Pretty dang hard to go wrong on any level here, a double disc for the price of a single disc, and it includes free shipping, that right off is great.  Each disc is packed with 19 songs, and these aren’t 2 minutes long, but generally 3+ and 4 + and a few going almost 6 minutes long, and I didn’t see any repeat artists here in the 38 songs.  These are culled from Alligator’s extensive catalogue that spans 40 years and includes some of the earlier artists such as Hound Dog Taylor & The House Rockers, Koko Taylor, and Son Seals, to some of the newer artists that have slight different versions of the Blues such as Anders Osborne, Janiva Magness, back to some of the icons of the Blues such as Buddy Guy and Junior Wells to the piano magic of Professor Longhair, and those that bring in different influences such as Corey Harris and his incursions into the roots of the blues; and Mavis Staples whose voice has the power and is steeped in the Gospel tradition. This is truly an eclectic collection in the best the sense of the word. 
 
 
This is a collection that at times boggles the mind with music that falls into the genre of blues.  From the spare clean country sound of the group Saffire- The Uppity Blues Women, and the African inflections of Corey Harris, going over to the Caribbean through the New Orleans funk of Professor Longhair and Marcia Ball, to the Blues Rock of Coco Montoya to the pairing of blues guitar innovator and icon Roy Buchanan with Delbert McClinton’s Texas honky tonk.  Going north to the Chicago fierceness of Luther Allison and the deft touch of an acoustic mixing of Buddy Guy and Junior Wells.  Truly time was spent here shifting through the vast and extensive vaults of 40 years of putting out high quality Blues to put such a collection together.  You have here a history of a genuine American style of music, spanning the depths of music that encompasses this whole country.  From the icons such as Hound Dog Taylor, James Cotton, and Johnny Winter, to some of the lesser known, as yet undiscovered artists, but equally talented performers.  This is a fantastic treat that is virtually being given to us, snap it up now.