Track Listing
DISC 1:
1. Miss Martha King - (previously unreleased)
2. She's Dynamite
3. Three O'Clock Blues
4. Please Love Me
5. You Upset Me Baby
6. Everyday I Have the Blues
7. Rock Me Baby
8. Recession Blues
9. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
10. I'm Gonna Sit in 'Til You Give In
11. Blues at Midnight
12. Sneakin' Around
13. My Baby's Comin' Home
14. Slowly Losing My Mind - (previously unreleased)
15. How Blue Can You Get - (previously unreleased)
16. Rockin' Awhile - (previously unreleased)
17. Help the Poor - (previously unreleased)
18. Stop Leadin' Me On - (previously unreleased)
19. Never Trust a Woman - (previously unreleased)
20. Sweet Little Angel
21. All Over Again
22. Sloppy Drunk - (previously unreleased)
23. Don't Answer the Door (Parts 1 & 2)
24. I Done Got Wise
25. Think It Over
26. Gambler's Blues
DISC 2:
1. Goin' Down Slow - (previously unreleased)
2. Tired of Your Jive
3. Sweet Sixteen (Parts 1 & 2) - (previously unreleased)
4. Paying the Cost to Be the Boss
5. I'm Gonna Do What They Do to Me
6. Lucille
7. Watch Yourself
8. You Put It on Me
9. Get Myself Somebody - (previously unreleased)
10. I Want You So Bad
11. Why I Sing the Blues
12. Get Off My Back Woman
13. Please Accept My Love
14. Fools Get Wise - (previously unreleased)
15. No Good
16. So Excited
DISC 3:
1. Thrill Is Gone, The
2. Confessin' the Blues
3. Nobody Loves Me But My Mother
4. Hummingbird - (with Leon Russell/Joe Walsh)
5. Ask Me No Questions
6. Chains and Things - (with Carole King)
7. Eyesight to the Blind - (previously unreleased)
8. Niji Baby - (previously unreleased)
9. Blue Shadows
10. Ghetto Woman - (with Ringo Starr)
11. Ain't Nobody Home
12. I Got Some Help I Don't Need - (previously unreleased)
13. Five Long Years
14. To Know You Is to Love You
15. I Like to Live the Love
16. Don't Make Me Pay For His Mistakes
DISC 4:
1. Let the Good Times Roll - (with Bobby Bland)
2. Don't You Lie to Me
3. Mother Fuyer
4. Never Make a Move Too Soon - (with The Crusaders)
5. When It All Comes Down (I'll Still Be Around)
6. Better Not Look Down
7. Caldonia
8. There Music Be a Better World Somewhere - (with Dr. John)
9. Play With You Poodle - (previously unreleased)
10. Darlin' You Know I Love You
11. Inflation Blues
12. Make Love to Me - (previously unreleased, piano solo)
13. Into the Night (Theme)
14. Six Silver Strings
15. When Love Comes to Town - (7" mix, previously unreleased, with U2)
16. Right Time, Wrong Place - (with Bonnie Raitt)
17. Many Miles Travelled -(Previously Unreleased)
18. I'm Moving On
19. Since I Met You Baby - (with Gary Moore)
| Details | | Playing Time: | 295 min. | | Contributing Artists: | Bobby Bland, Bonnie Raitt, Carole King, Joe Walsh, Leon Russell, Ringo Starr, Stevie Wonder, The Crusaders, U2 | | Producer: | Andy McKaie (Compilation) | | Distributor: | Universal Distribution | | Recording Type: | Mixed | | Recording Mode: | Mixed | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
Personnel includes: B.B. King (vocals, guitar, piano); Bobby Bland, Bonnie Raitt (vocals); Hugh McCracken, Joe Walsh, Mac "Dr. John" Rebennack, Ray Parker, Jr., Dean Parks, Bobby Caldwell (guitar); Ernie Watts, Hank Crawford (alto saxophone); Bobby Forte, David "Fathead" Newman (tenor saxophone); Ronald Cuber (baritone saxophone); Ben Webster (saxophone); Carole King, Gary Wright (electric piano); Johnny Ace, Al Kooper, Leon Russell (piano); Stevie Wonder (keyboards); Red Callender, Brian Garofalo (bass); Sonny Freeman, Russ Kunkel, Ringo Starr, Jim Keltner, Wil Calhoun (drums); Paulinho Da Costa (percussion); Merry Clayton (background vocals).
U2: Bono (vocals); The Edge (guitar); Adam Clayton (bass); Larry Mullen (drums).
The Crusaders: Wilton Felder (guitar); Joe Sample (keyboards); Stix Hooper (drums).
The Memphis Horns: Andrew Love, Wayne Jackson (horns).
Digitally remastered by Erick Labson (MCA Studios, No. Hollywood, California).
This 4-CD box set contains 7 previously unreleased tracks and 12 rarities. KING OF THE BLUES begins with B.B.'s first-ever recording, 1949's "Miss Martha King," and culminates 40 years later with 1991's "Since I Met You Baby," a duet with Gary Moore. Also included is a 72-page booklet with photos, a complete discography, comprehensive liner notes by Colin Escott and first-person commentary by King on his life and music.
Disc 1 features King's earliest Memphis work, where he began his career as a disc jockey, then progresses to a selection of music he recorded for the Bihari brothers (Kent, Modern and RPM labels), and concludes with recordings made for ABC Records. On this disc you can hear King's guitar playing gradually evolve, moving from his roots in Charlie Christian and T-Bone Walker, into the sweet, sensual, concise melodic style which became his trademark.
Disc 2 chronicles King's rise to blues stardom, while Disc 3 shows him crossing over to reach the rock and pop audience. "The Thrill Is Gone" (his breakthrough single) set the standard for King's collaborations with rock and jazz royalty that make up much of Discs 3 and 4. No matter what the setting was, no matter who the collaborators were, B.B. King has always maintained his sound, his style and his focus.
Editorial Reviews
Ranked #6 in the Village Voice's list of the 10 Best Reissues Of 1992.
Village Voice (03/02/1993)
...What's most striking about this chronology is not Mr. B.B.'s longevity or output, but his growth and consistency, moving easily through soul, funk, rock and jazz without compromising the essential core truth in his blues, remaining contemporary from generation to generation...
Musician (01/01/1993)
...a near perfect collection...The best work of a legendary artist, respectfully distilled into one lengthy, joyous listening experience...Absolutely first-rate... - Rating: A
Entertainment Weekly (12/11/1992)
4 Stars - Excellent - ...It's all here--the entire life's work of the music's foremost ambassador, a man who, while he may not appear as driven as the great stylists of the post-War blues boom, is nonetheless its foremost gentleman and player...
Q (01/01/1993)
...does striking justice to King's remarkable royal tenure...sound quality is stunning throughout the entire box, spotlighting every nuance of King's remarkable guitar technique and patented crying vocal style...
Living Blues
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