Little Walter – The Best of Little Walter (Chess Acoustic Sounds)

Originally released on Chess Records in 1958, this compilation is stacked with Walter Jacobs' most iconic sides: "Juke" (the only harmonica instrumental to ever top the Billboard R&B chart), "My Babe" (a Willie Dixon-penned classic), "Blues With a Feeling," "Off the Wall," and more. These tracks didn't just set the standard — they became the standard for electric blues harp, influencing everyone from Paul Butterfield to Mick Jagger and beyond. Walter amplified the harmonica — literally-plugging it into a microphone and pushing it through an amp for a dirty, distorted tone that changed the sound of blues forever.