On Halloween 1979, Buddy Guy walked into Condorcet Studio in Toulouse, France with his road band — his brother Phil on rhythm guitar, J.W. Williams on bass, and Ray Allison on drums — and cut one of the fiercest, most unhinged albums of his career. Stone Crazy!, originally released as The Blues Giant on the Isabel label in France and reissued two years later by Alligator in the US, gives about as pure a dose of uncut Guy as one can get. The six tracks include a re-recording of the title track, disguised as “Are You Losing Your Mind” for copyright reasons, but the opening “I Smell A Rat,” nearly seven minutes long and opening with one of the most scorching solos of Guy’s career, sets the tone. (Note: the band was joined by Guy’s longtime touring partner, singer/harmonica player Junior Wells, for the album Pleading The Blues at the same session.)