Not sure there's a simple answer to that, Mindfulness. There are different types of blues, so perhaps you should start by asking what kind of sound appeals to you. Here are five approximate categories/answers:-
1. authentic, traditional, acoustic: the gentle Elizabeth Cotton (
https://www.musicbanter.com/country-...th-cotten.html ) or the harsher sound of Son House
2. early electric: Psy-Fi's excellent rec of
Moanin' in the Moonlight above
3. dirty driving elec blues: R.L. Burnside:-
4. blues that's been tidied up for a more pop/rock market: Texas Flood by Stevie Ray Vaughan, which is one of the most mentioned albums in this thread: clearly a starting point for many people. The Brit alternative might be Fleetwood Mac's
Greatest Hits ( as per my post #24)
5. Extended blues jams: You'll need a couple of hours for
Paul Butterfield Live at the Troubador , so here's just a taster:-
This list includes some of my favourites, and somehow fails to mention the whole Muddy Waters/ BB King /Eric Clapton school of blues, which, to my embarrassment, I don't know much about. For me, they are flawed by having a guitar sound that is too "plinky" and is not sad enough for the blues, but that's just me.