#299 B.B. King, 'Live at the Regal' (1965)

Previously #141

Widely regarded as one of the greatest Blues records of all time, ‘Live At The Regal’ captures B.B. King in his prime. Opening with the blues standard ‘Everyday I Have The Blues,’ the classic gets the Chicago Blues treatment. What’s immediately evident as it starts is that B.B. King is in fine voice and we’re in for a treat. The tone of the guitar is unmistakeably B.B. King. No one else plays like that. As the song ends, we hear B.B.’s signature on-stage banter. That man could ramble but he did it with such style. There’s a lot of it on this record. It’s just so typically B.B.

Recorded on 21 November 1964 at The Regal Theatre in Chicago, this album has been cited by guitarists such as Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, John Mayer and Mark Knopfler as major influences on their playing and live performance. This is the album that brought B.B. back after a decline in popularity and that was thanks to the British Blues revival. This album exudes cool. B.B. King was one of the greatest to ever pick up a guitar.

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