Hans Theessink - Hard Road Blues (Remastered) (2025) [Hi-Res]

Newly remastered! "I recorded HARD ROAD BLUES in 2 nights (October 6th-7th, 1994) in the OPUS Recorder Music Studio in Austria in one go and all analog. It was quite a meditative affair, recorded very well by sound engineer Andreas Fabianek. We used a vocal mic, a guitar mic, and a few other mics to capture the natural sound of the room. The recording sounds very organic; you can feel every movement and breathing and you can literally hear the fingers dancing on the fretboard.

The record was first released in 1994 on vinyl, CD and cassette. HARD ROAD BLUES has been highly acclaimed by fans and press alike and has sold very well. If a copy of this pressing ever turns up in good condition, it would cost quite a bit of money.


Unfortunately, the fire devil struck at the German pressing plant - many masters and matrices were destroyed; including those of HARD ROAD BLUES. A subsequent pressing was therefore impossible. But during Corona 2020 I had a lot of time to look through my stock of recordings and I also found the HARD ROAD BLUES master tapes. That's when the idea came up to re-release this record.


I contacted Christoph Stickl from CSMastering. Christoph had already done an excellent remastering of my 1987 "Baby Wants To Boogie" LP and he was therefore predestined to carry out this rather delicate work for HARD ROAD BLUES as well. He reviewed the tapes, which after all, were already 27 years old, and said he'd have to "bake" them in the oven to play them and start remastering. Luckily the tapes were still in good shape and so Christoph was able to do the remastering without interrupting the AAA chain.

“This recording deserves a spot in the stores next to the work of the men who inspired it”. (Acoustic Guitar, CD hitlist, USA, 1997)

"This sparse guitar-and-voice production is immediately engaging. Theessink plays with a strong groove and excellent tone and sings in a deep, resonant voice. A majority of the songs are originals that show his love of traditional blues forms. This recording deserves a spot in the stores next to the work of the men who inspired it." (James Jensen, Acoustic Guitar, CD hitlist, USA, 1997)

"The arrangements are sparse but very rich in dynamics and highlights his emotional directness and superb phrasing in both his guitar playing and vocal delivery. Theessink has a total grasp on the loping, pulsing rhythm that propels classic Delta blues music. Songwriting craftsmanship is amply displayed in „Big Bill’s Guitar“, where bittersweet reminiscences of life events linked to distant experiences of Big Bill Broonzy are artfully fit over a traditional blues framework." (Andy Allen, Dirty Linen, USA, July 1996)

"Let one more myth die quickly; you don’t have to be American to play the blues. Hans Theessink is in that select group of artists such as John Hammond, Paul Geremia and Rory Block, whom all share the responsibility for preserving and enriching the styles of the old masters." (Reflex Magazine, USA)

"Theessink helps us realize how wealthy our American musical heritage truly is – via Vienna! (Northwest Arkansas Times, USA)

“Hard Road Blues”, a mix of originals and respectful versions of songs from founding fathers like Blind Willie McTell and Mance Lipscomb, shows Theessink’s deep and original understanding of the country blues. As songs like the original “Minnibelle” and the traditional “Two Trains” show, Theessink’s interest in the genre arises not from a prurient or nostalgic attraction to its exotic subject matter, but rather from a genuine fascination with the playing and singing of its practitioners. “Minnibelle” achieves an authentic sound without resorting to lyrical cliches or imitations of ethnic speech: The authenticity lies in Theessink’s grasp of the deep structure of the form. “Big Bill’s Guitar”, a paean to Big Bill Broonzy, skillfully interweaves elements of Broonzy’s style – his thwacking, empathic fingerpicking and his “talking blues” storytelling style – into a song about Theessink’s inspiration. Lipscomb’s “Sugar Babe” and Theessink’s more interpretive version of Blind Lemmon Jefferson’s “One Kind Favor” showcase his mastery of the strange and diverse guitar styles of his forebears. Running like a golden thread through all of Theessink’s work – is his inspired and accomplished musicianship as both guitarist and vocalist." (PC, Sing Out, USA)

Hans Theessink, guitars, vocals

Digitally remastered by Christoph Stickl von CSMastering