egroj world: Albert King • Born Under a Bad Sign

Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Albert King • Born Under a Bad Sign

 

 


Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Albert King recorded a lot in the early '60s, including some classic sides, but they never quite hit the mark. They never gained a large audience, nor did they really capture the ferocity of his single-string leads. Then he signed with Stax in 1966 and recorded a number of sessions with the house band, Booker T. & the MG's, and everything just clicked. The MG's gave King supple Southern support, providing an excellent contrast to his tightly wound lead guitar, allowing to him to unleash a torrent of blistering guitar runs that were profoundly influential, not just in blues, but in rock & roll (witness Eric Clapton's unabashed copping of King throughout Cream's Disraeli Gears). Initially, these sessions were just released as singles, but they were soon compiled as King's Stax debut, Born Under a Bad Sign. Certainly, the concentration of singles gives the album a consistency -- these were songs devised to get attention -- but, years later, it's astounding how strong this catalog of songs is: "Born Under a Bad Sign," "Crosscut Saw," "Oh Pretty Woman," "The Hunter," "Personal Manager," and "Laundromat Blues" form the very foundation of Albert King's musical identity and legacy. Few blues albums are this on a cut-by-cut level; the songs are exceptional and the performances are rich, from King's dynamic playing to the Southern funk of the MG's. It was immediately influential at the time and, over the years, it has only grown in stature as one of the very greatest electric blues albums of all time.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/born-under-a-bad-sign-mw0000095360

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Reseña de Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Albert King grabó mucho a principios de los 60, incluyendo algunos temas clásicos, pero nunca dieron en el blanco. Nunca consiguieron una gran audiencia, ni capturaron realmente la ferocidad de sus solos de una sola cuerda. Entonces firmó con Stax en 1966 y grabó varias sesiones con la banda de la casa, Booker T. & the MG's, y todo encajó. Los MG's dieron a King un apoyo sureño flexible, proporcionando un excelente contraste con su guitarra solista, lo que le permitió dar rienda suelta a un torrente de abrasadoras ejecuciones de guitarra que fueron profundamente influyentes, no sólo en el blues, sino también en el rock & roll (véase la descarada imitación de King por parte de Eric Clapton en Disraeli Gears de Cream). Inicialmente, estas sesiones sólo se publicaron como singles, pero pronto se recopilaron como el debut de King en Stax, Born Under a Bad Sign. Ciertamente, la concentración de singles da consistencia al álbum -se trataba de canciones concebidas para llamar la atención- pero, años después, resulta asombrosa la solidez de este catálogo de canciones: "Born Under a Bad Sign", "Crosscut Saw", "Oh Pretty Woman", "The Hunter", "Personal Manager" y "Laundromat Blues" forman los cimientos de la identidad musical y el legado de Albert King. Pocos álbumes de blues son de este nivel corte por corte; las canciones son excepcionales y las interpretaciones son ricas, desde la dinámica forma de tocar de King hasta el funk sureño de los MG. Su influencia fue inmediata en su momento y, con el paso de los años, no ha hecho más que crecer como uno de los mejores álbumes de blues eléctrico de todos los tiempos.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/born-under-a-bad-sign-mw0000095360


Tracklist:
01. Born Under A Bad Sign
02. Change of pace.
03. Get out of my life woman
04. Gonna make it somehow
05. Goodtime charlie
06. Guitar Man
07. I got the blues
08. Watermelon blues
09. Don't burn down the bridge.
10. Stormy monday
11. Kansas City
12. You upset me baby
13. Love shock

Personnel:
- Albert King - electric guitar and vocals
- Steve Cropper - electric guitar
- Booker T.Jones - piano
- Isaac Hayes - piano
- Donald "Duck" Dunn - bass
- Al Jackson Jr. - drums
- The Memphis Horns (Wayne Jackson, Andrew Love, Joe Arnold) – horns

1967

 
 
 
 



 

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