Customer Reviews

Live at the Regal

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As has been noted, this is one of the essential albums, one of the records that everyone is supposed to have like John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman, like Robert Johnson, like the music Billie Holiday made with Lester Young for Columbia, like Louis's Hot 5s and Hot 7s, like Elvis's Sun Sessions.

Beyond that, this is something that has become increasingly rare, a live blues recording where the music is played for blues people, African American working class and middle class blues people in an urban center. This all about singing and swinging and jiving and talking to the audience and the audience talking back.

When I was in Mississippi in the mid 1960s doing civil rights work, I met Blues People who loved BB King who didn't know that he played the guitar. The expression always was and still is 'BLUES SINGER," not blues guitarist. He sang the blues the way they needed to listen to and in a Blues People venue the folks will talk back to him too.

My favorite, classic moment of the blues dialog here is in "It's my own fault baby" where Riley sings "I gave you seven children, and now you want to give 'em back." All the sistas in the audience scream. Gruffer sounds came from the men.

What is essential to blues performance for BLUES PEOPLE is the constant dialog between the singer and the audience that is the heart of the native blues experience. The dialog isn't about the impeccable guitar playing on this record, or the totally righteous playing of the band, or even the fine voice of Riley B. King here, but it is about what the words the lyrics speak to the lives of the audience, and what the audience responds to the singer. That's the center of blues, not heavy guitar licks that the post-folk-post rock blues fan thinks is the essence of heavy blues.

It's a shame the audience for the blues has almost disappeared, that blues stars no longer play in big "Chitlin' Circuit" theaters like the Regal, the Apollo, the Howard, the old non hippie Fillmore, or that you can't see Riley or Bobby Blue Bland in smoky little night clubs in the ghetto.

Perhaps, I am showing my age here, because time has to roll on. I am sure that night at the Regal there was someone who could remember when the sistas and their men would be shouting back at things Bessie Smith, or Big Maceo and Tampa Read, Lonnie Johnson, or Memphis Minnie had sung to them from that same stage without the electric instruments.

The real Black blues when it was based among us, was about singing, about commentary. For even the greatest guitarists like Riley, Lonnie Johnson, T-Bone Walker, Johnny Lee Hooker, Guitar Slim, the guitar playing and the band were just ways to emphasize how the to talk to audience. This brings to mind that great Betty Carter Album, "The Audience and Betty Carter." This is the Blues People and Riley King talking to each other. That's priceless, get it, and listen to it.

I used to teach the guitar. And whenever a student demonstrated that he had mastered the basics, I would decide whether or not I'd keep working with him in the following manner: I would play the first three or four minutes of "Live at the Regal" and watch his reaction. If he shrugged, or said something like, "That's pretty good," I would shake his hand and wish him a good life. If he fell off his chair instead (which is perhaps the only appropriate response to this extraordinary record), we'd get back to work.

The "Sweet Little Angel" here is to electric blues what Ellington's "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue" (from Ellington at Newport) is to big band jazz -- a moment in time that captures the essence of an entire musical form.

By and large live albums are mostly a disappointment, but occasionally there are those rare moments when an artist connects with the audience and something truly magical occurs. There are only a handful of truly essential live albums, like the Allman Brothers' AT FILLMORE EAST, the Rolling Stones' GET YER YA YA'S OUT and the Who's LIVE AT LEEDS. You can also add to the list B.B. King's LIVE AT THE REGAL.

On Nov. 21, 1964, B.B. King stepped onto the stage of the Regal Theatre in Chicago and produced one of the best blues albums of all time. What makes this all the more amazing is that by 1964, B.B. King had been doing about 300 shows a year for the previous ten years and he still had the energy of a man half his age. Judging from the two separate introduction (before track 1 and again before track 6), the songs were taken from two different sets. Of the ten songs, he went back to the early years of his career with 1953's "You Upset Me Baby" and 1955's "Every Day I Have the Blues" and continued through to the present with his then current hit "How Blue Can You Get."

B.B. King is backed by a six-piece band, including Kenneth Sands (trumpet), Johnny Board and Bobby Forte (tenor sax), Duke Jethro (piano), Leo Lauchie (bass), and Sonny Freeman (drums). As stated in the original liner notes: "These are the blues, and this is the King--B.B.!" 'Nuf said. ESSENTIAL

Great recordings are often overlooked. Amazon's Review section helps pinpoint spectacular recordings and I agree wholeheartedly with the Amazon.com Essential Recording and Grove Press Guide to CD, commentaries. My personal and private collection of music, really leans towards live recordings. Studio massaging can make anyone sound good, even after the 50th take. This is the real deal. BB King's blues organization hit the Regal, with all the power and spirit of a locomotive. The horn section, alone -deserves credit here. BB's comments to the audience, shows the man himself. King commented about his stuttering lispe in his biography, and how he tried to correct it in later years. In this recording we can hear the artist stammer away-full of emotion, without any reserve. The nerves of the artist are raw, yet the sound which comes forth is pure music and self expression. Listening to Sweet Little Angel and It's My Own Fault-takes the listener back in time, to when the Thrill was Not Gone. His Guitar is like a gospel choir flirting with a brothel. Praying and cursing, as Santana, once said about guitar solos- with great feeling. Not just-doe, rae, me, fa, so, la, te, doe or a cold, major scale.
BB's superb vocals-on this magical nite, inspired rhythm section, relaxed ad libs, ignited an audience in 1964, and we are fortunate to have it on CD. Another recording on CD, "Completely Well", with bassist Jerry Jermott, a studio recording, is at the same level of virtuosity- showing BB King's power and energy. The man is a treasure and this recording-has everything going for it-for critical musician listening as well as those who simply appreciate heart felt- blues, jazz, vocal or soul, music.

Anyone who dismisses blues music as being sad and depressing and whiny should listen to this album. Sure, B.B. King sings about heartbreak and lost love in many of the songs, but he does so in such a way that it is uplifting, maybe just because you can relate to it and say "oh, that cat knows what I'm feeling". That, right there, is why this record is timeless. All of the songs, with the possible exception of "Help the Poor", are knockouts. This being a live album of course, the audience is absolutely IN LOVE with B.B. and the band, and people often shout out things like "Play it all night!" and "Tell it, B.B.!" If this were a studio album, it would not be nearly as good. The advantage of hearing blues live is that you get to hear a whole different atmosphere- people screaming, clapping, going wild for the sweet sound of Lucille. Which reminds me, not only is the guitar on this album fantastic, but also B.B.'s vocals are downright amazing! They range from a deep gravely tone to a sweet falsetto, and are some of the best blues vocals ever put to tape. If you do not own this, get it, just to hear classics like "Sweet Little Angel", "Worry Worry", "How Blue Can You Get", and "You Upset Me Baby". An absolute must-have.

B.B. King with his dearest, Lucille in action at the club The Regal. It is an absolutely incredible album in which you get drawn into further and further after each track. B.B.'s playing is top shelf and his audience surely lets him know. It is the raucous crowd that is audible during the whole show that seems to rub its excitement onto the listener. Anyway, this is a fantastic album that truly exemplifies how good a live blues album can really be. It is an album that is essential listening for any blues fan of any genre.

Coming from a listener with a broad scope of musical preferences, Blues has always been a multi-faceted genre which can be broken down into the categories:Soulful Blues, Drinking Blues and Guitar Blues. "B.B King - Live At The Regal" is one of those recordings that just happens to capture all three.

This recording is dear to my heart as I can remember far back as first or second grade when my grandmother (God Bless) used to play this on 8-track. She used to love herself some Riley "Blues Brother" King. This recording ALWAYS seemed to be in the player when my cousins and I would come over to visit and rest assured, You WILL hear it before you left to go home.

At that time, Being the young naive kid that I was, I remember saying that I hated it and that it was old folks music. All grown up now, In an age where real music is practically unheard of in terms of what these young artists of today release on CDs, I have a newfound respect for real stuff like this. So instead of sitting around burning your brain cells trying to understand what this new generation is calling itself creating, You have decided to come to one of the first sources for good old fasioned real music....The Blues.

In my opinion, "BB King Live At The Regal" is one of Mr. King's best recordings and with myself not being a big fan of live albums, This is one of those rare live pieces that captures the essence of what a live recording should sound like. Maybe not so much in terms of the musicianship but the overall performance of those involved. The arrangements were put together nicely & the musicians were all in a very tight vibe on this album and whoever was on the mixing board did an excellent job of capturing this essence. BB's pickin' and crooning mixed with the superb playing by the band make this a wonderful place to start for the blues or BB King enthusiast.

It sounds as if it was made in a tasteful nightclub full of grown people who wanted to hear good music while having a good time. The ladies were screaming and the gentlemen were cheering and BB was playing at his best. The only gripe I have about this disc is that it is very short; which was typical considering the age and time that it was made but still essential and a solid lesson for anyone interested in Blues (especially Blues Guitar). I recommend getting this and BB's "Live In Cook County Jail". They both are live albums and both have some of the same songs on them but they were done in a different way and should still be heard.

Good choice if you get this one.

I've read some incredible reviews for this album and don't get me wrong this album is fantastic. But there's a little to much singing and not enough classic b.b. guitar work, espically on the second half of the album. The first half of the album cranks out some great classics and the second half has some moments but the first five songs are the best. If you love more jazzy blues (like some of b.b.'s stuff) this album is your nirvana. Although I do like b.b.'s style like that, with a little touch of jazz, I expected some more incredible blues pouring from lucille. This album still remains fantastic and has some incredible music. Best songs: "Everyday I Have the Blues", "Sweet Little Angel", "It's My Own Fault" and "How Blue Can You Get?"

When learning guitar, 20 odd years ago, a Happy Traum book suggested this was a very important album. It was SO right. I ended up in a band in undergrad later. At the lead guitarist's reception, he tried to give me a copy, I could smugly say I'd had one for years. If you play, or want to play, lead guitar, this is a desert island disk.

One of the first things people notice when listening to B.B. King's Live At The Regal album is that the response of the audience is rapturous, almost like the congregation at a Pentecostal church. There's a reason for this. This is simply the natural response of anyone hearing the King of the Blues at the peak of his powers.

The critic Lester Bangs once wrote that the reason we listen to music in the first place is to hear passion expressed. If this is the case, which I believe it is for most of us, I can think of very few recordings that are more worthy of your time than Live At The Regal.

I was going to continue on about B.B.'s silky-smooth guitar tone on this album, Erick Labson's excellent remastering job on this CD (Wow - those drums sound GREAT!), B.B.'s incredible gift for pacing a show just right, and so forth, but this is all ultimately superfluous. Let me simply say that B.B. King's music transcends genre distinctions - he is simply one of the treasures of American popular music, and this is him at his finest. To paraphrase a commentator I recently heard on NPR, you really have to hate music to not like this.