It was a great year for new releases by long-standing blues artists such as Robert Cray, whose
Nothin But Love session was his first release in three years; Magic Slim & the Teardrops, who returned with
Bad Boy; Chicago guitarist Lurrie Bell, who mixed gospel with blues on
The Devil Ain't Got No Music; and the inimitable Dr. John, who released his first album on the Nonesuch label,
Locked Down. Luther Dickinson, guitarist for the North Mississippi Allstars and the Black Crowes, had a busy 2012, making our year-end blues list with three separate entries. And important archival releases paid homage to the traditions of the genre, including
The Ace Records Blues Story, JSP's four-disc set
Juke Joints, and Bear Family's
Plug It In! Turn It Up! Pt. 1 (although all four volumes from this series could easily have been on this list).
Lurrie Bell -
Devil Ain't Got No Music
Rory Block -
I Belong to the Band: A Tribute to Rev. Gary Davis
Gary Clark, Jr. -
Blak and Blu
Shemekia Copeland -
33 1/3
Robert Cray Band -
Nothin But Love
David Hidalgo/Mato Nanji/Luther Dickinson -
3 Skulls and the Truth
Luther Dickinson -
Hambone's Meditations
Dr. John -
Locked Down
Chuck Leavell -
Back to the Woods: A Tribute to the Pioneers of Blues Piano
Magic Slim & the Teardrops -
Bad Boy
South Memphis String Band -
Old Times There...
Otis Taylor -
Otis Taylor's Contraband
Various Artists -
Ace Records Blues Story
Various Artists -
Juke Joints
Various Artists -
Plug It In! Turn It Up! Electric Blues - The Definitive Collection, Pt. 1:
Listen to the best tracks from our favorite Blues albums of 2012 in this playlist: