Customer Reviews

Blues Master

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This 1969 set clocks in at a not-very-generous 36 minutes, but that's the LP age for you.
It's quite a nice, mellow set which emphasises Frederick Christian "King"'s passionate vocals, and King is backed by a tight band which includes both piano and organ, and occationally by a well-scored six-man horn ensemble as well.

He is being cast primarily as a singer on many of these tracks, Freddie King is...his normally stinging lead guitar lines take something of a back seat on songs like "It's Too Late, She's Gone" and "Let Me Down Easy". But fans shouldn't worry unduly; most of these twelve tracks feature plenty of guitar goodness, like the sizzling fills and solos on King's own "Play It Cool", and a smouldering rendition of Curtis Lewis' soulful slowie "Today I Sing The Blues".
Pianist James Booker adds a wonderful, jazzy feel with his elegant, fluid playing, and well-known session saxist "King" Curtis Ousley, who is one of the three saxists here, has also provided a couple of the songs, including the aforementioned "Let Me Down Easy".

There are letdowns as well, though. A couple of tracks are perhaps overproduced; a leaner, meaner "Get Out Of My Life, Woman" would have had more impact. And there's really no need for this re-recording of the classic instrumental "Hideaway" in funk mode...the instrumentals are generally a bit disappointing, actually, and the fact that almost the entire second half of the original LP is made up of instrumentals drags the set down.

"Blues Master" is not as tough or indeed as intense as King's earliest, self-penned waxings for Federal Records, but still...fans of Freddie KIng should enjoy his strong, focused playing and singing on the first half of the set. It's not enough to make this a must-have album, though.

Freddie at his finest, tenderest, searing, blistering. If this album doesn't bring tears to your eyes, you're not human. King Curtis guides Freddie through an hour of his great and thunderous voice and smoking guitar. Sublime groove by the entire band, featuring James Booker on piano and the great King Curtis on sax. Perennial. Especially necessary when you're been dumped.

libro de enseñanza para todos los que amamos el blues..preguntenle sino al viejo derek y sus dominoes......gran gran disco...

THIS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST MIXES OF SOUL AND BLUES THAT YOU WILL EVER FIND.PLAY IT COOL AND LET ME DOWN EASY ARE CLASSICS.BLUE SHADOWS IS MASTERFUL.THE ALBUM HAS TWO DIRECTIONS,STRAIGHT BLUES AND A INSTUMENTAL SOULY APPROACH.BOTH ARE DONE TASTEFULLY BY A TERRIFIC STUDIO BAND LED BY KING CURTIS.
THE BAND SHOW THEIR SOULY SIDE IN NUMBERS LIKE HOT TOMATO AND WIDE OPEN,A TREAT FOR ALL EARS.FOR ALL THE SKEPTICS,BUY IT,PLAY IT,LIVE IT.PEACE...........

I suppose there is no accounting for taste but in no uncertain terms was this recording EVER a mis-step for Freddie, it just adds to his legacy and shows his giant versatility. This is quite simply one of the greatest albums ever recorded and you need to possess sensitivity in order to get it. It IS without question a masterwork.

I am a big Frediie King fan so I like it, but if you really want some good Freddie King, try The Best Of Freddie King, Burglar, or Freddie King Blues Guitar Hero.

Freddie King wasn't exactly a good match for a deep soul setting. Unlike his contemporary and namesake Albert King, the Texas Cannonball had never really suggested there was a deep soul strain to his stinging, rocking blues. It shouldn't be surprising, then, that this 1969 set (and its 1970 followup, "My Feeling For The Blues"), cut with the usually serviceable King Curtis at the boards (and on tenor saxophone) in a Muscle Shoals soul dressing, isn't exactly a masterwork.

There are a few nice moments - "Play It Cool" is an exquisite piece of blues, and King does a very credible job of yanking Chuck Willis's classic stroll ballad, "It's Too Late (She's Gone)," to the blues level at which Willis's original had merely hinted (and Eric Clapton, with Derek and the Dominos, was about to expose all the way); his vocals are very steady throughout the set - but for the most part the slightly muddy production (unusual by Muscle Shoals standards) and the obvious unease between King and most of the material (including a badly ill-advised funking-up of his classic instrumental strider, "Hide Away") make this project a question mark rather than a stepping stone. You might be better served if you want to hunt down a rare copy of "Play It Cool," which was issued as a single, albeit short-enough lived. It doesn't kill King's reputation but neither does it enhance it by very much.