Customer Reviews

80

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Known as the "King of the Blues," guitarist B.B. King, (short for "Blues Boy King"), who has been performing for well over half a century now, turned eighty in September of 2005. His album "80" was released just in time for the birthday party. King is known for his distinctive sound - especially his use of the sliding "bent" note, and for calling his electric Gibson guitar "Lucille." And he sure loves making love to Lucille!

A star studded cast of musicians join King for this celebratory album, including: Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Bobby Bland, Billy Gibbons, Mark Knopfler, Elton John, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Daryl Hall, and Gloria Estefan. This is far from my favorite King album. The great man's booming voice and uncluttered guitar style, liberal use of bends, his signature tremelo, tend to overpower those he performs with. His talent casts a huge shadow, making it difficult for others to shine as he does. The commanding performances here, and the enjoyment, are provided by Mr. B.B., and the much younger artists have to strive to keep up with him.

"Early in the Morning," with Van Morrison is one of my favorite cuts and sets the bar high for those that follow. "The Thrill Is Gone," with Eric Clapton's fabulous guitar solos and B.B. playing his vocal chords, is an outstanding track, as is "Funny How Time Slips Away," with blues veteran Bobby "Blue" Bland. Mark Knopfler ("All Over Again'') and Billy Gibbons ("Tired of Your Jive'') are also CD pluses.

I am not at all thrilled with Gloria Estefan's "There Must Be a Better World Somewhere," nor with John Mayer's treacley ballad "Hummingbird." King's strong presence manages to salvage these pieces, however. And although I occasionally like Elton John, he cannot pull off "Rock This House," even with help.

King grew up sharecropping in the Mississippi Delta and learned to play gospel music on the guitar when he was a teenager. In the late 1940's he turned to playing blues and moved to Memphis, Tennessee to start a music career. He and his band toured almost non-stop, performing hundreds of shows a year. The birth of Rock & Roll music made stars of many black performers such as Little Richard, Fats Domino, James Brown and Chuck Berry. Unfortunately for B.B., "black" music, the blues, remained isolated from mainstream white America. He finally had a breakthrough success in the late 1960s, when white audiences began to discover the blues. Guitarists like Eric Clapton and Keith Richards sang his praises. B.B. King has recorded more than 50 albums, won 13 Grammys and received dozens of awards and honors over the years. Rolling Stone magazine recently named King as the third-greatest guitarist of all time, with Jimi Hendrix and Duane Allman of the Allman Brothers Band taking first and second positions. The technique of rock guitar playing is, to a large degree, derived from B.B,'s playing. Many great guitarists, like Bono, Clapton, and Richards pay tribute to him by dittoing that statement.

I love the blues, have since I was a little kid. My Dad did too, so maybe I have "blues" genes. B.B. King is so special to me because he's the reason blues hit the mainstream. During a recent interview, King commented about his lack of interest in retiring, even at 80 years-old, afflicted, as he is, with diabetes and aching joints. "I couldn't afford to do it,' King laughed. 'I have days off, but we don't get airplay like other styles of music, so I learned at an early age that unless I go out and carry music to the people, it sure don't come to them by air.'"
JANA

Growing up my Mom had a fortune cookie message taped above her desk that said "to stay youthful, stay useful." B.B. King is a spry 80, and you can hear it in his voice. He may not hit the notes he used to, but his passion and love for performing hasn't diminished at all. The performance of "The Thrill Is Gone" with Eric Clapton is an inspired rendition, teacher and student reuniting to compare notes. The lead track "Early In The Morning" features a robust exchange between Van Morrison and B.B. that is easily one of 80's most notable highlights. Representing the more recent graduates, John Mayer and B.B. play wonderfully off one another on Leon Russell's classic "Hummingbird", which builds into a crescendo, complete with subtle string arrangements, that lifts the song to glorious heights. Other highlights include old friend Bobby Bland reminiscing on Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away," and the rollicking boogie woogie throwback "Rock This House" with Sir Elton John. Though the ladies are only sparsely represented on "80", Sheryl Crow's duet with B.B. on "Need Your Love So Bad" brings out the best in both, as B.B. cooly croons "...well hello there" to sultry Sheryl.

For a man on the cusp of his 80th year, you wouldn't know it - I hope I sound and look so good!

This will win a Grammy, as sure as I'm sitting here...and I am sitting here....you won't skip a track....every guest delivers the goods and B.B....well Mr King here's to 80 more...and thanks for bringing joy to the world.

BB King still sounds wonderful after 50 years of performing. This happy birthday tribute doesn't disappoint. King teams up with musicians from pop, rock, folk, and jazz to re-create his greats with interesting results. Probably my favorite is his teamup with Slowhand Eric Clapton on "Thrill is Gone." However, Gloria Estefan's clear, sweet voice adds a different and unexpected note to "There's Got to be a Better World Out there." Perhaps it's not King's best, but it's definitely an exceptional addition to any blues collection.

Happy Birthday, BB, and may you rock on for many more years!

Let's face it. Anyone that is coming up on eighty years old, and has had such a long career in music could be excused if he "phoned in" an album like this one. I buy every B.B. King CD that comes out, and think of him as a national treasure, so while I planned to buy this one upon release, I didn't expect much. I was wrong. This is a very fine album. It is at a level that might make many performers 50 years the junior of King envious of his skills. Even at eighty, he is a valid performer, and not a novelty act.

This is King's second studio album of duets in recent times ("Blues Summit" was a live album), and in my opinion this is superior to the "Deuces Wild" disc from 1997. I looked at the list of participants on "80", and while some were obvious, such as Clapton, others were surprising for a blues disc. I was not sure what to expect from some of the "friends", not because of the talent, but because of the genre that they came from. Again, I was pleasantly surprised by what on paper might seem like miss-matches. I expected to have a few duds in the line up, but no... they were all not only tolerable, but enjoyable.

Some highlights for me: Van Morrison trading vocals on "Early in the Morning" is very nice. Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top mixes his Texas style blues with King's more traditional style on "Tired of your Jive" to good effect. Clapton plays call and response with King's guitar on the often covered "Thrill is Gone" taking the song to a different level. Mark Knopfler plays his subdued, understated guitar off of King's equally minimalist fills on "All Over Again" to good effect. The Eagles' Glenn Frey gets nice and bluesy with his vocals on "Drivin' Wheel", as does the Who's Roger Daltry on "Never Make Your Move Too Soon". The most contemporary to King in the line up is Bobby Bland, and the chemistry is so much better than with many of the other performances. You can just tell that they like and respect each other based on the banter between the lyrics.

Some better than expected surprises: Sheryl Crow is a fine singer, but I was not expecting her to blend well with King. I was wrong. The same can be said about Gloria Estefan, whose normal musical style is far from the blues. Both of these ladies pull this off with great renderings. John Mayer is the baby here, and if I had not seen him on Clapton's "Crossroads Guitar Festival DVD", I would have thought that this kid does not deserve to be in the room with King. I was again wrong in this assumption. Even pop king Elton John does not disappoint with his blues based vocals on the "Rock This House", the most rollicking track, and the track I was sure I would not listen to more than once. Wrong!

This is first and foremost a B.B. King Album, and that is clear. The other participants are very respectful and do not try to over-shadow the master in either vocals or guitar work. Another thing for the guitar fans out there, is that there is a mention in the insert that anytime King is playing guitar with a guest guitarist, his guitar will come out of the right speaker. This is good information. I spent the day with my balance knob cycling back and forth isolating King against the likes of Clapton and Knopfler, and then letting those other players shine. This little tidbit of information will enhance the enjoyment of hard-core guitar fans.

As with most of these duets albums, B.B. King's 80 has some excellent songs mixed with some that are less than so. The best song on the album is "Early In The Morning" with Van Morrison that makes you wish that the two would record an entire album together. Elton John rips through a rousing live version of "Rock This House" and Roger Daltrey flexes his considerable vocal muscles on "Never Make Your Move Too Soon". Daryl Hall adds a nice touch of Philly soul to "Ain't Nobody Home" and Sheryl Crow shows she has the voice for the blues on "Need Your Love So Bad". Eric Clapton goes through the motions on a listless "The Thrill Is Gone" while Gloria Estefan is in over her head on "There Must Be A Better World" while trudges along at a numbing seven minutes. The rest of the album is fairly pedestrian.

B.B. King gives the ultimate birthday present on his 80th birthday both to himself and to the fans: a new studio album that is a star-studded affair, which not surprisingly has its ups and downs.

"80" (12 tracks, 54 min.) matches up the living blues legend with a bunch of stars, including Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Roger Daltrey, Elton John, and many others. The album is generally a pick-and-choose affair. The best tracks for me are "Hummingbird", where John Mayer foreshadows his release shortly after this one of "Try!" by the John Mayer Trio (a guilty pleasure for me); "All Over Again" with delicious guitar duets between B.B. King and Mark Knopfler; "Never Make Your Move Too Soon" with Roger Daltrey in great form; and the closer "Rock This House", a rousing live track with Elton John. There are a couple of real duds too, unfortunately, including "The Thrill Is Gone" with Eric Clapton, how can 2 such legends sounds so lame, and, the worst of all, the 7 min. duet with Gloria Estefan, what in the world is she doing on a blues album?!?

All that aside, I am simply amazed by the continuing energy of B.B. King, who continues also to tour regularly. I only hope that when I reach 80 in 35 years, I have half the stamina of this truly living legend and American treasure. "80" may be a mixed affair, but there are enough good moments to make this a worthwhile addition to your B.B. King collection.

You would never believe that B.B. King was 80 if all you had to go on was this CD. There are some really great pairings. He does a great version of "The Thrill Is Gone" with Eric Clapton. Billy Gibbons blends well with King on "Tired Of Your Jive". Sheryl Crow, Gloria Estefan, and Van Morrison also do a good job with King. However, the tracks with Roger Daltry and Glenn Frey keep this from being a five star CD. The tracks with these guys show a complete lack of chemistry. At the end of the day, though, this is a very enjoyable CD. I recommend it to anyone who likes B.B. King.

Granted BB King is 80, he continues to play the blues like no other. This album though, I think, does not show that whatsoever. If you're a 30-40 something house wife who digs the "blues" this is for you. But if you are a blues purist, this album lacks detail and motion. Celebrity guests doesn't sell this album to me at all. They should have done this live to really get an effect. I saw BB King in January of 05, and he was amazing. See him live, get Live at the Regal, then you'll know the real King.

B.B King may be one of the best bluesmen alive but a collaboration album like this is not his forte'. This formula was put to much better use some years ago by John Lee Hooker with two very good albums ("The Healer" & "Mr. Lucky")with a MUCH better selection of guests.
Other reviewers seem very divided about what's good & what isn't on this album but I agree that Van Morrison is by far the best (how could anyone expect less?) and Billy Gibbons & Bobby Bland are, of course, great also. Sheryl Crow is totally out of her element on a very lame version of the great song "Need Your Love So Bad" (Peter Green's version, his best by far is live on "Shrine 69"- probably spoiled me for anyone else's). The biggest surprise for me was Gloria Estefan's heartfelt performance on "--Better World-" probably the bluesiest cut on the album-didn't know she had it in her. The rest is pretty mediocre; even Eric Capton couldn't breathe new life into "The Thrill Is Gone"; it's just too shopworn. However, even at 80 B.B. King can save just about anything; he's still one of the greatest.