Albert King - I`ll Play the Blues for You [1972]

Artist:

King, Albert

UPC:

025218732468

See Also:

Turner, Ike

Description:

Personnel: Albert King (vocals, guitar); The Memphis Horns (horns); The Bar-Kays & The Movement (bass, drums).
Originally released on Stax (3009). Includes liner notes by Tom Wheeler.
This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular & Super Audio CD players.
Personnel: Albert King (vocals, guitar); The Bar-Kays, The Movement.
It`s not as if Albert King hadn`t tasted success in his first decade and a half as a performer, but his late-`60s/early-`70s recordings for Stax did win him a substantially larger audience. During those years, the label began earning significant clout amongst rock fans through events like Otis Redding`s appearance at the Monterey International Pop Festival and a seemingly endless string of classic singles. When King signed to the label in 1966, he was immediately paired with the Stax session team Booker T. & the MG`s. The results were impressive: "Crosscut Saw," "Laundromat Blues," and the singles collection Born Under a Bad Sign were all hits. Though 1972`s I`ll Play the Blues for You followed a slightly different formula, the combination of King, members of the legendary Bar-Kays, the Isaac Hayes Movement, and the sparkling Memphis Horns was hardly a risky endeavor. The result was a trim, funk-infused blues sound that provided ample space for King`s oft-imitated guitar playing. King has always been more impressive as a soloist than a singer, and some of his vocal performances on I`ll Play the Blues for You lack the intensity one might hope for. As usual, he more than compensates with a series of exquisite six-string workouts. The title track and "Breaking Up Somebody`s Home" both stretch past seven minutes, while "I`ll Be Doggone" and "Don`t Burn Down the Bridge" (where King coaxes a crowd to "take it to the bridge," James Brown-style) break the five-minute barrier. Riding strutting lines by bassist James Alexander, King runs the gamut from tough, muscular playing to impassioned cries on his instrument, making I`ll Play the Blues for You one of a handful of his great Stax sets. ~ Nathan Bush

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. I`ll Play the Blues for You, Pts. 1 - 2
2. Little Brother (Make a Way)
3. Breaking up Somebody`s Home
4. High Cost of Loving
5. I`ll Be Doggone
6. Answer to the Laundromat Blues
7. Don`t Burn Down the Bridge (`Cause You Might Wanna Come Back Across)
8. Angel of Mercy

Album Information

Release Date:

04/27/2004

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Blues

Label:

Stax (USA)

Producer:

Allen Jones; Henry Bush

Catalog Number:

3009

Original Release Year:

1972

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

Runtime:

39 : 44

Guest Artist:

The Bar-Kays; The Memphis Horns

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