A Living Blues Encyclopedia

Ol' Mr. Read's CC Blues Archive

100 shows, 3,440 tracks, 1,336 artists, 187 song stories, and 52 influence chains gathered around the Copacetic Communion Blues Show. Find your seat and become a regular CC Rider.

1328Artists 3440Tracks 187Song Stories 54Influence Chains 100Shows 1Ol' Mr. Read

What Makes This Archive Different

Curated, Not Cataloged

Tracks were sequenced by a human host over 200 air hours of college radio, not scraped from a database. The broadcast order is the data.

Floating DNA

Tracking verse formulas, melody patterns, and structural forms that traveled from singer to singer across decades and regions. Few databases attempt to track this systematically.

Seven Ways In

Browse by artist, instrument, region, label, era, theme, or floating verses. The archive is cross-referenced across all these dimensions.

Across the Archive

Delta BluesCharley Patton, Robert Johnson Chicago ElectricMuddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf Piano BluesMemphis Slim, Professor Longhair Texas BluesBlind Lemon Jefferson, T-Bone Walker PiedmontBlind Blake, Rev. Gary Davis Jump BluesLouis Jordan, Big Joe Turner Gospel & SpiritualSister Rosetta Tharpe, Blind Boys Folk & LaborWoody Guthrie, Pete Seeger British BluesCream, Yardbirds Field RecordingsLibrary of Congress, Parchman Farm

Top 25 Artists by Track Count

#	Artist	Instrument	State	Tracks	Shows	Era
1	Big Bill Broonzy	Guitar	Mississippi	61	24	Pre-War/Postwar Bridge
2	Muddy Waters	Guitar	Mississippi	53	26	Postwar Chicago
3	Howlin' Wolf	Vocals	Mississippi	53	23	Postwar Chicago
4	Memphis Slim	Piano	Tennessee	41	14	Postwar Chicago/Expatriate
5	Bob Dylan	Guitar	Minnesota	40	17	Folk Revival/Rock
6	Woody Guthrie	Guitar	Oklahoma	39	14	Dust Bowl/Folk Revival
7	Sonny Boy Williamson II	Harmonica	Mississippi	36	19	Pre-War/Postwar Bridge
8	Leroy Carr	Piano	Tennessee	35	5	Pre-War
9	John Lee Hooker	Guitar	Mississippi	33	19	Postwar Detroit/Modern
10	Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five	Alto Saxophone	Arkansas	30	10	Swing/Jump Blues
11	Bessie Smith	Vocals	Tennessee	30	12	Classic Blues/Vaudeville
12	Blind Willie McTell	Twelve-String Guitar	Georgia	29	14	Pre-War Piedmont
13	Tampa Red	Slide Guitar	Georgia	25	12	Pre-War/Postwar Chicago
14	Louis Jordan	Alto Saxophone	Arkansas	24	4	Swing/Jump Blues
15	Louis Armstrong	Trumpet	Louisiana	23	11	Jazz/Pop
16	Charley Patton	Guitar	Mississippi	23	10	Pre-War Delta
17	Lead Belly	Twelve-String Guitar	Louisiana	22	13	Pre-War/Folk Revival
18	Robert Johnson	Guitar	Mississippi	21	12	Pre-War Delta
19	Chuck Berry	Guitar	Missouri	20	13	Rock and Roll/Chess Era
20	Ma Rainey	Vocals	Georgia	20	11	Classic Blues/Vaudeville
21	Sonny Boy Williamson I	Harmonica	Tennessee	19	9	Pre-War/Postwar Chicago
22	Lightnin' Hopkins	Guitar	Texas	19	14	Postwar Texas/Folk Revival
23	Jimmie Rodgers	Guitar	Mississippi	18	14	Pre-War Country/Blues
24	Blind Blake	Guitar	Florida	18	10	Pre-War Piedmont/Ragtime
25	Blind Lemon Jefferson	Guitar	Texas	18	13	Pre-War Texas

Start Here

Browse All Shows100 themed episodes with tracklists and cover images Browse Artists1034 artist detail pages with bios and appearances Read Song Stories187 full song stories with recording context Archive IndexA complete route map of the site

Featured Shows

Show 1: The Unamplified Blues Tradition35 tracks | Required Listening Show 2: The Amplified Blues Tradition34 tracks | Required Listening Show 3: The Blues Bandleader Tradition39 tracks | Required Listening Show 4: The Railroad Blues Tradition27 tracks | Topical Show 5: Texas Blues Guitar Tradition33 tracks | Geographic Show 6: The Piedmont Blues Tradition38 tracks | Geographic Show 7: The Amplified Chicago Blues Tradition33 tracks | Geographic Show 8: The Dust Bowl's Legacy in Blues39 tracks | Hillbilly Blues

Story Spotlights

Cross Road Blues - Robert JohnsonARC producer Don Law set up a makeshift recording studio in Room 414 of the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio. On the...I Can't Be Satisfied - Muddy WatersLeonard Chess didn't fully understand the raw, unpolished sound Muddy Waters brought into the studio, but he...Down Hearted Blues - Bessie SmithIn 1923, Columbia Records was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy when talent scout Frank Walker brought a fierce,...Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground - Blind Willie JohnsonDuring a field recording trip to Dallas, Columbia Records captured a 30-year-old blind street preacher performing...Goodnight, Irene - Lead BellyJohn and Alan Lomax hauled a 315-pound aluminum disc recording machine into the brutal Angola prison camp, where...Death Letter Blues - Son HouseSon House had vanished from the music industry in the 1940s, retiring to a life of hard drinking and obscure...Devil Got My Woman - Skip JamesTraveling from Mississippi to a frigid Wisconsin studio during the depths of the Great Depression, Skip James...Hound Dog - Big Mama ThorntonTeenage songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller were invited by bandleader Johnny Otis to write a song for...