The Blues Of

This 1985 live set captures Snooks Eaglin in his natural element: playing in front of a packed house for an adoring crowd of hard-partying New Orleanians. A Snooks Eaglin concert can't rightly be termed “blues,” even though the blues are a big part of what he does. This music might best be called a tour of loose-limbed Louisiana funk, although Eaglin’s conception of fun is broad enough to include simmering ballads, Motown classics, Chicago-style blues instrumentals, and even a Chuck Berry song. The key is that every song is centered on Eaglin’s indelible strum, which epitomizes the New Orleans musical secret of being incredibly tight and incredibly relaxed at the same time. The final four tracks showcase Boogie Bill Webb and Harmonica Slim, two of Eaglin’s contemporaries. Though the duo’s raw-boned blues is exceptional, they make Eaglin look like a dynamo by comparison. Whereas Webb and Slim resurrect some ancient art, Eaglin renews that art and transforms into a present-day party for each generation of new listeners.