Product Description The Grammy-nominated last album from the undisputed Queen Of The Blues. Backed by three different combinations of musicians, Koko tears into straight-ahead, raw Chicago blues that captures the spirit of the classic, tough Windy City sound. From foot-stomping barnburners to powerful slow blues, Koko proved once and for all that her blues are joyous and life-affirming, powerful and soul-stirring. Amazon.com Go ahead and call it a comeback. Despite her advancing years and frail health following a 2003 hospitalization, Old School shows that the Queen of Chicago Blues has no intentions of abdicating her throne just yet. Koko Taylor isn't terribly prolific--this is only her third album in 14 years--but she's also never released a lackluster effort, and this is no exception. As the title suggests, you should be prepared for tough, rugged Chicago blues sung by one of the masters of the genre, regardless of gender. Taylor's legendary booming voice does show some wear, but her husky pipes, wang-dang-doodle attitude, and sheer enthusiasm will convince any skeptics that the singer is far from phoning in her performance. The disc is split evenly between originals and covers of Willie Dixon, Magic Sam, and others, all powered by a gritty yet professional no-nonsense band featuring guitarists Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin and Criss Johnson, along with the harmonica great Billy Branch. Musically, there aren't many surprises, but at this stage Taylor isn't pushing boundaries with her meat-and-potatoes diet of grinding shuffles mixed with the occasional slow blues. Knocking off a tune or two from the hour-long program might have made this a more concise, compact statement, however. Yet with songs as frisky as "Bad Rooster"--possibly an answer to the classic "Little Red Rooster"--and a strutting version of Dixon's "Don't Go No Further," there's no doubt that Taylor remains as passionate and intense as when she was first claiming her crown, nearly four decades ago. --Hal Horowitz Review Deep soul, raw vocal power, blustery swagger...the great female blues singer of her generation -- Rolling StoneThere are many kings of the blues, but only one queen. -- Boston Globe From the Artist "Blues is my life," says Grammy Award-winning blues singer Koko Taylor, Chicago's -- and the world's -- undisputed Queen Of The Blues. "It's a true feeling that comes from the heart, not just something that comes out of my mouth. Blues is what I love, and singing the blues is what I always do." About the Artist Born Cora Walton (an early love of chocolate earned her the lifelong nickname Koko) in 1928 in Bartlett, Tennessee, Koko was an orphan by age 11. Along with her five brothers and sisters, Koko developed a love for music from a mixture of gospel she heard in church and blues she heard on radio stations. Even though her father encouraged her to sing only gospel music, Koko and her siblings would sneak out back with their homemade instruments and play the blues. With one brother accompanying on a guitar strung wth baling wire and another brother on a fife made out of a corncob, Koko began her career as a blues woman. Bessie Smith and Memphis Minnie were particular influences, as were Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and Sonny Boy Williamson. She would listen to their songs over and over again. When she was in her early 20s, Koko and her soon-to-be husband, the late Robert "Pops" Taylor, moved to Chicago looking for work. With nothing but, in her words, "35 cents and a box of Ritz crackers," the couple settled on the city's South Side, the cradle of the rough-edged sound of Chicago blues. At night and on weekends, Koko and Pops would visit the South and West Side blues clubs, where they would hear singers like Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Magic Sam, Little Walter, and Junior Wells. Taylor's big break came in 1963. After a fiery performance, songwriter/arranger Willie Dixon approached her. Much to Koko's astonishment, he told her, "My God, I never heard a woman sing the blues like you sing the blues. There are lots of men singing the blues today, but not enough women. That's what the world needs today, a woman with a voice like yours to sing the blues." Dixon first recorded Koko for USA Records and then secured a Chess recording contract for her. He produced several singles and two albums for her -- including her huge 1966 hit single Wang Dang Doodle - firmly establishing Koko as the world's number one female blues talent. In the early 1970s, Taylor was among the first of the South Side Chicago blues artists to find work - and an audience - on the city's white North Side. In 1972, Koko played the Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Festival in front of more people than ever before (including a young Bruce Iglauer). In 1975, Koko found a home with the city's newest blues label, Iglauer's Alligator Records. Her first album for Alligator, I Got What It Takes , earned her a Grammy nomination. Since then, Koko's recorded eight more albums for Alligator and has made numerous guest appearances on various tribute albums and recordings of her famous friends. She's been in movies and on television, on radio and in print all over the world. Live, she simply cannot be matched in her power and raw talent. Reviews of her 2006 live performances all rave about how "The Queen" is singing better than at any other time in her long, storied career--a career that includes singing with Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Willie Dixon, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Robert Plant and every other imaginable legend. She's performed in clubs, festivals and concert halls all over the world, played for two presidents, and even lent her voice and her likeness (as an animated bear) to the PBS children's television program Arthur. Over the course of her almost 50-year career, Taylor has received just about every award the blues world has to offer and then some. She's received Grammy nominations for seven of her last eight Alligator albums, and she won a Grammy in 1984. In 2004 she was presented with the National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment For The Arts. She holds 25 Blues Music Awards (more than any other blues artist - male or female). On March 3, 1993, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley honored Taylor with a Legend Of The Year Award, and declared "Koko Taylor Day" throughout Chicago. In 1998, Chicago Magazine named her "Chicagoan Of The Year," and in 1999, Taylor was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall Of Fame. See more