King, Albert: Born Under A Bad Sign (CD)

Much of the soulfulness on Born Under A Bad Sign (the album) is contributed by Booker T & The MGs, the Stax house backing band, with Steve Cropper on rhythm guitar, Booker T Jones playing organ and piano, Isaac Hayes on piano, Donald “Duck” Dunn on bass guitar, Al Jackson Jr., on drums, Wayne Jackson on trumpet, Andrew Love on tenor saxophone, and Joe Arnold on baritone saxophone and flute.

And, of course, King’s pin-prick note bending: a hark back to his early influences, and especially the slide playing of Blind Lemon Jefferson. King’s funky phrasing came from hours and hours of listening to T-Bone Walker and Lonnie Johnson, but you’ll hear a lot of BB King vibrato and economy of playing in there too. One of the “Three Kings Of The Blues Guitar” (along with BB and Freddie), Albert claimed to be BB’s half-brother, so perhaps it’s no surprise their playing is familiar.

All the cuts on Born Under A Bad Sign are excellent and get a consistent treatment, producing one of King’s most balanced releases. The album was certainly appreciated by the public, charting on the Billboard Top 50. Other songs needing a mention include the rather racy 12-bar blues “Crosscut Saw” (“Now, I’m a crosscut saw, drag me ’cross yo’ log”), recorded as early as 1941 by Delta bluesman Tommy McClennan, which King restyles with intoxicating Latino shuffle and a tight horn arrangement. “The Hunter” also serves up something special, ready for the pot and as trademark Booker T & The MGs as “Green Onions”. It’s a pulsating stew of a track on a high flame, tasty and nourishing.

“Kansas City” is firmly back in King territory, with lovely drum kicks and horn lifts to the rhythm. It’s a light and elegant touch, before “Oh, Pretty Woman” enters and it all gets muscular again: pulsating, rippling and sexy. And so it continues, without a weakling within hearing distance.

If you have already been fortunate enough to have heard this most excellent of albums, then count your lucky stars. If you haven’t, then it’s clearly time for a change of luck. Go ahead, give it a listen. Born Under A Bad Sign will make your day.

1. Born Under a Bad Sign
2. Crosscut Saw
3. Kansas City
4. Oh, Pretty Woman
5. Down Don't Bother Me
6. The Hunter
7. I Almost Lost My Mind
8. Personal Manager
9. Laundromat Blues
10. As the Years Go Passing By
11. The Very Thought of You