Product Description Drawn from studio sessions, live performances and rare radio and television broadcasts, these three discs (and a special DVD EP) chronicle the brilliant and unbridled career of the uniquely gifted guitar slinger - from unheard early session to the last shows at Alpine Valley and everything in between! Over 4 hours of music, 54 total tracks, 36 unissued performances. .com This career-spanning box of three CDs and a DVD celebrates a legacy that looms larger than that of any blues-rocking guitarist since Jimi Hendrix. Despite fears that a series of posthumous releases had depleted the Stevie Ray Vaughan vaults, previously unreleased gems dominate the selection. Highlights extend from Vaughan's swaggering apprenticeship with Paul Ray and the Cobras to slash-and-burn concert performances from the final month of his life. There are obligatory dips into the songbooks of Hendrix and Buddy Guy, appearances on MTV Unplugged and Austin City Limits, and instrumental interplay with brother Jimmie Vaughan and tourmate Jeff Beck. Though his guitar never loses its flamethrower intensity, the set documents his progression from the showoff licks of the young "Stevie Rave On" into a fully rounded artistry of soulful depth. --Don McLeese
J**G
What can you say about Stevie Ray Vaughan?
If you don't know how to rock or roll I suggest you get this album and find out what it's all about. The late great Stevie Ray Vaughan lives on through his unbelievable guitar works and loving beautiful kind spirit. He's in guitar heaven for sure. May God rest his soul and give him the love that he deserves!
M**L
MIND BLOWING ! ! !
Any body who ever had the privilege to see Stevie Ray Vaughan in concert will agree with me the man didnt play guitar , he was a human guitar who channeled music through his soul to the audience a unbelievable musician of superior talent a truely gifted guitarist,...THE MUSICIANS MUSICIAN , Eric Clapton publicly stated that when he heard Stevie Ray playing on the radio while driving he was BLOWN AWAY ! And had never heard any body like it and had to know who Stevie was because he didnt know ,dont just believe my review , DO YOUR HOME WORK !...............I saw Stevie and Double Trouble at the Sydney Opera House in Australia back in the late 1980s this is were I live and '' HE BLEW THE HOUSE APART ! ! ! '' ......PEOPLE STILL TALK ABOUT IT TO THIS DAY ! , I was going to go to work that night but my best friend rang me and said he had tickets he had won on the radio and I was going , that is a night I will remember till the day I die , So my final words to you are , if your a Stevie Ray Vaughan fan , you must have this in your collection a collection of rare and live tracks presented very nicely indeed with a book of rare photos plus a DVD and three CDs of music ...............So as we say in Australia , this album is Platinum 5 Star , GOD BLESS YOU STEVIE ! !.........................Im sure you are on stage in heaven blowing it apart as well ,.... PEACE BE WITH YOU ALL ! ................MICHAEL ALLAN STARR ,CENTRAL COAST ,NSW AUSTRALIA 2014.
C**T
Amazed at how moving the fairly thick booklet was.
I really couldn't put it down. Reports from those close to him and, clearly, deeply affected by his tragic passing particularly after he overcame substance abuse. Looks like this was a guy who reached out to those in his life and lifted them up whenever he could. I'm so glad I got to see him 3 times, all in San Diego, Del Mar fair 86, Sea World parking lot! and with Beat Farmers opening for them at SDSU around 1989. Could have seen him at the Sports Arena with Joe Cocker but tickets were $25 and we just could not imagine paying that price. He also played glorious snug in the (Balboa) park Starlight outdoor theatre but the wife was about 4 days from giving birth. I thought about going but...figured out in less than a second, that, ahem, i would not be going to the show. She and I enjoyed the other three shows together. After the Beat Farmers were done the outdoor night stage was dark at SDSU ampitheatre and out of nowhere, with no one on stage, we hear a single note from a guitar and we all instantly recognize it as Stevie. Have you ever heard 500 people gasp? We did. A remarkable moment in time that we will never forget. There's enough alternate versions and live and so forth on this set to warrant getting it. Don't be shy. Pony up. Find it at a relatively low price and jump on it. You, a SRV fan, will not be sorry.
M**3
Chronological history of Stevie Ray's fantastic blues
I bought this, my second copy, so that my wife (a piano and percussion major in college, plus her Master's) could enjoy the 3 CDs of Stevie Ray in her car. She has grown to appreciate SRV to the point that she thinks he is amazing. "Couldn't Stand The Weather" has an unusual insertion of 2/4 time in the midst of the song. It made it onto his commercially available CDs, unlike most of the previously unreleased cuts. The inclusion of early recordings (the earliest being 1977) in this set makes it even better, as you hear the young guitar slinger of the blues mature in his playing (and in his life when he gave up his alcohol and cocaine on October 13, 1986, although its effects never showed to me in the commercial CDs) until his death in August 1990 in a helicopter accident in Wisconsin. This set is far and above any other SRV "collection," even better than "Stevie Ray Vaughan, Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues (Series)." It can be listened to over and over, due to there being 3 CDs and such powerful playing. Out of all of the cuts, "Thunderbird" (1977) is my least favorite although you can hear some of SRV's Texas shuffle playing in its earliest form. The first CD is Stevie Ray Vaughn prior to his signing a recording contract in 1983 as a result of his appearance in Montreaux in 1982, with the second and third CD providing some marvelous cuts like "Crossfire" and "The House is Rockin'". So many favorites here that I can recommend this to anyone who loves the blues and/or Stevie Ray who is a guitar master of the blues. The inclusion of a DVD and the booklet of photos and history is pure icing on the cake! Buy this one!
R**E
Wonderful collection by a master!!
I really am impressed by how much live material is on here. Great overview of all of his music chosen with care. A true gift of love!!
R**N
PRECIOUS STEVIE RAY VAUGHN MEMORABILIA
For those of us who loved Stevie Ray Vaughan this is a precious item. It delivers music never released before and the booklet that comes with it is something that l I willl read over and over for the rest of my life. His short career and life had such impact on all of his fans who no doubt shed many a tear on the day of his passing and from time to time when remembering him. This man was special as a musical artist and his soul and his respect for life was a great loss. However items like this set allows me to go back in time and enjoy and remember his life. Chris Leighton told a story of a man coming up to him and introducing himself and said he knew who they were and that while he never cared much for blues music he saw them on TV once and said the day he heard of the death of Stevie he cried and did not know why.
A**Y
A lasting legacy of a true legend
Now THIS is a cut above the rest when it comes to a box set for presentation. Modelled on SRVs battered rear of his iconic No1 stratocaster, VERY original with high expectations of what is inside.What do we get from the record company (with Jimmie keeping an eye on the output so as not to tarnish his brothers memory)? Well, quite an impressive selection of music that is somewhat let down by a DVD that seems to have been included as an ‘afterthought’.We get a fantastic booklet with snippets, photographs, testaments and a poignant last word from Jimmie that is very sincere and touching. You have to buy the box set if you want to read what he says, but its very moving.The three discs of music are a revelation, just so damned good with an impressive selection that steers away from the norm, with a variety of studio and live tracks both electric and acoustic that showcases Stevies exceptional talent.We get sections of each album as well as some stunning live work on all three discs, including the famous MTV ‘Unplugged’ performance with SRV on fire throughout. We get some of Stevies early work with The Thunderbirds, we get some of Stevies posthumous work he recorded with Jimmie. We get a stunning live performance with Jeff Beck which is fantastic, and as a Brit, I am happy to admit Stevie wipes the floor with Jeff here, no mean feat!The live performances of Crossfire, and in particular, Tightrope leave you shocked. I have never heard a better performance of Tightrope, and I have heard some excellent bootlegs from the ‘In Step’ tour. It is pure genius.However, try as I might, I cannot play the final three live tracks on Disc 3, these were recorded at his last shows at Alpine Valley, Winconsin, and it hard to listen to, knowing he would be dead hours later.Now comes the ‘only’ shortcoming in this review, the bonus live DVD. It was recorded in Austin in 1989 for a TV special. We get ‘an extra track’ never broadcast. Stevie plays a blinder the first few songs, but as an artist ‘feeds’ from a live audience to take his own performance up a level, Stevie seems to realise the audience is just sitting there, talking to themselves, walking off to get refreshments, clapping out of time, absolutely NO crowd adulation considering this was their hometown hero returning. I know it was a selected TV audience, but even so, these were Austin residents! I also am slightly miffed we don’t get the WHOLE show on DVD, just five tracks, yet the other songs performed are readily available on You Tube (Crossfire, Leave My Girl Alone, Tightrope). However, one of the highlights of this footage is SRV breaking a string on his performance of ‘Look At Little Sister’ and changing his guitar mid-song without missing a beat, it has to be seen to be believed.I would have been more appreciative if we got the MTV performance or even some recorded In Step tour footage, again, available if you know where to look!Overall, an excellent offering which gives a new listener an insight into the precocious and exceptional talent this humble and genial man was.RIP Stevie.
R**S
its worth it
great value.
G**A
Four Stars
Very nice
D**A
Reliable
Good condition as advertised and DVD worked.
R**R
Solid Real Value (SRV)
A pleasent surprise in this fairly complete box set of SRV's works. Disk one was particularly enjoyable in its attention to his early works and never before released songs were very much appreciated by a serious fan.