Johnny Copeland's tenure on Rounder Records was mostly productive. He made several albums that ranged from decent to very good, increased his audience and name recognition, and got better recording facilities and company support than at most times in his career. The 15 numbers on this anthology cover four Rounder sessions, and include competent renditions of familiar numbers. But what makes things special are the final three selections; these were part of Copeland's superb and unjustly underrated Bringin' It All Back Home album, recorded in Africa, which matched Texas shuffle licks with swaying, riveting African rhythms.

Grammy Winner Johnny Copeland departs from his customary big-band blues approach to hone in on this set of new songs with a tight five-piece band, including superb rhythm guitar from Joel Perry.

If you're talking about packaging, the flaws of this disc are considerable. Comprised of 14 songs from 1960-1990 (most from 1960-71), the unifying theme is that all of them are taking from Houston recording sessions. But while recording dates and some personnel are noted, the original labels and dates of release are not. Furthermore, although the liner notes give a reasonable overview of Copeland's career, the tracks on this specific compilation are not discussed. And, putting the boot in, the cuts are not sequenced chronologically, but arranged almost as if someone had pressed the random button on a CD remote. Now, having aired all those complaints, the music is very good. These are fiery, committed performances in which the songs and arrangements often veer as much toward soul as toward blues. That's something that works to Copeland's advantage, both because he was versatile enough to combine styles well, and because it made him stand out from legions of other journeymen bluesmen.

Cray found himself in some pretty intimidating company for this Grammy-winning blues guitar summit meeting, but he wasn't deterred, holding his own alongside his idol Albert Collins and Texas great Johnny Copeland. Cray's delivery of Muddy Waters' rhumba-rocking "She's into Something" was one of the set's many highlights.

Cray found himself in some pretty intimidating company for this Grammy-winning blues guitar summit meeting, but he wasn't deterred, holding his own alongside his idol Albert Collins and Texas great Johnny Copeland. Cray's delivery of Muddy Waters' rhumba-rocking "She's into Something" was one of the set's many highlights…