King Of The Blues

King of the Blues was B.B. King's sixth album for the Bihari Brothers on Crown, issued at a budget price, and his second full-length release of 1960, arriving after the chart-topping Sweet Little Sixteen single earlier that year.

The set opens with that single’s B-side, I've Got a Right to Love My Baby, and also features Partin' Time, which reached number eight. I'm King catches B.B. King in full boast mode, with his modern style blending rock & roll, R&B and jump blues sounding fully formed. What really stands out is the consistency across the whole set during such a busy and prolific period.

This edition also adds ten bonus tracks, making the CD double length, including cuts from the early to mid-'60s such as Tell Me Baby, 3 O'Clock Blues, Million Years Blues, and the obscure remixed 1962 recording Worried Life, later issued as a single in 1970 on Kent.

It’s a brilliant snapshot of a young, sharp, guitar-slinging B.B. King. The sound is very fine, and the notes by Jon Broven are exemplary. A necessary pickup for anyone interested in King's career.

Track Listing

Side 1
1. I've Got A Right To Love You Baby
2. What Way To Go
3. Long Nights
4. Feel Like A Millioni
5. I'll Survive

Side 2
1. Good Man Gone Bad
2. If I Lost You
3. You're On The Top
4. Partin' Time
5. I'm King