B.B. King – Blues Is King – MCA Records MCAD-31368

For decades, B.B. King was certainly the most visible, persuasive, and widely recognized blues musician on the planet in large part because of his unending touring schedule (many years over 300 shows annually), plus due to his enormously accepted 1970 achievement “The Thrill Is Gone,” a recorded blues benchmark that endures as eminently identifiable with The King Of The Blues, a pillar of blues perfection even these 54 years down the road.  Until this blues masterpiece realized its noble record chart ranking, the blues bore a stance mainly as a musical style accepted and appreciated, on a whole, by Blacks and spheres of young White fans.

There are abundant “live” B.B. King assemblages available, including certain believed to be the pinnacle statements of a “live” King show, chiefly among them Live At The Regal, Live At Cook County Jail, and the set I still find as the best, United Recorders 1972 (Broadcasting Radio Records BRR6012CD). 

However, sifting through the totality of accessible King “live” offerings, I’ve also always been heavily biased toward Blues Is King, as it gives its listeners, I believe, a most faithful picture of King at his peak in his performing element.  Next to the United Recorders 1972 set, Blues Is King places a strong second place in the annals of all the “live” B.B. King recordings, in my assessment.

To have been at this performance!  Originally released in the U.S. in 1967 on the BluesWay label  as a 10-song collection, and then as the 12-cut outing in 1987 on MCA Records for our purposes here, King is found here as a fully-realized bluesman and entertainer, powerfully forging connections with his audience members at a Chicago venue where the overall tenor of the evening was one going to church, with King preaching his tales of life’s experiences, highs and lows, to an eager congregation, one that reveled in his blues evangelism, and in kind conveyed their depth of feelings right back at him.

King is zealous with his vocals, and cutting via his guitar.  The results appeared quite liberating to his flock, and this blues document stands as a highpoint of blues drama and wonder.

No matter how much “live” B.B. King music resides within your blues collection, and without a doubt there is much to choose from, you need to find shelf space for this astounding set.  Simply, this is a recording that situates itself as imperative in its prominence.  It is one of those blues soundtracks that tells me yet again me why I stay thrilled by the blues.

Essential!