'An impressive list of contributors ... Besides being rich with biographical entries, this Encyclopedia also includes entries for important record labels, instruments, styles, geographic regions, aspects of the business, and additional topics that have been lacking in other encyclopedic efforts ... This is a valuable addition to the reference shelf of blues literature ... Highly recommended.' - Choice
'This two-volume A-to-Z set effectively categorizes the history of the blues. A great benefit is that the book features blues artists from all time periods, and the number of obscure blues artists listed in remarkable. Essential for any library collecting the history of the blues.' — Library Journal
'In this two-volume Encyclopedia, Komara provides about 2100 entries, both brief and extensive, on the blues, its history, culture, roots, contemporary styles, artists, historians, songwriters, record labels, forms, characteristics, instruments, songs, regions, historiography, music business, and related forms. Discographies and bibliographiesfor each entry are included, as well as a thematic list of entries and an index in each volume.' —Reference & Research Book News
"A great deal of useful material is enclosed within the two sets of covers. It spreads a broader and deeper net than the late Sheldon Harris’s Blues Who’s Who (1979), going beyond individual musicians, and it includes broader headings such as regions/states; musical styles and techniques; instruments; points of cultural interest; historiography; record labels; related art forms; specific 'major'songs. These longer entries are quite good, well-researched and well-written, worth knowing about and using." —Peter B. Lowry, Western Folklore, volume 68, nos. 2-3 (2009)
