The most important thing to know about this Live Bootleg Series by Johnny Winter is that these are officially released tapes by him and he produced these recordings. These are not bootlegs in the sense of the word we have used it since the 1960s. That said, on this first volume, Winter goes back into his personal archive and pulls out various performances from his long career, and these are from the early '70s when he was so deeply drawn to the power of rock & roll that he and his band -- both with and without Rick Derringer -- tear through roots rock classics like "Johnny B. Goode" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash," as well as blistering versions of blues nuggets -- Muddy Waters' "Rollin' and Tumblin'" and Robert Johnson's "Come on in My Kitchen" among them. Sound quality varies a bit but is generally very good and will not cause the listener any difficulty at all. These are great performances, and anyone remotely interested in the guy should check these out, perhaps above his studio albums. ~ Thom Jurek

• Genre: Pop
• RSD Date: DDD
• Format: Vinyl
• Released: 08/26/2008