Whether the 16 tracks collected here represent Slim’s absolute best is open to debate. Here are 16 performances issued on ten different singles during his heyday at Excello, covering a time frame from of 1956 to 1962. What this package does do is provide a nice addition to Slim’s Rooster Blues record, with only three of the tunes from that album duplicated here. Tracks like “Bad Luck and Trouble,” “I’m a Rollin’ Stone,” “Nothin’ but the Devil,” and “Cool Down Baby” catch Lightnin’ in peak form, and the later tracks like “Winter Time Blues” and “I’m Evil” rock with a heavier guitar intensity. Once you get hooked into Lightnin’ Slim, you’re going to want it all, and here’s a great little stop along the way. – Cub Koda
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