Under the guiding hand of Executive Producer Marin Scorsese, "The Blues" is a seven-part television series of personal and impressionistic films viewed through the lens of seven world-famous directors who share a passion for the music.

The blues is a powerfully influential music genre; an expression of the African-American experience that speaks of universal emotions. Countless of the world's most celebrated artists have credited the blues with influencing their music. In this musical journey, we are able not only to trace the actual journey of the music from Africa, across America, and to Europe, but also trace the effects of the blues on all popular music. It can be argued that no other type of music has had a more everlasting influence on today's artists than the blues. As Willie Dixon so aptly said, "The blues are the roots; everything else is the fruits."