he Rough Guide to the Roots of the Blues’ features the greatest names in early blues music including Blind Lemon Jefferson, Bessie Smith, Charley Patton and Ma Rainey, lovingly remastered using pioneering restoration techniques.

It offers the perfect overview of the many different styles and key performers of early blues on one album and an incredibly diverse selection of tracks including bottleneck guitar, barrelhouse piano, classic songster tunes and vaudeville blues

It’s an album which traces the development of blues music during its early recorded history of the 1920s, offering a unique insight into the first great wave of blues artists who remain an inspiration to this day.