T-Bone Blues

T-Bone Walker didn't even play guitar on this track; he was strictly the vocalist. Backed by Les Hite and His Orchestra, this session captures Walker just before he became the definitive architect of electric blues guitar. The guitar work is actually handled by Frank Pasley. However, the track is crucial blues history because it bridges the gap between the big band swing era and the rhythm and blues explosion. Walker's smooth, jazz-inflected vocal delivery set a new standard for urban blues shouters on the West Coast.