As one of America's first great white blues guitarists, Michael Bloomfield earned his reputation on the strength of his work in the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. His expressive, fluid solo lines and prodigious technique graced many other projects, most notably Bob Dylan's earliest electric forays. Uncomfortable with the reverential treatment afforded a guitar hero, Bloomfield tended to shy away from the spotlight after spending just a few years in it; he maintained a lower-visibility career during the '70s due to his distaste for fame and his worsening drug problems, which claimed his life in 1981. During the late '70s, Bloomfield recorded for several smaller labels (including Takoma), usually in predominantly acoustic settings.