John Lee Hooker - Get Back Home / 2LP Pure Pleasure

Recorded when Hooker was well into his '60s 'comeback', "Get Back Home" features the bluesman in a solo performance (a mode that best reveals the subtleties of his work). The session was recorded in France, and

Hooker must have been feeling a bit homesick, as the first song is "Get Back Home In The USA", where he describes in detail, over his trademark boogie rhythm, his return to his homeland and the joy he knows he will feel.

After this momentary ray of sunshine, though, things soon return to more familiar climes, with the bleakness of the slow blues "T.B. Is Killing Me" and the unbridled despair of "When My First Wife Left Me". Hooker recorded

this tune many times over the years, but this is one of the finest versions, plumbing the depths of shame and regret. Hooker's raw, biting guitar work is at its best here. Even the umpteenth recording of the Hooker chestnut

"Boogie Chillen" is invested with uncommon verve.

With the addition of six powerful bonus cuts, "Get Back Home" is both an excellent introduction into the sultry, menacing world of Hooker and a vital addition to the collections of his hardcore fans.

Title

Side A

1. Get Back Home In The U.S.A.

2. TB Is Killing Me

3. Cold Chills

4. I Had A Dream Last Night

Side B

1. Love Affair

2. Little Rain

3. When My First Wife Left Me

4. Big Boss Lady

Side C

1. Back To Your Mother

2. Boogie Chillen’

3. Sitting Here Thinking

4. I Wanna Ramble

Side D

1. Hi-Heel Sneakers

2. I’m So Worried Baby

3. I’m Going Upstairs

4. Crazy ‘Bout You