The History of the Blues in 50 Guitar Riffs

The internet is a great place to be.

I found this great ass-kickin' video, which shows Ivan Milenkovic playing famous blues musicians riffs (short repeated musical phrase), 50 of them to be exact (!) detailing the major movers of the blues genre, from Robert Johnson to Muddy Waters to SRV and almost everyone in between. It tells the story of how the music developed from it's simple country roots to the more complex rock sound of today.

It just shows you how much the blues has contributed to Western music.

They start from the 20's-40's with acoustic Delta and Country blues, to the 50's Chicago blues, 60's and 70's blues / blues rock, 80's revival, and contemporary 90's and 00's. That's a huge history right there.

The full setlist is after the jump; so if you have 12 minutes to spare, you will not be dissapointed.

1. Black Snake Moan - Blind Lemon Jefferson - 1927
2. Matchbox Blues - Blind Lemon Jefferson - 1927
3. Sittin' on Top of the World - Mississippi Sheiks - 1930 
4. Devil Got My Woman - Skip James - 1931
5. The Angel's Message to Me - Reverend Gary Davis - 1935
6. Crossroads Blues - Robert Johnson - 1936
7. Sweet Home Chicago - Robert Johnson - 1937
8. Key to the Highway - Big Bill Broonzy - 1941
9. Boogie Chillen' - John Lee Hooker - 1948
10. Baby, Please Don't Go - Lightnin' Hopkins - 1948
11. Rollin' Stone - Muddy Waters - 1950
12. Rollin' & Tumblin' - Muddy Waters - 1950
13. Dust my Broom - Elmore James - 1951
14. Mannish Boy - Muddy Waters - 1955
15. Need Your Love so Bad - Little Willie John - 1955
16. Smoke Stack Lightnin' - Howlin' Wolf - 1956
17. Mojo Hand - Lightnin' Hopkins - 1960
18. Tobacco Road - John Loudermilk - 1960
19. Hideaway - Freddie King - 1960
20. Boom Boom - John Lee Hooker - 1961
21. Little Red Rooster - Howlin' Wolf - 1961
22. Stone Crazy - Buddy Guy - 1962
23. Homesick's Shuffle - Homesick James - 1964
24. John Henry - Mississippi Fred McDowell - 1966
25. Born Under a Bad Sign - Albert King - 1967
26. Red House - Jimi Hendrix - 1967
27. Oh, Pretty Woman - Albert King 1967
28. Jumper on the Line - RL Burnside 1967
29. Crosscut Saw - Albert King 1967
30. The Thrill is Gone - BB King 1969
31. Killing Floor - Albert King - 1969
32. Taylor's Rock - Hound Dog Taylor - 1971
33. La Grange - ZZ Top - 1973
34. Cradle Rock - Rory Gallagher - 1973
35. Sweet Home Chicago - Blues Brothers - 1980
36. Bad to the Bone - George Thorogood - 1982
37. Rood Mood - Stevie Ray Vaughan - 1983
38. Pride and Joy - Stevie Ray Vaughan - 1983
39. Texas Flood - Stevie Ray Vaughan - 1983
40. Born Under a Bad Sign - Robben Ford - 1988
41. See the Light - Jeff Healey - 1988
42. Oh Pretty Woman - Gary Moore - 1990
43. Damn Right I Got the Blues - Buddy Guy - 1991
44. Layla Unplugged - Eric Clapton - 1992
45. He Don't Play Nothing But the Blues - Robben Ford - 1993
46. Riding With the King - Eric Clapton & BB King - 2000
47. Ball and Biscuit - The White Stripes - 2002
48. Cut My Wings - Seasick Steve - 2006
49. Ballad of John Henry - Joe Bonamassa - 2009
50. Tedeschi Trucks Band - Come See About Me - 2012