bo Carter
1928 - Downtown Blues - Frank Stokes
1928 - Fishin' Blues - Henry Thomas
1928 - Frankie - Mississippi John Hurt
1928 - How Long, How Long Blues - Leroy Carr
1928 - It's Tight Like That - Tampa Red and Georgia Tom
1928 - Pinetop's Boogie Woogie - Pine Top Smith
1928 - Praise God I'm Satisfied - Blind Willie Johnson
1928 - Statesboro Blues - Blind Willie McTell
1929 - Diddie Wah Diddie - Blind Blake
1929 - God Moves on the Water - Blind Willie Johnson
1929 - Guitar Blues - Lonnie Johnson
1929 - K.C. Moan - Memphis Jug Band
1929 - Pony Blues - Charley Patton
1929 - St. Louis Blues - Bessie Smith
1929 - When the Levee Breaks - Kansas Joe & Memphis Minnie
1930 - No More Troubles Now - Lonnie Johnson
1930 - Preachin' the Blues - Son House
1930 - Rope Stretching Blues, Pt. 1 - Blind Blake
1930 - Sitting on Top of the World - Mississippi Sheiks
1930 - Standin' on the Corner (Blue Yodel, No. 9) - Jimmie Rodgers
1930 - Ten and Four Blues - Roosevelt Sykes
1930 - Walk Right In - Cannons Jug Stompers
1931 - Devil Got My Woman - Skip James
1931 - Diddie Wa Diddie, No. 2 - Blind Blake
1931 - I'm So Glad - Skip James
1931 - Travelin' Blues - Blind Willie McTell
1932 - Guitar Chimes - Blind Blake
1932 - These Times - Peetie Wheatstraw
1933 - Blues Before Sunrise - Leroy Carr
1933 - I Can't Be Satisfied - Big Bill Broonzy
1934 - You Can't Get That Stuff No More - Tampa Red and Georgia Tom
1935 - Baby Please Don't Go - Big Joe Williams
1935 - C.C. Rider – Leadbelly
1935 - I'm a Bad Luck Woman - Memphis Minnie
1935 - Roberta – Leadbelly
1936 - Billie's Blues - Billie Holiday
1936 - Come on in My Kitchen - Robert Johnson
1936 - Cross Road Blues - Robert Johnson
1936 - Dirty Mother for You - Roosevelt Sykes
1936 - Stop Breakin' Down Blues - Robert Johnson
1936 - Sweet Home Chicago - Robert Johnson
1937 - From Four Till Late - Robert Johnson
1937 - Good Morning Blues – Leadbelly
1937 - Good Mornin' Little School Girl - Sonny Boy Williamson I
1937 - Hellhound On My Trail - Robert Johnson
1937 - Love In Vain - Robert Johnson
1937 - Shake 'Em on Down - Bukkka White
1938 - Baby You Gotta Change Your Mind - Blind Boy Fuller
1938 - Cold in Hand - Sweet Peas Spivey
1938 - Freight Train Blues - Trixie Smith
1938 - Roll 'Em Pete - Joe Turner and Pete Johnson
1938 - Seminole Blues - Tampa Red
1939 - Tarzan of Harlem - Cab Calloway
1939 - Thinking My Blues Away - Sonny Boy Williamson
1939 - Too Evil To Cry - Champion Jack Dupree
1940 - Come on with the Come On - Cab Calloway
1940 - Fixin' to Die Blues - Bukka White
1940 - Parchman Farm Blues - Bukka White
1940 - Untrue Blues - Blind Boy Fuller
1941 - Am I Blue - Billie Holiday
1941 - Cross Cut Saw Blues - Tommy McClennon
1941 - Crowing Rooster Blues - Lonnie Johnson
1941 - Going to Chicago Blues - Count Basie
1941 - Hep Cat's Love Song - Cab Calloway
1941 - Key to the Highway - Big Bill Broonzy
1941 - Me and My Chauffeur Blues - Memphis Minnie
1941 - Million Lonesome Women - Brownie McGhee

Answer 5

Boom Boom...John Lee Hooker
Night Time Is The Right Time...Ray Charles
Dust My Broom...Elmore James
Stormy Monday Blues...Bobby "Blue" Bland
Rock me...Muddy Waters
Bad Bad Whiskey...Amos Milburn
Big Boss Man...Jimmy Reed
The First Time I Met The Blues...Buddy Guy

Answer 6

These guys know their stuff! But, yea, it's a difficult question because "Swanee River" is technically ragtime, though considered ragtime-blues because of its tempo; and Georgia is technically a ballad, though considered a blues ballad because of its sad lyrics, so besides all this other great stuff, you may want to check out Jelly Roll Morton and Earl Hines.

Answer 7

Mississippi John Hurt had a more upbeat style of blues, BB King plays some good upbeat stuff also.

Answer 8

Southern Blues = Stevie Ray Vaughn! That's not so old though. Older would be John Lee Hooker, good old BB King, olderer would be Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and good old Robert "I undoubtedly made a pact with the devil himself" Johnson.

Answer 9

Born Under a Bad Sign
The Thrill is Gone
Texas Flood

Answer 10

In my opinion, the best blues song is Muddy Waters performing "Mannish Boy." Next is B.B. King doing, "The Thrill is Gone." Then comes Howlin Wolf performing "Little Red Rooster."

Answer 11

There are free internet radio stations devoted to the blues; you might want to give them a listen. But you've gotten a lot a great suggestions here. I like Muddy Waters' "Got My Mojo Workin'" in particular.