This 18-track double-CD offers up an interesting cross section of the long gone and sadly underrated Mike Bloomfield’s 60s output. With the oldest material here being the 1964 John Hammond-produced sessions for Columbia, featuring Charlie Mussellwhite on harp, the selections progress chronologically through Bloomfield’s time with the Butterfield Blues Band (most notably a superlative stroll through Nat Adderley’s Work Song), Electric Flag, the Super Session project with Al Kooper and friends, his debut solo album It’s Not Killing Me and live recordings from the Fillmore West, including two previously unreleased tracks from 1969.
While the Fillmore West tracks, with their expanded band line-ups, are the pick of the package, the Super Session version of Stop, as later adopted by Hendrix’s Band Of Gypsys, likewise hits the spot. If there’s any complaint, it’s just that even more material could have been included, given the total playing time available on two CDs.
