In the Palace of the King

John Mayall, John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 17, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Eagle Records
• ASIN: B000O590CU
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,538 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The 56th album by the 73-year-old godfather of British blues is a tribute to one of his major influences, the late Texas-born guitarist Freddie King. It's also a nod to current Bluesbreakers picker Buddy Whittington, an underrated pyrotechnician who follows a long line of distinguished six-string Mayall sidemen that includes Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick Taylor, Coco Montoya, and Walter Trout. Whittington measures up, recreating the terse energy of King's biting, blunt phrasing on the legend's classic "Going Down" and the swinging "You Know That You Love Me." And he puts his own grinding, slashing brand on the riff 'n' rip guitar of "The Palace of the King," a biographical tune Don Nix, Leon Russell, and Duck Dunn wrote for King. Guest guitarist Robben Ford lends his own instrumental King homage, "Cannonball Shuffle," but it's Mayall's piano-led "King of the Kings" that's most touching. Singing in his arcing, high voice, slightly thinned by age, Mayall explains how King influenced him and his Bluesbreakers, showing Clapton, Green, and Taylor "all the licks to play," and concludes that he's "Got the blues for Mr. Freddie/Sorry that you had to go." --Ted Drozdowski

Product Description

John Mayall, the "Godfather of British Blues", returns with the Bluesbreakers for his latest studio album "In The Palace Of The King". This new album is John's tribute to one of his blues heroes, the late, great Freddie King. King was a blues guitar pioneer from the mid-50's through to his tragically early death in the mid-70's and he influenced everyone from Peter Green to DaveEdmunds to Stevie Ray Vaughan and probably most of all Eric Clapton, who produced and played on King's final album. "In The Palace Of The King" features John Mayall's take on his personal selection of Freddie King favorites and is a fabulous combination of two true blues legends.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection of tunes from Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, April 25, 2007

By 

Dana-L (The Pacific Wonderland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Palace of the King (Audio CD)

The pitch on the little plastic label adhered to the CD wrapper began with the words "...best Mayall in decades..." which is not really the case because every one of the recordings John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers have released in the past twenty or so years has had more than a few great performances. This one's different, however, with its focus on the works and influence of the great Freddie King. I'm happy to report that JM and the boys do him proud.

As usual, Buddy Whittington provides a veritable master class on the subject of the electric blues guitar. Paying tribute to his fellow Texan, he covers all the stylistic bases and even takes the microphone on "Big Legged Woman." Joe Yuele continues providing the perfect rhythmic foundation while bassist Hank Van Sickle maintains a firm grip on the low end, giving an especially noteworthy performance on Leon Russell's "I'd Rather be Blind." Tom Canning again serves-up fine accompaniment on organ and Mayall adds to his fine body of work on the harp.

As if a smokin' set by the Bluesbreakers weren't enough, Mayall continues his tradition of providing exposure to promising guitarists by offering Robben Ford a guest spot on his own instrumental tribute to King, "Cannonball Shuffle," previously heard his fine 2003 recording "Keep on Running," on which Mr. Mayall guested on harp.

The bottom line is that from start to finish, "In the Palace of the King" is a fine listen which I highly recommend.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One master salutes another, May 3, 2007

By 

Mike (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: In the Palace of the King (Audio CD)

British blues legend John Mayall offers up the latest in his career-resurgent string of solid albums that began with the Coco Montoya - Walter Trout fueled "Chicago Line" in 1988. Mayall's original claim to fame...the unbelievably powerful triumverate of Eric Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor in the guitar seats...came to an end in the late 60s with Taylor's departure. In the two decades that followed, Mayall sought to express himself in new ways, such as the very popular "drummerless" band on "USA Union." He also reached out to Taylor and Clapton for occasional reunion efforts, so he never completely "left" the original vision behind. The 1988 return to a guitar-driven band, as well as re-branding the effort "John Mayall And The Bluesbreakers," also returned Mayall to what he does best. The original Bluesbreakers LPs allowed Clapton, Green and Taylor to take turns on Freddie King tracks ("Hideaway," "The Stumble," "Someday After A While (You'll Be Sorry)," and "Driving Sideways"). Now, approximately 4 decades after the first LP with Clapton, Mayall (along with current axeman Buddy Whittington and the rest of the 2007 Bluesbreakers) unleashes "In The Palace Of The King," which draws from superb Shelter Records-era Freddie King. The last two decades have been so solid and consistent for Mayall that it would do an injustice to his other albums to call this "his best in years." It is among his best, but so is most of what you'll find in the post-1988 catalog. It's prime Mayall, prime Bluesbreakers, and they're doing what they've always done best: paying tribute to one of the men who wrote the rule book for every "British Guitar God" who followed him. For all of the second-string performers who have been honored with career-spanning box sets, it's a mystery as to why no one's ever sat down and given Mayall the long-overdue tribute HE deserves.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still On Top, May 29, 2007

By 

Kurt Harding "bon vivant" (Boerne TX) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: In the Palace of the King (Audio CD)

Some may wonder if and when John Mayall is going to run out of steam. After all, not many musicians can claim to have officially released 56 albums. Those of us who have enjoyed his music through the years can be thankful that with the release of In The Palace of the King, it is clear that Mayall remains in top form.
Mayall's new CD is ostensibly a tribute to the late blues great Freddie King's songs and his influence, and in many ways it is. But in reality its an occasion for Mayall and his current crop of Bluesbreakers to give the listening public another good reason to buy a Mayall album.
I like the whole CD, but there are some super tunes here that make In The Palace of the King obligatory for Mayall fans. One of the best tunes is Time To Go, the one Mayall wrote in tribute to his recently deceased mother. Other standouts are Big Legged Woman, Now I've Got A Woman, Help Me Make It Through The Day, the instrumental Cannonball Shuffle, Freddie King's You've Got Me Licked, and King of the Kings.
I agree with the reviewer from San Jose who nailed the date of Mayall's renaissance and that reviewer's assertion of Mayall's quality and consistency over the past two decades. The release of In The Palace of the King presents those who were fans of Mayall in their youth with a good chance to reacquaint themselves with his music and to hear for themselves that he is still on top.