Albert+king

Recorded live in Chicago in 1977, this captures a a brief set by each of these blues legends. The Albert King set finds him in excellent form, tearing up his guitar on "Born Under a Bad Sign" and "I Worked Hard," and turning in fine vocals on "The Very Thought of You" and the title track, here mistitled as "When You Down." John Lee Hooker's set is a typical boogie-infested one, with solid support from a small combo doing a nice job following his idiosyncratic timing. Everything stays pretty much uptempo, with the exception of "Serves You Right to Suffer" (here mistitled as "Serves Me Right") and "Crawlin' King Snake." Actually nice live sets from both performers, and a decent addition to either artist's discography.

Recorded at a single show on May 29, 1969, in Madison, WI's 400-seat club The Cue, these tapes were first released in 2003. The performance finds Albert King, who had just turned 46, arguably at his career peak. Even though there are just five tracks, it's enough to understand why he remains one of electric postwar blues' most seminal figures. Since this shares no songs with Live Wire/Blues Power, which was recorded a year earlier, and features concert versions of "Crosscut Saw," "Personal Manager," and "As the Years Go Passing By" from his legendary Born Under a Bad Sign album, it's an important document. King's in excellent form too, ripping into the tunes with edgy energy, even if many of his solos and licks will be familiar to blues listeners…

Atlantic's original vinyl edition of this was comprised of Albert's Stax singles – a few from Born Under a Bad Sign, along with "Cold Feet," "I Love Lucy" (two of King's patented monologues), and the beautiful "You're Gonna Need Me." Great stuff. Even greater, though, is the CD reissue, which includes those singles (which didn't appear on any other LPs) and all of Born Under a Bad Sign. Need I say more?

While this is not nearly as essential as some other Stax wax, it has a loose, raffish appeal and never falls into the murk of a boring super-session chopsfest. These guys were simply havin' fun with some standard soul/R&B covers (e.g. "What'd I Say," "Baby What You Want Me To Do") and some wide-open originals, kickin' back with some serious riffin'. Cropper proffers his usual intense, simplistic soloing, while King swoops and dives in a stringbending fury. The added plus is the silky smooth near-falsetto of Pop Staples, whose vocal on "Tupelo" is suitably eerie…

This is a live recording from the City Blues legend Albert King in L.A. Many great artists were presented there: Koko Taylor, Clifton Chenier and many others. He played some of his standards and the people liked that! A mix of jazz blues!

Recorded for a television program of the same name back in 1983, In Session bills itself as the only known recording of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King, who was Vaughan's idol and mentor, playing together. That leads to some heavy expectations, which fortunately aren't disappointed, at least if you aren't expecting the customary over-the-top performances Vaughan was famous for. His playing here is much more laid-back and controlled, which is actually a recommendation–the stylistic similarities between teacher and student are that much more pronounced. The songs are mostly King concert staples, with the exception of "Pride and Joy"; highlights include the T-Bone Walker classic "Call It Stormy Monday" and one of King's own, "Overall Junction," which features some excellent guitar solo work. The snippets of recorded conversation between songs are interesting curiosities as well.

Live Wire/Blues Power is one of Albert King's definitive albums. Recorded live at the Fillmore Auditorium in 1968, the guitarist is at the top of his form throughout the record – his solos are intense and piercing. The band is fine, but ultimately it's King's show – he makes Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man" dirty and funky and wrings out all the emotion from "Blues at Sunrise."
AllMusic Review by Thom Owens

These 17 tunes come from King's most fertile period, his 1966-68 tenure at Memphis's Stax Records. Stax chief Jim Stewart had been reluctant to sign blues artists because he felt straight blues wouldn't mesh with Stax's patented Memphis soul. Ironically, the fusion of King's sharp guitar wails with the dynamic rhythms of Booker T. & the MGs - the Stax house band - was what set King apart from other bluesmen. The unique blend produced classic after classic: Booker T. Jones' rolling piano propels "Laundromat Blues." Al Jackson's drum shuffle supports "Crosscut Saw." The driving horns of Andrew Love, Wayne Jackson, and Joe Arnold accent "Born Under a Bad Sign." King's ripe and mellow vocals are a perfect match for the soul-drenched music while his dramatic string bends leap out.