Blues Masters - The Essential Blues Collection Vol.1-15 (1993)

Spanning 15 volumes while covering pretty much the entire history of the genre, the Rhino Blues Masters series is the one blues collection that both neophytes and long-time fans can heartily embrace. Subtitled 'the essential blues collection, ' it is all of that and more. With each volume devoted to the diverse styles the music entails, the series boasts both thoughtful selection and excellent sound and annotation, utilizing some of the best authorities on the subject. While the compilation form has existed as long as the microgroove long playing record, this is the first time that a comprehensive series has been launched, licensing from a myriad of other labels. While other record companies tend to keep the best material for their own anthologies, Rhino went all out in this endeavor and many of the important tracks in this series are seeing their first issuance in the compilation format (Robert Johnson, for example), while others are being reissued for the first time since the advent of the 78-rpm phonograph record. All in all, a series that will stand for decades to come as an essential building block for anyone's blues collection.
Bio from allmusic.com