Although I consider myself more than a casual blues fan, I must confess that until very recently I was ignorant of the work of guitarist/singer Steve Arvey. I guess I need to get out more, because Arvey has been an active part of the Chicago Music scene for over 20 years. After getting his first break as a bass player in Bo Diddley’s band, he has gone on to work with blues luminaries like Hubert Sumlin, Homesick James, and Jimmy Rogers. He also spent a decade as the leader of his own band, West Side Heat. Arvey’s latest release is Best From The Vault, which is a compilation of recordings he has done over the past 14 years. You might call it a "greatest hits" sort of package. The CD is an intriguing overview of a body of work that invites the listener to look closer and investigate more.

One of the most interesting things about Arvey is that he plays the blues as well acoustically as he does electrified. In a market like Chicago, which is overrun with electric blues guitarists, it is a refreshing treat to hear someone with real competence in country/acoustic blues. Arvey covers Robert Johnson’s "If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day" and Howlin’ Wolf’s "Red Rooster" teamed with slide guitar ace Kraig Kenning and delivers a funky, down-home country sound. It’s too bad the acoustic side of the blues tradition isn’t seen more around town. Arvey does get electric, however, and much of the album is music he recorded with various lineups of West Side Heat. Five of the bands’ original blues/rock songs are included here and run from the good-time groove of "Stranded" to the heavy funk of "Love Ain’t Easy" to the straight-ahead "Right Place, Wrong Time". The grooves of the various tunes are rendered well and the song structures are varied enough to keep it lively.