A Hard Road: Bluesbreakers Expanded Ed.

I bought this disc to learn more about the musical history of Peter Green, founder of Fleetwood Mac. Green replaced Eric Clapton as lead guitar player for the Bluesbreakers. He only played on this 1 album, then convinced Bluesbreakers' drummer & bassist, Mick Fleetwood & John MacVie, to leave with him to form Fleetwood Mac. The music on this disc is great British blues rock & will not disappoint anyone who is a fan of that genre. However, I was very disappointed with my copy of this album because, while the CD itself & back case cover were correct, the front cover/ liner notes booklet was from the previous Bluesbreakers album, w/ Eric Clapton on lead guitar. One of the major benefits to buying these old albums reissued on CD's is to get the expanded liner notes that give so much valuable backgroung on the band members & songs. Without the correct liner notes my enjoyment of this CD was greatly diminished.

God, what an album! British blues at it's best. This recording is my first pick of all the John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers albums. The players on this disc are John Mayall, Peter Green, John McVie and Aynsley Dunbar, McVie and Dunbar being one of the great rhythm sections in all of music. Dunbar would soon give way to Keef Hartley creating again a great rhythm section. While I love the Clapton Bluesbreakers album this one is tops for me. Peter Green is truly god here. This is a two CD set and it's a bargin at any price, true British blues. And it's the true British blues which to me is the greatest form of the genre. I'm a B.B., Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf kinda guy but the Brits really play a superior form of blues to my ears. Mayall captures the sound like no other except maybe Alexis Korner. Both discs are utterly brilliant, but the ones with Peter Green vocals are especially good. To me he is THE ultimate British bluesman, even though I have to give Clapton a nod as possibly the best Brit bluesman, what a choice to be made! "The Supernatural" is here in it's stunning brilliance, simply one of the greatest of modern recordings of the blues. Mayall's vocals are typically great in his interesting falsetto. Both discs are truly great making this CD a must own if blues are your thing. "Evil Woman Blues" with Green on vocals is particularly good with him playing some impressive blues guitar that's hard to beat. Mayall's harp and keys are as great as ever on this recording. But Paul Butterfield's harp is present on cuts 16-19 on disc one, and it's great. Disc two adds horns to the proceedings and again it's British blues at its best, just stunning. Peter Green continues his breathtaking guitar and vocals on this disc, "Out Of Reach" being a perfect example. "Curly" and "Greeny" are instrumentals where Green's guitar rules. "Your Funeral My Trial" has some fantastic Mayall harp and vocals. "Double Trouble" has some beautiful Mayall vocals and some brilliant Green guitar, great complimentary mix. Overall this recording gets a grade of A+++.

Mayall has been lucky enough to have some of Englands best guitarist play for him. Claption amazed on Mayall's first LP, Mick Taylor played at the top of his game, and Moore was more than average. But Peter Green,s contribution to A Hard Road was as a song writer, singer and elite guitarist. His playing on The Supernatural is simply amazing using his unique tone. Another standout is The Stumble which again showcases Green's gift on guitar. The Same Way is another Green contrubtion which shows his singing style. The furture Fleetwood Mac rythym section of John Mcvie and Mick Fleetwood round out the line up. Mayall's vocals have always been a challenge for me but he does little to keep this LP from being a classic of the British blues. If you have the extra CD of outtakes you are in for a rare treat as Green explodes with a rare display of his guitar mastery. A perfect LP or CD set to start off if you want to get into Mayall or if you want to see a early version of Fleetwood Mac blues.

Where to begin... I got my first John Mayall LP (Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton) in the late 60s. I was blown away by the album. I still think it is some of Eric's best work (and he was only about 21 when it was recorded). Naturally when the second album (A Hard Road) was released, I ran out to the record shop and bought it. But Eric was gone and who was this Peter Green? Peter was a magnificent guitarist, and singer too. I loved this album every bit as much as, if not better than, the first one. So as soon as I found out that John Mayall was playing at the Boston Tea Party, I made my way to Boston and BAM!... Peter was gone and another fine young guitarist, Mick Taylor, had joined the band. By then I was a rabid Peter Green fan and would go see Fleetwood Mac every time they played at the Tea Party (which they did often as they really liked the club). Once, the band invited me and some of my bandmates to visit them at the Hotel Somerset in Boston and I got to play Peter's 59 Les Paul. Now back to this album. Thinking of all of the John Mayall recordings I own, this is the one I would choose if I only could keep one. The real bonus with this particular version is that it contains all of the tunes that are on my vinyl pressing, plus another complete album's worth of excellent tunes. There are several featuring Paul Butterfield, others that have been featured on various British blues compilations over the years, and a bunch that I had never heard before. All high quality stuff. And I can never get enough Peter Green! I already have tickets to see John in March of 2016. At 80 plus years of age, he is apparently still going strong. So to conclude, I can't say enough about this album. It is top notch. A must have for Mayall and Green fans alike. By the way, John did the fine artwork on the cover.

There MAY be some more tracks that Peter Green recorded with John Mayall, but if so I don't know of them. This album brings together tracks only otherwise available on a number of different albums, including at least two compilations, so if you want a comprehensive collection of Green's Bluesbreaker's period, here it is. It could almost be said to include Fleetwood Mac as well, as two of the tracks not only feature Green, but Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie.As ever, Peter's playing is almost always first-rate, the music is VERY bluesy... what more can you ask for?

Why I never bought this when it came out I can only think I was young and poor! Better late than never they say. What a fabulous album, what with the extra tracks, it all seems to be PG singing or playing and composed by. What a great guitarist he was then at the age of about 20. I'm not sure that John Mayall gets any credit at all by fans but we have to be grateful that he gave PG a chance to play. Great listening.

Some 25 years ago I discovered the great talent of Peter Green. I started collecting his recordings but never got to completing it. This package contains all of his recordings with John Mayall. The tracks on the second disc are recordings that were hard to get on vynil. And the good thing is that they are of incredible quality. Some of them are among the best that Green ever made. The best that British white blues has to offer. Save £'s and years of collecting by buying this package.

i like the fact that this is a double album for the price of a single one

It is awesome!!!