Peter Frampton is an English-American guitarist, singer and songwriter who rose to prominence as a member of The Herd and Humble Pie.

You may (depending on your age) know him better for his success as a solo artist, and his breakthrough album, Frampton Comes Alive! (1976), which spawned several hit singles and went 8× Platinum United States.

He has also worked with various acts such as Ringo Starr, the Who's John Entwistle, David Bowie, and both Matt Cameron and Mike McCready of Pearl Jam.

Frampton is best known for hit songs like "Show Me the Way", "Baby, I Love Your Way", "Do You Feel Like We Do", and "I'm in You" but I'm guessing that this is what he does for fun. It's amazing how many guitarists, once established, circle back to the blues.

His career, though, has not been without its setbacks. Frampton suffered a near-fatal car accident in the Bahamas in 1978 that marked the end of his prolific period and the beginning of a long fallow period where he was less successful than previously. He returned to the studio in 1979 to record the album Where I Should Be.

In 1980, his album Rise Up was released to promote his tour in Brazil, although he suffered another serious setback that year when all his guitars were thought destroyed in a cargo plane crash that killed four people. Among the instruments he lost was the black Les Paul Custom which he had named "Phenix" (pictured on the cover of Frampton Comes Alive) given to him by Mark Mariana and first used on the night of the recording of the Humble Pie live album Performance, and which he had used all through his early solo career.  The guitar was actually recovered and returned to him in December 2011.

Back to this album, though, All Blues is an all-covers collection of Frampton’s favourite blues (although he stretches the definition of "Blues" quite a way) classics which shows off his prowess on guitar. He tracked the album live in his own studio in Nashville with his mighty road band that includes Adam Lester (guitar/vocals), Rob Arthur (keyboards/guitar/vocals), and Dan Wojciechowski (drums). Peter also called upon some of his extra-talented mates for guest appearances, so you'll be treated to contributions from Kim Wilson, Larry Carlton, Sonny Landreth, and Steve Morse.

Peter Frampton explains, “I have always loved to play the blues. When we formed Humble Pie, the first material we played together was just that. For the last two summers, I had been playing a handful of blues numbers every night on stage with the Steve Miller Band. I enjoyed this immensely and it gave me the idea of doing an ‘All Blues’ album live in the studio with my band.”

The songs here are pulled from the canon of blues and jazz that include well-loved numbers from Willie Dixon, Miles Davis, Slim Harpo, B.B. King, Hoagy Carmichael, and others.

Sadly, the record is a farewell of sorts to his fans, as Peter was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease Inclusion Body Myositis (IBM), a progressive muscle disorder characterized by muscle inflammation, weakness, and atrophy. This will affect his ability to play the guitar.

On 6 August 2022, Frampton came out of retirement for one night to perform during "Buddy Holly's 85th Birthday Celebration" at the Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences in Lubbock, Texas. "I sat down for the first time ever on stage," he told Guitar World later. "And it felt very comfortable. Better than leaning on a piano."

As of 2023, Frampton embarked on a tour entitled, "Never Say Never". Frampton has noted that he didn't expect to be able to play again as a result of his diagnosis. He has stated that while his fingers don't work as well as they used to, they worked better than he thought they would — citing it as reason enough to keep doing what he loved on stage.

Rock on Peter.

So, something a bit different, and the sound of an artist having fun, which is always a good thing.

As an added bonus, here's one of my personal Desert Island Greatest Pop Singles Of All Time Discs.

The Herd (Peter Frampton, Andy Bown, Gary Taylor and Andrew Steele) - From The Underworld

Produced by Steve Rowland (Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich and Family Dogg).