Albert "The Iceman" Collins

Instruments: electric guitar "The Master of the Telecaster", vocals

Lifespan:1932-1994

Style synopsis: The "Houston Twister's" style was more an all out attack than anything else. His raw intensity combined with an awesome stage presence made him a must see when he came to town. His guitar style is not one easily copied. The "Iceman" utilized non-standard tuning (usually a minor one) and the capo to really confuse budding blues guitarists trying to learn his songs from recordings (believe me I tried it). The Guitar World of July 1992 and Guitar Legends "Blues Power" in 1994 have super articles covering his specific guitar techniques.

Representative Recordings: I started listening to "Mister Freeze" in the late seventies when I first moved to Texas and heard him play at a local small blues bar. My favorite recordings are:

(1) Showdown (1985, Alligator) - his Grammy winner with Robert Cray and Johnny Copeland
(2) Cold Snap (1986, Allicgator) - with Jimmie McGriff on the Hammond B-3
(3) Iceman (1991, Virgin Records) -with most of the tracks written by Gwen Collins

Contributor: Mike "Mojo" Sutton(msutton@iadfw.net)
Contributor's comments: As I wrote this page I listened to some of my old Albert Collins tapes. I have decided to take them out to the car, so that I will listen to them again and again. He combined so many different types of blues music when he played. You can hear the influence of his cousin Lightnin' Hopkins and John Lee Hooker in his non-traditional upward picking sweep along with the blues runs of T-Bone Walker. He also loved to use those horn sections and back-up female singers. Was he influenced by James Brown too?