The Hunter in Bloomington, MN

Released just a few years after the epochal
Phil Spector
-produced
River Deep Mountain High
and close to six years before their breakup,
Ike and Tina Turner
's
Hunter
often gets lost in the duo's long and stormy existence. And while the album certainly is not on the same plane as the
Spector
album or later work like
Workin' Together
,
still boasts several fine
blues
workouts in the inimitably electrifying
Ike
and
Tina
mode. The
Stax
sound figures prominently here, with producer
Bob Krasnow
(
Captain Beefheart
) keeping things nice and uncluttered to better frame
's intense vocal workouts. Maybe not the best first-disc choice, but still a worthwhile title for
fans. ~ Stephen Cook