SRV once said: Let us hope that the music is taken seriously, you know? That doesn't mean it can't be fun, but it doesn't mean it can just be skimmed over and called "the blues" because it's got three chords, and it's in so-and-so key, and it's the speed, you know? (Laughs) There's too many thangs going on in life that are hard to deal with, or hard to look at. That's what the blues is about. It's about, as far as I can tell, it's a way to tell somebody what's going on, and by doing that, either whoever is listening to it can relate to what you're saying, because it's the same thang that's happening to them, and as a result they feel better. Or it's worse than what they're going through, so they go, "Whew!" and feel better. Or it's not quite as bad, and then go, "Well, this is WORSE, but at least somebody understands!" and feel better. And then there's the happy side of life, you know, when that part's over! And that's blues, too, you know, because you grew from it!
That's Stevie in a nutshell, the greatness is for everyone to see.