Texas Blues

There's no better starting point to our playlist than T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday Blues," the sophisticated horns only adding to the resigned mourning in his voice and the bitter bite of his guitar. T-Bone synthesized country blues pioneers (Blind Lemon Jefferson's "Match Box Blues") with post-war jump swing, influencing generations in the process, from Lowell Fulson (the horns on "Reconsider Baby") through Albert Collins (the stinging "Frosty") and Stevie Ray Vaughan (the snap of "Pride and Joy"), from the versatile Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (the big-band swing of "Okie Dokie Stomp") to Janis Joplin (the volcanic pain of "Ball and Chain").

Albert Collins' "Iceman" and Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Crossfire" are signature songs showing the roots and adaptability of Texas blues. But Marcia Ball and Sue Foley add different takes of female soul to the form, though Janis Joplin's "Summertime" may be the final word in that regard. If you're looking to jump and swing, though, go straight to T-Bone Walker's "The Hustle Is On" and Pee Wee Crayton's "Blues at Daybreak." But Blind Willie Johnson's "Dark Was the Night," with its wordless moan, stands as the Platonic archetype of the blues.

Texas Alexander and Blind Willie Johnson brought the Delta's haunt to Texas blues, a tradition renewed by Lightnin' Hopkins' "Mojo Hand" with its hoodoo shake. Meantime, Doyle Bramhall, Lou Ann Barton, Angela Strehli, and the growling Omar & The Howlers show that Stevie Ray and brother Jimmy Vaughan were hardly the only notable names in the Austin-based '80s revival. And how can you resist anyone named Smokey Hogg regardless of where or when he's from? His "I Love You Baby" is a perfect mix of Delta roots and Texas roadhouse hop.

Texas barbecue is done dry rub. Same can be said for Texas blues — and you can take that any way you want. Spurred by the primal sounds brought from the Delta (Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie Johnson, and check out Texas Alexander's "Penitentiary Moan") and stirred via regular migrations to and from more northern urban centers (Detroit, Chicago, Kansas City), the Lone Star sound took shape as a tough roadhouse soundtrack — meaty and tangy, but with the kind of sweetness heard in the suave sting of T-Bone Walker and the vocal fire of Bobby "Blue" Bland. Janis Joplin, Johnny Winter, and, later, Stevie Ray Vaughan stayed true to their state while expanding the form in the rock era. Old or new, the best of Texas blues is as savory, and essential, as any of its cousins.