Luther Allison was one of the most popular and critically-acclaimed blues guitar players of the 1990s, combining classic west side Chicago guitar with rock and soul in a unique style that appealed to the mostly white blues festival audiences. Record company disputes, false starts, and a prolonged residency in Europe kept him from attaining a large popularity in America until late in life, and his untimely death from cancer cut that success short.

Luther Allison

Allison built a world-wide reputation with his intensity and stamina, often playing three or four hours at a stretch and leaving audiences decimated. "His urgency and intensity was amazing," long-time band leader James Solberg said in Living Blues magazine's tribute to Allison after his death. "I mean, to stand next to a guy that was 57 years old and watch him go for four and a half hours and not...