| Blues Is King | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 1967 | |||
| Recorded | November 5, 1966 | |||
| Venue | International Club, Chicago | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Length | 40:27 | |||
| Label | BluesWay | |||
| Producer | Johnny Pate, Louis Zito | |||
| B.B. King chronology | ||||
| ||||
Blues Is King is a live album by blues musician, B.B. King. It was recorded in Chicago in 1966 and released by the BluesWay label in 1967.
 | This section contains overly lengthy quotations for an encyclopedic entry.(March 2020) |
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [2] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings |  [3] |
A staff review by AllMusic commented:
By 1967, King had refined his singing and guitar style (which were always intertwined) to a fine point. What was just beginning to emerge during this period was King the showman, the singer with a story to tell his audience; sometimes a sad story, sometimes an angry one, occasionally even a downright mean one. Nowhere was this more apparent than in live performance. Here he's captured in concert in Chicago, home of the blues and the ideal place to testify to the congregation ... B.B. lets his audience in on the ups and downs of romance in no uncertain terms, both through his impassioned vocals and characteristically stinging guitar. The effect is both cathartic and awe-inspiring. [1]
The album title also influenced the Marshall Crenshaw song of the same name. [4]
Details are taken from the original BluesWay LP and may differ from other sources. [5]
Side one
Side two
Bonus tracks on 1992 See For Miles CD Blues is King... Plus [6]
Taken from the BluesWay single 45-61012.
Bonus tracks on 2012 and 2015 Japanese CD reissues [7] [8]
"Goin' Down Slow" and the reconstructed full version of "Sweet Sixteen" were previously issued on King of the Blues and come from the same live performance as the Blues is King album. (An edit of the recording without the opening guitar solo and the ending was released on the compilation His Best – The Electric B. B. King, for the box set the master of this version was combined with a vinyl rip of the BluesWay single.)
Peter Allen Greenbaum, known professionally as Peter Green, was an English blues rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. As the founder of Fleetwood Mac, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Green founded Fleetwood Mac in 1967 after a stint in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and quickly established the new band as a popular live act in addition to a successful recording act, before departing in 1970. Green's songs, such as "Albatross", "Black Magic Woman", "Oh Well", "The Green Manalishi " and "Man of the World", appeared on singles charts, and several have been adapted by a variety of musicians.
Arthur Alexander was an American country soul songwriter and singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for AllMusic, said Alexander was a "country-soul pioneer" and that, though largely unknown, "his music is the stuff of genius, a poignant and deeply intimate body of work on par with the best of his contemporaries." Alexander's songs were covered by such stars as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Otis Redding, Tina Turner, Pearl Jam, and Jerry Lee Lewis.
The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack is the 1968 debut album by the English psychedelic rock and progressive rock group the Nice. It is considered one of the first albums in the latter genre.
Marshall Howard Crenshaw is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and guitarist best known for hit songs such as "Someday, Someway," a US Top 40 hit in 1982, "Cynical Girl," and "Whenever You're on My Mind." He is also the co-author of one of the biggest radio hits of the Gin Blossoms, "Til I Hear It From You." His music has roots in classic soul music and Buddy Holly, to whom Crenshaw was often compared in the early days of his career, and whom he portrayed in the 1987 film La Bamba.
"Mystery Train" is a song written and recorded by American blues musician Junior Parker in 1953. Originally performed in the style of a Memphis blues or rhythm and blues tune, it was inspired by earlier songs and later became a popular rockabilly song, as first covered by Elvis Presley, then numerous others.
Born Under a Bad Sign is the second compilation album by American blues musician Albert King, released in 1967 by Stax Records. It features eleven electric blues songs that were recorded from March 1966 to June 1967, throughout five different sessions. King played with two in-house bands: Booker T. & the M.G.'s and the Memphis Horns. Although the album failed to reach any music chart, it did receive positive reviews and is now regarded by critics as one of the greatest blues albums ever made. The guitar playing on Born Under a Bad Sign influenced many guitarists, including Eric Clapton, Mike Bloomfield, Jimi Hendrix, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Born Under a Bad Sign has been recognized by several music institutions, and has been inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame, the Grammy Hall of Fame, and the National Recording Registry.
I'll Play the Blues for You is the seventh studio album by Albert King released in 1972.
Live at the Regal is a 1965 live album by American blues guitarist and singer B.B. King. It was recorded on November 21, 1964, at the Regal Theater in Chicago. The album is widely heralded as one of the greatest blues albums ever recorded and was ranked at number 141 in Rolling Stone's 2003 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, before dropping to number 299 in a 2020 revision. In 2005, Live at the Regal was selected for permanent preservation in the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress in the United States.
Tons of Sobs is the debut studio album by the English rock band Free, released in the UK on 14 March 1969. While the album failed to chart in the UK, it did reach number 197 in the US. Free are cited as one of the definitive bands of the British blues boom of the late 1960s, even though this is the only album of their canon that can strictly be called blues rock. According to group bassist Andy Fraser, the title effectively summed up the album, the album had the band’s first “minor” hit “I’m A Mover” which was released as a single in December of 1968
Mick Weaver is an English session musician, best known for his playing of the Hammond B3 organ, and as an exponent of the blues and funk.
Live at the Apollo is a blues album by B.B. King and the Phillip Morris "Super Band" recorded at the famous Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York. It was awarded the 1992 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album.
"Soul Man" is a 1967 song written and composed by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a number 2 hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave, which consisted of Samuel "Sam" Moore and David "Dave" Prater. In 2019, "Soul Man" was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry as "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress.
Marshall Crenshaw is the debut studio album by American musician Marshall Crenshaw. It was released on April 28, 1982, by Warner Bros. Records. Crenshaw, a performer in the musical Beatlemania, had begun to write songs for the album while staying in New York. The album was recorded with his backing band and producer Richard Gottehrer, engineer Thom Panunzio, and second engineer Jim Ball.
Lucille is the fifteenth album by blues artist B. B. King. It is named for his famous succession of Gibson guitars, currently the Signature ES-355.
Good Evening is a 1989 album by Marshall Crenshaw. Although critically well-received, it failed to chart.
"Soldier of Love ," also known as "Soldiers of Love," is a 1962 song written by Buzz Cason and Tony Moon It was originally recorded by soul artist Arthur Alexander and released as a B-side of the single "Where Have You Been ", which reached #58 in the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1962. The song was later covered by The Beatles during a 1963 session at the BBC, released on the 1994 album Live at the BBC. It was also covered by The Kaisers, Marshall Crenshaw, Pearl Jam, Little Steven, and The Derailers.
King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol. II is a compilation album by American blues musician Robert Johnson, released in 1970 by Columbia Records. In 2003, the album was ranked number 424 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
"Goin' Back" is a song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King in 1966. It describes the loss of innocence that comes with adulthood, along with an attempt, on the part of the singer, to recapture that youthful innocence. The song has been recorded by many artists, including Dusty Springfield, Goldie Zelkowitz, the Byrds, Elkie Brooks, Blerta, Ricky Ross, Marianne Faithfull, Bill Drummond, Nils Lofgren, Freddie Mercury, the Move, the New Seekers, the Pretenders, Diana Ross, Richard Thompson, Phil Collins, The Icicle Works, Bon Jovi, and Bruce Springsteen, as well as by Carole King herself.
Downtown is the third album by singer/songwriter Marshall Crenshaw. Recorded after the relative failure of his album Field Day, Downtown was a departure from his previous albums due to its more rootsy sound.
"Blues Is King" is a 1985 song by American rock musician Marshall Crenshaw. The song was released on his 1985 album Downtown. Originally written as an instrumental titled "Bruce Is King," the song features lyrics inspired by the B.B. King album Blues Is King.