The Healer

It was decent

- From what I hear, this isn't his best work - Not a blues expert, but I enjoyed listening to it - Liked 'The Healer'

This is a serviceable album, but it's far from essential. For only one John Lee Hooker album to appear on this list, this isn't even Hook's best rock-and-roll crossover (that would be "Hooker N Heat"). For so few blues albums to be on this list, it's too bad the author chose to select this album. The album feels uninspired despite the quality musicians that Hooker is paired with. It feels more like a cash grab (or, more kindly, provides some financial security to Hooker in the later years of his life).

Not his best stuff: too many "featuring" with too little collaboration. It felt like the musicians weren't in the same studio, just laying down tracks separately. Oh well. A missed opportunity

Great blues album, and I did not mind all the collaborations that everyone else is complaining about. High 3+. Could be a 4.

I've listened to some John Lee Hooker before, but not this one. Some notable guests right at the start between Santana and Bonnie Raitt. Good tunes, but I think the canned 80's production does it a bit of a disservice.

I knew of John Lee Hooker (of course) but had never focused on any particular album. Not sure what to make of this. I'm not allergic to albums made up of a range of collaborations, but it's weird that this is the one of his albums to make the 1001 list - it may have been his best-seller, but surely isn't the album that best represents his oeuvre and influence. The guest artists are ones I've heard of, but don't know that well, I still thought the guitar work was all pretty cool. I slide through untouched - I'm not as invested in "proper blues" as some other reviewers have been. I'll just say it's Not Bad, 6/10.

Good album, but felt a little hollow compared to his better work.

I assume this is a blues album? It's fine but it's not really something I'd listen to.

It's a bluesy album, that's for sure. I'm not super amazed by it, just not quite my speed I think. But it's well performed. The songs don't really seem to go anywhere. They just start and are what they are for their runtime. Some of the songs have a riff good enough somewhere in there that it isn't so bad, but to me it just comes off as lazy song writing. Most songs here are just an extended A section, and maybe with a slightly different B section (maybe). The tones are good though, and it's well produced. I respect a lot of the artistry here, but it's just kind of uninteresting. 2.6/5

A blues man. Would have been more interested in his older albums.

He's a legend - just, does this album bring something new to the table? Not really?

loved A Dream, the rest was okay 2.5

Wasn't my favorite, but I like blues.

A nice, curious, surprise.

A well-made album, but not really my style. And don't come at me with those spooky hands.

Enjoyable listen but painfully generic sounding. It felt like I had heard every single song on this album before.

With an album output to match the likes of King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard, it was nice to hear a snippet of John Lee Hooker's humongous discography. However the amount of collaborations on this particular album leaves me feeling as if I didn't get the best introduction to his music. Despite some nice moments on here, I did find myself a little bored at times. That being said, I can appreciate the artistry. Favourites: The Healer Think Twice Before You Go My Dream

3.5 - Enjoyed a few of these songs thoroughly. Loved the grit, the blues, the boogie. Absolutely obsessed with the feeling and spirit of some of these songs. Fav songs: I'm In The Mood // Sally Mae // Rockin' Chair // No Substitute

Sounds like the soundtrack to a cheesy 80’s Tom Cruise film, that wouldn’t feel out of place playing in an American diner, as one of Quentin Tarantino’s characters walked in. Easy listen. Good atmospheric rhythms to fall asleep to!

After reading some of the recommendations to go back and listen to some other albums by JL Hooker, I can tell this one does not really belong here, given his fruitful career. Still a good blues album, though.

Blues, ok but lacking standouts 6/10

Не очень понял

I can't give this a 2 since it was kind of nice to hear him get to do the elder statesman thing with all the guests. But I will never like the blues.

Meh I thought this was a bit boring but wasn't offensive. The song with Santana was rubbish. Could be a 2 or 3 depending on what mood I'm in.

2,5/5

That’s a blues album alright.

Sort of good blues.

Frontloaded by a couple good tracks, but drops off later in the album.

Incredible start to an otherwise good-ish album. Fav tracks: The Healer, My Dream

This album is fine, nothing outstanding or exceptional.

Not a huge blues person - from this I’d like to listen to more of his earlier stuff

I find Blues such a strange genre. I should like it - I love The Blues Brothers, I love and play guitar, I appreciate the genre's history and that it was a stepping stone to Rock, and I love that it is a guitar based genre. But it's so limited. In the entire history of Blues, there's only about three different songs. Cut it up, slow it down, speed it up, throw flashy solos at it, play it with a sprinkle of culture from another region, but it's still those three same songs. The Blues only became interesting when it became Rock. John Lee Hooker is one of many titans of the genre. But is he so different from any other? Many accuse this album of being a sell out. I argue that it's an attempt to make a severely limited genre interesting. It fails, but it tries. Santana playing the Blues is a good idea, but the album doesn't progress past the opening track. An artist from every country bringing their own style and talent, with Hooker playing and singing in the background would have been better. Instead, this is a standard Blues album with the odd guest star. As limited as the genre is and as average as this album is, it's still better than whatever Country or Jazz nonsense the list is bound to throw at me again.

Was ok, but not really in the mood for blues today. Still a 3/5

kinda boring, not a big Blues guy.

Not bad, but I won't seek it out

This is pretty cool. A solid 3. Could get a higher rating with another listen

Thought I would like this more. This helped revitilize Hooker's career w/ all the guest artists on it. It was just okay blues stuff but not as good as his older work.

It's blues. The most blues blues I've heard in a while.

Reminds me of Hard Again by Muddy Waters: late career blues album by an absolute legend, reestablishing his career and reaching a whole new generation of fans. This one has good collaborations with a bunch of well known artists: Santana, Bonnie Raitt, Los Lobos, Charlie Musselwhite, Robert Cray, and others. Fun fact: Jodi and I saw Los Lobos and John Lee Hooker at the Riviera on the subsequent tour. We don't remember who opened for who... I grew up only knowing John Lee Hooker from the Maxwell Street scene in The Blues Brothers (Boom Boom Boom Boom...). After this album and tour, I searched out more, way more. Again, one of the legends! Second fun fact: first electric guitar I ever bought was an Epiphone Sheraton II, because John Lee looked so cool with his. Still have it! I think this type of collab success on the starting of the producer, in this case Roy Rogers, a guy I'd never heard of. But they pulled it off. I'm In The Mood went on to win a Grammy for traditional blues, album sold a ton and John Lee was fixed for the rest of his life.

This album’s good, I just don’t really want to be listening to it. It’s just not my thing. It would maybe groove for a second and then it felt like the songs just went nowhere from that initial hit. I’m giving it a 3 but it’s a low 3 for me.

It's crazy that he was 73 when this came out, especially considering it was the most successful release of his career. I wasn’t too impressed with it at first when things kicked off with the title track, as it felt like an 80s modernization of his sound, but as things shifted to a more old school blues style I began to enjoy it a lot more. Hooker sounds great by his own, especially his vocals, but the guest musicians really help make this album stand out. Though I didn’t care for the backing music on The Healer, the guitar work is a highlight, and the slide guitar on Sally Mae is absolutely excellent. Ultimately, I want to like this more. It's got lots of soul. Everything is recorded and mixed well. It sounds like it was a really fun record to make. Unfortunately, the blues just aren't my thing. I know it's not an album trying to break barriers, it's a style that's been done a million times before, but only occasionally has it been done this well. Though, I can appreciate how good it is even if it's not my thing. Did I need to hear this before I die? No, but I'm sure some did.

Very good blues album. Excellent performances and really like his voice.

Nice bit of blues. Impressive list of collaborators.

Looking at the set list here really provides a murderers row if heavy hitters. Los Lobos, Santana, Bonnie Raitt, (though not my fav) George Thorogood, and of course the blues legend Hooker as the anchor. Now I'm not a blues aficionado, but I certainly enjoy more than the average person. Starting out this is just a really nice blues album, but as time goes on and you stick to that typical Blues rhythm, it gets a little redundant. Was fun but only so fun

A little long. Not my favourite blues on this list so far.

Nice laid back bluesy vibe although (this may be heresy but) I found it a bit formulaic...

No sé cómo empezó, pero a finales de los 80 hubo una moda de música Blues y guitarristas recuperados como B.B. King o John Lee Hooker. La verdad es que no me disgusta, pero tampoco me apasiona. El disco me ha resultado entretenido, aunque no me guardo ninguna canción como favorita. Sería un 2,5 pero lo subo a 3.

Hmm

Just alright for me today, the backing bands were great and JLH is always good but this album was just alright for me.

From what I can tell, this album is not a good representation of John Lee Hooker, and its inclusion on this list is unfair to him. I don't know much of John Lee Hooker's work except that he was excellent in The Blues Brothers, but from what I've come to understand he was an absolute legend in the blues world. It's a shame his only inclusion on this list is an album of collaborations, and reportedly not his best work. That's not to say this was bad - it was alright, it just wasn't necessarily a must hear album.

Kul, blues, mislim da? Pri prvem komadu ("The Healer") je zraven Santana, kar bi vsak loh pogruntal, brez da prebere credits. O, Bonnie Raitt poje na drugem komadu ("I'm In The Mood")! Dan 8 je bil njen album. Ta je bl bluesovski mi, kot pa prvi. Hmmm, mal me ne potegne. Pač, zveni k vsak blues k sm ga do zdej slišala. "Rockin' Chair" mi je kul, k je sam Hooker pa kitara. Pa "No Substitute". I guess blues ni tok my thing.

Better than Coldplay

See album oleks revolutsiooniline, kui see oleks tehtud kuskil seal 40ndate-50ndate kandis. Aga see on hoopiski 1989. a plaat ja selleks ajaks ei olnud need kõlad enam huvitavad. Kui keegi mängiks mulle selle albumi laivis ette praksuva lõkke saatel, siis see oleks ikka päris eriline. Aga tagantjärgi seda kuulates on see pigem "meh". Ilus blues, aga puudub erilisus. 2.9/5

Great blues guitar, not so great singing. Legendary personnel though

one of those things i wouldn't mind seeing live just for the vibe but probably won't be returning to it

I was so excited to see this album show up this morning but was disappointed. It was good but blues "light". I did like the collaborations with other artists but was missing a bit of its soul. I give it a 3.

Very laid back, chilled blues. I can’t lie, I was vibing a lot during this. Nothing particularly revolutionary but a solid little album from a guy who sounds like he’s been around. 1950-60s Southern US blues vibes always is a hit with me, even if the songs start sounding similar to each other towards the end. 6.5/10

Its OK. I like the blues, but would not consider this a top 1001 albums of all time.

Find the album art a bit spooky. Honestly I got a bit bored of listening to this album and some of the songs started blending together. He's got a nice voice though! Favourite song: I'm In The Mood Least: The Healer

I generally don't have a problem with blues, but this album didn't really do anything for me. It may just be a symptom of the sterile late 80's production, but very few tracks had the trademark edge of the best blues projects. Easily the best part of this album is John Lee Hooker's performance; he still has the vocal chops of a classic blues moaner. Very relaxed and inoffensive, but not the worst thing I ever heard. Standout Tracks: The Healer, Think Twice Before You Go, Sally Mae Score: D

Ultimate dads album

Had a lot of fun with this one. I'm just kinda getting into the Blues genre and this was a good way to get a few different vibes, as there's a lot of features on this album. Overall I'd say I quite enjoyed it and will be listening to more of Mr. Hooker.

Blues wants to be live, really enjoyed the parade of guest artists. 5 for the legacy, 3 for the album/

Interesting mix of music. 7/10

This album starts off REALLY strong with the Santana feature, really liked the next few songs too. But then it fades off into nothingness. Felt as if all the instruments got taken away one by one, and by the end of the album it was just Johns voice with a Hi-hat and bass drum left... Great voice and all, but the back half of this album is truly what boring music sounds like. The songs where he doesn't have anyone else featuring are prime to put you to sleep. Not a good thing when the only time the music really dips is when there's no backup from other musicians. Apparently John Lee Hooker is a blues legend, so I will have to check out his other music as I'm sure he has some good stuff. But this album was a real snoozer overall (other than the mentioned tracks). 6.5/10

there are way better John Lee Hooker albums

I quite liked it. Bluesy, not what I would normally pick to listen to - but sat through the album and didn't skip or want to skip once. Only 3 stars because I don't think I would pick it up and listen to it again off my own back.

A solid electric blues showing from one of the great bluesmen, with plenty of features supplementing the tracklist. However, it's a bit past the prime of the genre to truly capture what the greatest blues recordings do.

Interestingly I liked the tracks with other artists more than the slower solo traditional blues ones at the end. It started off probably giving me unrealistic expectations with the Santana feature, then had some good songs but eventually lost steam. Given that I just heard B.B. King’s Live at the Regal the day before this, I wasn’t suuuper impressed, but it was fine, and given that he’s one of my dad’s favorite artists I’m going no lower than a 3.

I felt really positive about this album from the first two tracks but it lost my attention after and started blending together. He gets overshadowed by Santana and Bonnie Raitt and the feature by Los Lobos was wasted in my opinion.

It’s ok

Pedestrian blues. With celebrity appearances.

zanimljivo, nije me mnogo interesovalo ne secam se nijedne pesme jbg rocky izbacio album, ali secam se da su kul instrumenti i da je dosta otvoreno

As someone with only the most vague knowledge of JLH, this makes me want to listen to more of his stuff. He seems like a pretty cool bluesman, and I enjoy his style. I don't think this was a stand-out-great album or that the collaborations added a lot to the experience, but I did find it worth a listen. At the least, it introduced me to someone I've heard of yet never really heard. Overall: 3.3/5

Cool, not for me

Just okay.

a good introduction to blues music

This is not my style of music. It was a decent listen but didn’t love it.

Far from the best John Lee Hooker, but John Lee Hooker nonetheless.

As a music lover I really should have a JLH album in my collection and this one would serve that purpose. He is an amazing talent and when you think of famous American deep blues players, along with B B King, he is the one who springs to mind. Some exquisite guitar playing make this an excellent album. 3/5 11/1/26

Blues soundtrack for an 80's porno.

I questioned how much I would like this album going in, but I love some good blues, especially on a cold day where I’m feeling a bit under the weather. Nothing like some good calming blues to make you feel seen.

Good album. Fades a bit towards the end

Can't beat a bit of proper blues. John Lee Hooker has some bangers, good few on this album too

Perfectly fine music, nothing especially exciting

Listened Before: No Sorta sounded the same throughout, but that's not necessarily bad. Bro was 73 cashing in on a career of being a blues legend... Was pleasant to listen to but sometimes I struggle with old dudes voices. 3/5

The last three songs are the best here. The rest is ok but they do not show what Hookers music was all about.

Pretty almighty

More of a collaborative album. Made him mainstreamed for money, I’m guessing.

I like the blues.

I like some of his other records more

These slick late 80s and 90s legendary all star collab albums always feel flat to me. There are some good ones, no doubt, but so often they are somewhat sterile and middle of the road and this one wasn't much different. The songs are pleasant. The pairings are fantastic. But there is something missing. If it was recorded in a dingy bar at 3am, it would be there. No knock. The last couple solo songs are great. But this feel flat.

Classic blues. Decent listen but can’t believe it blows anyone away

ROCK AND ROLL BABY 3.5

I am by no means that knowledgeable about the blues but Not sure this is how I would represent John Lee Hooker, guess it has a “modern” sound and the draw of collaboration. So works as introductory/ main stream cross over, maybe. It is good I guess, but just seems to be missing that spark. Don’t know if this is his only album on here and if so would have preferred something a bit rawer, earlier. 3 Star

There is a nostalgic quality to John Lee Hookers voice that feels comforting and commands focus. This isn't an album one can easily passively listen to. There is a difficulty in digesting this album, however. I admire the roots of the songs, but I cannot find myself listening to them again on my own. I can hear the riffs that are foundational to starting new genres, but I can't shake the feeling of how "old" it all sounds. I think I will need some more exposures to Blues music in order to really understand what is successful here and what isn't

Decent

Bluesy blues

It’s ok.

Not my fave blues album but a solid effort nonetheless

Retomamos el reto después de algunas idas y vueltas con John Lee Hooker, artista que ubico de nombre y seguro de alguna que otra canción, pero del que no he escuchado discos. Disco de blues muy de la época en que salió (fines de los ochenta), donde se buscaba generar cruces por la World Music o que artistas históricos de géneros troncales hicieran colaboraciones con artistas más contemporáneos. Sin más para agregar, me despido hasta mañana.

6 / 10

I smile and now I will seep calm

Gear: DCA ÆON 2 Noire Artwork: 🖐️🎩🖐️ Production: 🎧😘🤌 Music: 🎸👥😐 Rating: 👤👤👤/5

It's a solid album by one of the blues greats. It's not as innovative or engaging as his earlier work, but it scratches the itch.

Great album of old school blues performed by a master in his later years. Almost as though he made this album just to be able to work with some of the other great artists he brought in for this.

nice enough

Pretty standard stuff, nice to listen to from JLH

I was psyched to see the collaborations on this one, but i didn’t enjoy any of them nearly as much as the last three songs.

I was worried when I listened to the first track and I thought it was going to be an awful album because that chintzy 80's production just doesn't work for John's vocals. Thankfully, it got much better. The last few tracks where it's just John and not guest stars are really good. Unfortunately, a lot of these older blues artists were basically releasing singles instead of actual albums during their peak periods, so they've been represented on this list by later output that doesn't show them at their best.

helt ok

Some considerable talent on this. Should be a slam dunk but the Santana song was a bit meh for me. I liatemed to again second time and think it was too much Santana (in which case listen to a Samtana album) and not enough JLH. Bonnie Raitt’s song was a bettwr balance. Baby Lee soulful. Cuttin’ Out with Canned Heat rocked, with amazing harp sound. But is this the album of John Lee Hooker you must hear before you die? He has so many. Man was prolific. The closing tracks are just him. The rest are John Lee Hooker but not - the Santana one sounds like Santana. The canned Heat one, canned heat. I omgime if you are a Santana fan and a JLH fan, you are in heaven on that song. What about the others? Its not an uneven album though. I guess JLH gives a spine that runs through it all. I think the reason this album confuaes me is that I want desperately to see it as a 5 atar album, i like Samtana, I like Canned Heat, robert Cray, Charlie Musslewhite, etc, but it doesnt grab me that way.

First off, you should be tried at the highest court for putting Santana on your opener and letting us think the rest of the album would follow the same quality. Despicable. Second, all the best blues was written 40 years before this album, and some of it was by this very guy. The Healer doesn't bring anything especially exciting to the table. It's just fine.

the healer- 6 im in the mood- 5 or 6 baby lee- 5 cutting out- 5 think twice before you go- 5 sally mae- 5 thats alright- 5 rocking chair- 5 or 6 my dream- 6 no substitute- 5

Album #971 Highly acclaimed blues guy, but just sounds average to me.

John Lee Hooker's great This is a collaboration album that is overproduced, but some tracks—particularly the one with Bonnie Raitt—are particularly strong. The last few tracks are Hooker alone, and that sounds magnificent.

I listened to this album on the plane. It was okay music, although sometimes a bit plain.

It’s a nice blues album. Nice arrangement and production is good too. But not my favourite type of music that I can resonate with. This album gives me a similar feeling when I first heard of grafting… it works.. and should probably be impressive, but I am also not very sure at the first glance…

Great vibes and features from legendary artists. Its definitely not a genre I could listen to all of the time but would hit the spot in certain moods. Will be looking through his discography in the future.

A solid blues album. I really like his voice and his style, but I got pretty bored during some of the slow songs. This would be an easy four if I could cherry pick some of the more upbeat songs, but then I guess it wouldn't be a blues album then would it?

Not a good time for music production. The 80s echoey thin production sucked the soul out of this

Good blues album. Music that makes you want to move. But not really attention-holding for me

Do t mind a bit of blues

Hard to dislike this as it is very easy listening and inoffensive. A sort of watered down version of blues that I found pleasant to listen to.

Great voice, nice guitar. But it’s hard to get overly excited about the Blues (or this slightly oddly adulterated 80s version). It had its very important place in time and rock history.

This is fluffy, house-trained blues that will water your plants when you go on holiday. John Lee Hooker deserves to be on this list, but not with this limp, overproduced blues collection.

I would have expected an album from the 60s from a bluesy guitar player like this b. Maybe he’s not from that era. I don’t know anything about him. He colaborated with Bonnie riatt who I hate since she won all those Grammies for give em something to talk about. Yuck. This record was fine. I noted no instances of awesomeness.

very ok? a lot of the collabs felt random and out of place

It was OK. Not really my type of music.

Good but sounds like polished blues. Blues for normies. But maybe I'm a normie when it comes to blues? Or am I not?

his other work is better, even though some of the collabs on here are awesome. I read this was in hope to provide some $$$ for him later in his years, which I don't love and would recommend you go listen to his earlier years. Makes me wonder why this made it on this list...

Not bad, I'm not normally a big fan of blues but I can appreciate this

I liked it. I liked that he played with some other famous musicians, then finishes it out with three of his own. Good music!

No. 324/1001 The Healer 3/5 I'm in the Mood 3/5 Baby Lee 3/5 Cuttin' Out 3/5 Think Twice Before You Go 3/5 Sally Mae 3/5 That's Alright 3/5 Rockin' Chair 3/5 My Dream 3/5 Average: 3/5 Alright to listen to, just not something that really excites me personally. No Substitute

Pleasant to listen to but nothing special

so slowwwww

mmmmm so so

I love old school blues, but the 80s production on this really drags it down.

good blues sound with fun features along the way

Not quite my thing, but could tell it was good guitar playing throughout, which got the impression he was a guitar playing blues man. Mission accomplished

Traditional blues

Good throughout but never great

Hyvää bluesia. 3/5.

On one hand, I like that the collabs on this album show that blues is the essence of a lot of different styles of music. One the other, I think I would have rather just listened to John Lee Hooker.

3/5 background music-ing this morning

Not a bad album by any means, but really nothing phenomenal going on that John Lee Hooker didn't perfect in earlier albums. I still enjoyed it; I just would much prefer to listen to earlier albums than this one again.

I admire this guy and his craft, and I wanted to like this one more, but it just didn't really pop for me.

An ok listen, but i tended to like the guest performances better than John Lee Hooker’s, but I get that he is a legend and this is a fitting tribute. It’s also the blueprint for the later hugely successful Supernatural album from Santana.

Not anything hugely memorable but I guess it was perfectly ok.

It's ok, it isn't bad, but it also doesn't really do anything for me. mid 3.

It's fine. A little too slick to my tastes. I prefer the backhalf that is more stripped back and raw.

The opener sounded like Santana, but after that pure blues as expected.

COME ON. I had Traffic yesterday with it's jazz flute organ psych fusion and now I'm IMMEDIATELY met with jazz flute electric guitar psych fusion from Santana. Ok. Now that I've calmed down, once I get into the album a little bit, it's not half bad. The back half of the album is quite good, but the early collaborations in general just don't do it for me.

Approachable blues album with some star power. The copy of the book I have calls this album "100-proof blues." I disagree, as compared to earlier blues records, this seems watered down. It's not a bad album, I just question it's inclusion here over other, earlier albums.

guter alter blues von einer legende gespielt. fantastisch, auch wenn mir nicht alle titel gleich gefallen.

It houses both the best and worst traits of late '80s/early '90s blues revival albums.

Healing hearts and taking names.

Just a good blues album isn't it - I mean that in a complimentary way

The Healer 3.8 I'm in the Mood 3 Baby Lee 3.2 Cuttin' Out 3.3 Think Twice Before You Go 3.5 Sally Mae 3.6 That's Alright 3.4 Rockin' Chair 3.2 My Dream 3.3 No Substitute 3 Score: 3.33

Having listened to old John Lee Hooker, this album is different. The Santana collaboration was a bit meh. Apart from that it's decent album. I guess its a good introductory album to JLH and probably the reason why it is on this list.

Lots of guest artists; he’s clearly a legend. Gets derivative, because it’s the blues. But still relatively diverse in song styles.

I had this one back in the day (thanks, BMG Music Club) and don't recall what happened to it. Listening now I know why I don't miss it. I really appreciate the bigger names collaborating and bringing attention to Mr. Hooker, but the songs don't really bear repeat listens. JLH doing vocal vamps over Hooker-esque grooves laid down in a workmanlike fashion ends up with a somewhat sterile result. Oddly enough the track furthest from my sweet spot, "No Substitute", is my favorite one on the album. Taking it back to just JLH and a 12 string guitar has the strongest punch of the whole album. For that track and putting John Lee Hooker in the ears of a lot of people who had never heard (or heard of) him before I'm giving it three stars.

Awesome opening track! First few tracks of the album are better.

Standouts The Healer Think Twice Before You Go My Dream

The guest artists were very obvious and I’m not sure if that was a good thing or not? May have enjoyed the solo tracks more. A bit repetitive though.

Legends meet in the middle to middling results.

Random thoughts: * I put this one on without looking at it much while on a car drive. And the first track started playing and I said to myself, this isn't John Lee Hooker, this is Santana! Turns out it was both Hooker and Santana. * I wonder where Santana got the idea for Supernatural. Mmmmm? * Track 2 and beyond were more the blues experience I was expecting. * I never knew about this album before and is again why I'm happy to go through 1001 to be exposed and knowledgable about some more great music like this.

3.1

3.5

Cette fois-ci, c’est un vrai de vrai album de vrai blues ! Et je ne sais pas trop quoi en penser... Il y a de très bonnes pièces (surtout au milieu de l’album), des un peu plates (comme les duos avec Santana et Bonnie Raitt, par exemple) et des pièces plus tranquilles, à la fin où on entend John Lee Hooker seul à la guitare. Au final, c’est pas mal, de bons moments ici et là, mais pas pour moi.

Good sounds. Kind of a big news day so didn’t listen too much…

My Dad had this album when I was a kid and would sometimes play it on long car rides. We were certainly aware of Hooker though we'd ask for the Boom Boom song which seemed funny to a 10-year-old. He would have been in his 70s here and he ropes in lots of special guests to help out but that said the best two songs (My Dream, Rockin' Chair) are just him alone with guitar minus the 80s production and star guests.

I wish it was an older album of his, sounds a little dated with all of the collaborators. Good blues tho. 3/5

john lee heeft betere platen gemaakt.. dit is iets te gelikt om echt goed te zijn

Pretty average blues, well produced with an all star cast.

Rockin' Chair may be the bluesiest song I've ever heard

The blues. 80's sound, with some afro/latin vibes. Smokey pool hall, whiskey, cheap beer Harmonica, slide guitar, whammy bar.

Some good tunes! Didn't blow my mind but enjoyed the higher tempo blues rockers. Think twice before you was great.

Like Jim Croce but less AM Radio

If you can get past the first track that features Santana it’s a perfectly fine record. Nothing amazing here.

I don't feel this album shows off the full skill of John Lee Hooker.

I wish I liked this more because there's nothing inherently wrong with it but unfortunately blues music is just not really my jam so I felt next to nothing while listening to this record (I'm gonna give it a decent rating anyways). Favorite track: The Healer 2.5/5

Great for blues aficionados

A legend getting paid, who can blame him. Also this music feels like it was in every single Ron Shelton movie ever

3/10

Sad to say that this bored me and the blues should not be doing that.Don’t think the collaborative thing does him any favours here

For a blues album I really didn’t mind it. Didn’t sound like the same song all the time and the additional artists added a lot to it

Some really cool features but a bit underwhelming

I’m less familiar with John Lee Hooker than I would like, so I was happy to discover this much-vaunted album. The first track left me sightly disappointed, since it had a « happy feeling » that just didn’t do it for me. But the rest of the album was mostly great – especially « In the Mood » and « Sally Mae », which are exactly what I’m expecting from Blues music : deep, slow, harsh and sexy at the same time. All in all a great Blues album, all the more impressing since it was composed when John Lee Hooker was already 72. The numerous featurings are a welcome addition, although not essential to the album. A good 3,5* for me.

Nice jazzy album but it does not give me a "boom boom" mood

Thanks to this list, I discovered Bonnie Raitt’s glorious perm, and thanks to her and to Santana, the king of features, Hooker had a bit of a comeback and landed a spot here. It’s clearly listenable, even nice, but there’s way better blues out there, even in Hooker’s own catalog. Kinda disappointing that this is the first blues album the list throws at us.

Robert "Jazz Hands" Dylan

Kind of a mixed bag of collaborations and stylistic variations. Some didn't quite float my boat. Some are the self assured works of a true maestro. Towards the end, we get the pared-back, almost Saharan blues of My Dream, which I found very affecting. This, and its two neighbouring tracks, are the only songs without big-name collaborators; probably not just coincidence that I enjoyed these the most. I will return to this record

It was ok. I’m not much for these “comeback” style albums that have a bunch of guest appearances, but I do like the old school blues guys. It was fine, I just honestly didn’t see what the fuss was about or why it made this list.

Here's something neat about this album project. The fact that each genre is represented a number of times has allowed me to form opinions about genres at large. Of course, these are still generalizations to an extent, but I've started to learn more and more about what genres I do and don't care for. Blues is a genre that I'm not super big on myself, but it's certainly one that I respect. John Lee Hooker's 1989 album The Healer is no different. This isn't like my favorite thing in the world, but it's got some good things to it that I enjoy. John Lee Hooker is one of the more influential artists in the blues genre. As far as influence, he's up there with someone like Muddy Waters for sure. However, while he got his start all the way back in the 1930s, this album is a release from 1989. Interesting. It's also a collaborative album with a number of artists, including some that also appear on this list like Carlos Santana and Bonnie Raitt. Interesting collaborator list if I do say so myself. The style here definitely has its roots in blues, but takes some semi-modern influences as well. This is most obvious on the title track, which sounds pretty smooth to me (I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that it literally has guitar from the guy who played on "Smooth"). John Lee Hooker's got some nice bluesy vocals. Definitely getting those Muddy Waters vibes. Maybe I don't understand blues. I don't know. What I do understand is that this album's good. The instrumentation is pretty nice as well. Overall, this is a neat listen that I wouldn't call a favorite of mine, but is one that I'm not upset to have listened to. 3/5.

Well, That's Alright. My only real complaint is that the cover is giving MS Paint. Also, the Spotify description of this guy is ruthless! "One-chord" and "primitive"‽

John Lee is a legend, plain and simple. While I like this album, it feels overproduced. John Lee is about the grittiness of the blues and this seems too polished. I would recommend people check out his earlier recordings. A highlight is a duet with Bonnie Raitt on I'm in the Mood. The track is fun, but again, a little too slick. There is a live recording of the duet on a compilation album that is much better, in my opinion.

Not bad. Not really blown away by it either.

enjoyed this. especially the slower parts

JLH was probably the first blues artist I discovered (playing Boom boom boom in the Blues Brothers). Nothing wrong with this record and it's nice to see JLH get some widespread recognition late in his career. That being said this isn't even in the top 5 best JLH records. If you want the real deal check out John Lee Hooker Plays and Sings the Blues

I wouldn’t know the difference between good and bad blues??….

First track reminds me of Matchbox 20, thanks to Carlos Santana. Collab albums like this are just jumping the shark.Anyway, it gets better eventually. Pairings with Canned Heat and George Thorogood are standouts, but I think I prefer my John Lee undiluted. (Where's the more you dilute Morrissey, for example, the better). Three stars. Three stars.

Als je blues googlet krijg je dit album denk ik, wauw. Doorrookte stem, gitaar riffjes, en eigenlijk continue denk ik alleen maar dat dit de blauwdruk(haha) is van Blues. En dat is ook meteen het album. Houd je van blues? Dan vind je dit geweldig. Hou je niet van Blues? Dan vind je het matig. Ik vind Blues een genre dat ik nooit helemaal heb begrepen, en eerlijk? Dit album heeft wel echt geholpen! De eerste 2 nummers vond ik echt heel sterk, en ik ging er meteen goed voor zitten. Want zou dit dan de plaat zijn waar ik eindelijk blues fan ga worden? Nee dat niet helemaal, het is een lekker album, met John Lee Hooker zijn doorrookte stem over het hele album met vrijwel minimale instrumentale hulp. Er zijn best wel wat features op het album en die werken ook zeker, maar de focus en de ster is ongetwijfeld John Lee en zijn gitaar. En ik noem ze beiden, want ze zijn echt onlosmakelijk met elkaar verbonden. Nou het album dan; er zitten heerlijke riffjes in, de zang van John Lee was ook echt goed. Maar toch, uiteindelijk kan ik me er toch niet helemaal aan onttrekken dat dit album zó veel beter had kunnen zijn. Dit album begint echt geweldig, en het einde heeft ook echt hele sterke nummers, maar het midden is zo matig en gezapig dat ik uiteindelijk toch uit kom op een matige 3 sterren. Prima album, niet iets wat ik nog een keer zal gaan luisteren. FAVO: The Healer, Im in the mood, My Dream

I expected a smooth blues album from John Lee Hooker, and I was not disappointed. There is no mistaking how Hooker pioneered blues music, because his blues doesn't sound like anybody else's. Santana's blues makes for a great combination with Hooker's, too. I quite like the fact there are so many collaborations on this album. The Healer was toward the end of Hooker's career, and there's a definite passing of the torch vibe. Those collaborations were easily part of the reason for the Grammy win. At the same time, I wish I heard more that was Hooker only, especially when I suspect this is his only album on the list. Alas.

This album is not bad, but it is definitely dominated by the features; I don't get a strong sense for John Lee Hooker, because I'm mostly getting the other people. Granted, this album came out towards the end of Hooker's career, and likely reflects exactly what he wants it to, but as far as an inclusion on this project from Hooker, I can't help but feel like there was a better choice. Still, it's a decent and enjoyable blues album.

Swam song for a legend. Lot of neat collabs. Nothing earth shattering as a listen, but some neat collabs. I also like that this albums sales set him financially for the rest of his life.

Quality compilation of guest artists joining a legendary bluesman. It's good but feels a bit contrived.

Quite cool… very minimal.

pretty cool and good guests ... i guess him and canned heat made an album together in 71, sounds cool idk

Es ist nichts besonderes. Chillig

Delta blues is always a tough genre for me to rate. It takes a lot of talent to really make something with the Delta blues because you can't hide poor musicianship behind a wall of sound. But, it's also limited because of genre constrains, making a full album of delta blues a bit... too much of the same old, same old. I struggled to stay engaged for the whole album. It's fine, but not one I'll return to.

I liked hearing the individual collaborators contributions and styles, but I didn't really get a taste for hooker himself. Was a good classic blues listen, but want to hear more him

The Healer is certainly one interesting album but i guess that is to be expected from a man who doesn't seem to have a definitive birth year. What mainly surprised me was the sheer number of featuring musicians here. There is everyone from Carlos Santana, Bonnie Raitt, George Thorogood and many others and each of these musicians brought something different to each of the songs they appeared in. Each song they appeared in was no doubt a good song but the last 3 songs there that were just done by Hooker fell a bit flat. This is no doubt an enjoyable album, i just don't think i would enjoy it as much without the extra musicians. Best Song: I'm In The Mood Worst Song: No Substitute

3 estrelas

3.3 Pretty decent blues album. Last 3 tracks dipped but I'm guessing they were bonus ones. Not my fave genre but can appreciate the quality

cool. Its Blues, I want something to blow me away. I just feel like I am getting lbums lately that are nice to listen to, but nothing that makes me go wow, How did i never listen to this. I am sure blues lovers will tell me whats special about this, but to the non blues fan, it sounds like pretty much any other blues album, and there are lots on this list. Think Twice before you go and My Dream was cool

Solid album by the blues master.

Solid blues album

I've heard of this musician. True blues. This is good stuff. I know I have not listened to any of this stuff and it's good.

It's a pleasant listen, but I don't think it compares to his 60s-70s work.

01) The Healer - 10,0 02) I'm in the Mood - 8,0 03) Baby Lee - 7,5 04) Cuttin' Out - 7,0 05) Think Twice Before You Go - 7,0 06) Sally Mae - 7,0 07) That's Alright - 6,5 08) Rockin' Chair - 6,0 09) My Dream - 7,0 10) No Substitute - 6,5 TOTAL: 7,25 (73/100) Current ranking: 316/586

Track one isn’t very representative of this I would say. Not sure how I feel about the blues being given an 80s sheen. At its core these were still pretty good though.

nice blues

Sounds like JLH! I like it. He's a legend and doesn't get enough credit for the big role he played in early Dylan's development.

I keep saying to myself ‘I should listen to more of the Blues’ and then I don’t. So this was helpful (caveats about authenticity (not from me) aside). Quite liked this.

I went deep into Blues music five or six years ago, so I'm surprised this didn't cross my radar sooner. I'm naturally a little sceptical of albums with a lot of features and while I remain sceptical the Bonnie Raitt and Charlie Musselwhite features were solid. The last three (solo) tracks on the album were, for me, standouts. Overall, an enjoyable but not life changing listen.

Decent album, starts off pretty strong, but the end its a little repetitious

They should have picked an earlier album by JLH and put Strong Persuader by Robert Cray and something by Stevie Ray Vaughn instead. Like this is fine good stuff but there's more essential stuff left off

I guess it doesn’t realy get more blues than with Hooker.. the collabs are nice, I vibed to this today. Album art is quite ominous. I like it but it does not necessarily match the music tone of voice.

Every time I hear the name John Lee Hooker I think about Juliet Lewis in Natural Born Killers being mad she can’t go to his concert. Then I think how fucking weird it was for a teenager in 1994 to want to go to a John Lee Hooker concert. Then I think about how weird Natural Born Killers is. So what I’m really saying is I have no idea what he sounds like. Bluesy I guess? Last song is the standout. The rest feels very sanitized and lacks grit.

This would be so much better without all the guests. I love JLH, but no one needs to hear Santana on this shit.

J’aime pas le blues mais la première est vraiment bonne. 3☆ à cause de la première

The collaborations distract from JLH’s strengths, to my ear. Not bad, just not great either.

A stacked collaboration album with polished production value. That said, it loses something along the way and doesn't have the soul that most Hooker albums do.

Feels like a Johnny Cash late in life album... collabing with a bunch of contemporary artists... kind of a circle is unbroken vibe... Good. but may not come back to it.

Overall: 6/10 I have mixed feelings about this one. On the one hand, Hooker has a great voice and is an OG who understands the blues and how to implement it best. On the other hand, the album is overproduced and features too many collaborators that take away from Hooker's performance. In the end, it's worth checking out, especially if you're a newcomer to the blues like I am. Fav Song: I'm In the Mood Least Fav Song: The Healer

Nice

It's Blues. It was fine. It gets a little old after a beat.

Good vibes for a blues album, the opener threw me off with Santana but the rest of the album fell into familiar blues territory. Not so amazing that I’d come back to it often, but good enough for a listen again

The song with Carlos Santana was interesting, but overall this is was a bit underwhelming (but it is still John Lee Hooker so it can’t be all bad).

67/100. A good blues record, anchored by the standout title track, which is easily the highlight and sets a high bar early on. While the rest of the album doesn’t quite reach the same level, it’s still a solid and enjoyable listen.

It's as good as any other legendary musician steeped thier own genre

Pretty awesome record by a legend

If I wanted to listen to John Lee Hooker, this is not the album I would choose. It's fine, but i find some of the collaborations to be distracting. The last 3 tracks are my favorites.

Solid 3 stars in my book

No soy mucho de esto. Es agradable pero no me mueve mucho.

Some of these interactions are great, some obscure Hooker's and/or the collaborators' mastery. I tend toward preferring blues in small doses, so these various changes often, but not always, help engagement.

Not pure blues or the best of JLH but if the collaborations made him a few cents and made him more accessible then kudos to the guy.

I'll just echo what so many of the other reviewers have said: This is a fine collection, though often marred by '80s production. It's best when it's just him (last 3 tracks). The collaborations mostly don't excite (though I liked the Canned Heat and Los Lobos tunes). Dude is still bringing it at age 73, so hats off to him! But let's give the legend his due and scrap this album in favor of one of his '60s recordings that inspired pretty much every British Invasion band.

Really dig his guitar action.

- 3.5 cause it's J.Lee Hooker - some good stuff but I NEED to hear one of his early releases .... -

Blues with friends. A little Chicago electric, and a little Memphis jangle. There’s certainly some essence of the primal music here, and that’s good. The collection feels a little stretched across the features.

Not bad, but nothing all that moving either.

Kolme viimeistä biisiä iskivät (ei vierailevia artisteja). Viimeinen liikutti (kuuntele sanat). Sai minut arvioimaan uudelleen koko levyä. Kunnioitettava temppu.

Well made Blues sharpened to a razor point, but definitely infused with enough 80s maximalism to make it sell. Strong stuff, and I'm glad it got John Lee Hooker the respect he deserved, but it feels closer to the blues rock he inspired then the talking and hill country blues he made when he was younger.

First song is great! Reminds me of Smooth Operator. Rest of the album reminded me of Tom Waits’ Way Down in the Hole.

the title track is one of the best songs I've heard in a long long time, but the rest of the album doesn't really stack up

Good listen. Shined on the tracks without features

Vinyl: No Fav Song: The Healer Notes: Good but a bit disjointed.

I was over Santana about 20 years ago after his collab with the dummies from Matchbox Twenty. This one finishes strong with Hooker on his own.

A nice little blues album that really shouldn’t sound so samey given the amount of guest musicians here.

бодро за счет приглашенных артистов и тухло за счет собственного обаяния

I'm not a big blues fan but it was cool to hear a legend and some authentic blues. I liked the guitar playing but I think I'd prefer to hear one of his earlier albums because this felt a little uninspired and rehashed.

The Blues are like certain ethnic foods. You love it and you look forward to it, but there is absolutely no reason to eat it every day when there are so many other great cuisines out there to love. The Blues are too niche to want to eat on a regular basis. I would be ok with these songs in a live setting because they have a vibrant, kinetic energy, but I have no desire to sit down and listen to the Blues all of the time because everything else (sans modern country…BARF!) interests me more.

This was cool and had some interesting funk to it. A lot of the songs were a little slow and hookless for my taste, but in general, the vibes are up with it, and it was pleasant to ye olde ears. The song with Bonnie was my fave!

Blues album of high quality, a lot of collaborations. Santana, Los lobos, Bonnie Rait.. etc.. The album has the the type of production where everything sounds apparently perfect. Compared to early blues, it is such a contrast. Huge respect for JLH on his 70 having the stamina and will to go for this album.

Perfectly good, though something that never went beyond background music for me.

This is one of the ones I have a little trouble with being on this list. Without a doubt it's a very good record, great to hear a blues legend doing his thing late in his life and the collabs are fun. But at the end of the day, it's a retro throwback sort of album, not something that was current, genre pushing, innovative, inspirational, etc. So its place in music history and influence get low marks from me. But I like the sound and the way it feels a lot so it gets a good score. If I had more room to work with, probably a 7.5.

First song came with a side of cheese. The song with Canned Heat was great. Last track on the album was a stunner, loved it. Was going to give it 2-stars, but something about the last track hooked me.

I liked a few for sure, but it was very inconsistent. Hard to give a rating to the album as a whole because it was so disjointed.

6.5/10

Blues legend. Great blues guitarist, and singer.

2.5

снова причитаю что не понимаю блюз, снова одни и те же ноты. в целом вроде приятно слушать, но где выводы?

Nisam sto posto siguran ali ako pola ovih pisama nije bilo u nekom b trileru s kraja osamdesetih di sredovječni detektiv alkoholičar susreće upola mlađu famme fatale negdi na jugu nisu ništa napravili 😃btw prilično sam siguran da su naslovnu stvar st German semplirali na so flute

Bueno

Yk for my first primarily blues album it did sorta disappoint me. The music wasn’t bad it was just such a SLEEPER of an album bored me out my mind. I’m literally so thankful this isn’t over an hour cuz I would be FIGHTING for my life. But it’s not all bad John’s vocals could put me to sleep that’s how calming his voice and it all here for it. Now I can’t say I’m the biggest fan but he’s pretty talented with fast pace high energy songs transitioning too slow lullaby type songs rly well. Overall nothing special just a solid project that I won’t return too😂 6.5/10 3.2/5

Decent blues album. I didn't mind listening to it, but not something I'd likely return to. 3/5

Good sound. Solid despite being a bit uneven.

3/5

I was getting ready to not like this because of all the collabs and didn’t seem genuine to me for some reason. Up on my high horse saying true jazz needs suffering and the commercialization isn’t the real deal. I listened to it… it’s friggin John Lee Hooker!!! Of course it’s good

got a good vibe

I mean, as names go, that's certainly one of them... Good guitar work. Pleasant blues music. 3,5/5

Wouldn't listen again but very good. The Santana song is a clasic tho

artwork is just ash baby grown up 1st track is great, rest is whatever

This guy kinda sounds like Jimi Hendrix Cool blues album. Nothing I’d revisit in full probably, but it’s well made

I was disappointed at how slow and drugs out this was. Bummer. 2.5

The first track was not a good opener but settled into what I had hoped for with In the Mood.

Kind of boring, frankly. Trying to reach a mass audience in the 80s was a losing game.

Great vibes later in the album but awful 80s production dude...

It’s just blues but pretty pleasant blues

Pretty cool

Kiedy słucham bluesa to mam wrażenie że nie mam z tymi ludźmi nic wspólnego. O czym mielibyśmy rozmawiać, gdybyśmy się spotkali? Ta płyta ma sporo występów gościnnych i jest nieco rozmyta, ale nadal jest bluesem, czyli czymś co ani mnie ziębi ani grzeje. 5/10

I think there's a certain class of straight person and/or guitar fan that likes his work. For everyone else, this album is a slog.

Going into this album I was not familiar with John Lee Hooker at all. I had never heard his music before so I had no idea what I was in for. And I really enjoyed the music. The instruments are all so sharp and clean. You can hear everything it’s so clean. And the production and number of musical celebrity guests is crazy! Bonnie Raitt, Santana, George Thorogood, just to name a small few. My only problem with this album (and it’s a big one) I don’t really like John’s voice. He doesn’t have a voice with a great presence and there’s not a lot of diversity to his vocals. Honestly this album is worth your time and if you are a blues fan, this is an essential album. But honestly the guests and instrumentation wasn’t enough to make up for the lack of vocal charisma.

A bit bland and generic 80s sounding for me. Not really proper JKH to be fair. OK so his retirement was sorted with this one and it was probably a big lovefest collaborating with all the other musos but it’s still BORING!!

I like the blues. I really like the blues. This is not really the blues, and it’s clearly demonstrated on the opener, a collaboration with Carlos Santana, which basically becomes a Santana song. Also, the 80s production really does everything dirty. When this finished Spotify served me some Muddy Waters, and that really showed up how un-blues like this album actually is. It’s not bad, but I’m sure it has to be towards the bottom of John Lee Hooker’s quality.

Not my style, but not a bad little blues album. There's some clear signs of this being produced in the late 80's that are a little distracting, but overall it's not something I'd be against listening to again.

Pretty good