LIVE! B.B. KING ON STAGE is meant to take us back the late 50's chitlin circuit. Released in 1965, the album compiles his early 50’s RPM recordings with an overdubbed MC and audience. Somehow the effect works despite its overuse. Folks screaming and hollering through his early hits sounds completely natural. One in particular is exceptionally loud and sustaining and you get the impression that the engineers were having a blast dropping her in at all the right spots.Side One opens with “Please Love Me”, peacock strut of a shuffle, with a variation on the “Dust My Broom” lick kicking it off. The horns lay it on thick with a tenor-heavy repeating riff. One of the notable differences in B.B.’s earlier recordings is his guitar tone. Although still distinctly B.B. it’s rawer and dirtier than when he started to cross over, a result of the guitars and amps available at the time. The T-bone Walker influence is more evident and the overall sound of the band is post-war to the hilt, in step with artists like Lowell Fulson and Pee Wee Crayton.
“Every Day I Have The Blues”, “Sweet Sixteen”, and his breakout “3 O’clock Blues” continue the compilation with the overdubbed audience still adding atmosphere. The original “Rock Me Baby” stands out in stark contrast from its later recordings simmering like an alley cat in heat and if any track benefits from the fake audience it’s this one. As great as it is on its own they sound like a completely natural response. The song is restored to its original primal intent, the easy lope of the piano and rhythm section providing the perfect backdrop for B.B.’s straight to the chase plea.
Side Two opens with his signature “Sweet Little Angel” picking up the vibe but not the tempo on “Baby Look At Me” followed by the rhumba “Woke Up This Morning” with its swinging big band middle and wailing sax. “You Upset Me Baby” keeps it uptempo shuffling along at a steady clip. “You Upset Me Baby” brings us back to the after-hours vibe that made up most of Side One which continues through “I’ve Got a Right To Love My Baby”. “Let Me Love You” verges on Gospel closing out the album with a nice landing, though our infamous screaming lady could have been used more sparingly here.
Although these sides can be found on any early recording compilation, and have been reissued time and time again, the audience noise gives it a nightclub setting reminiscent of Redd Foxx, Lawanda Page, and other comedy albums. The album has never been issued on CD but LPs pop up on eBay from time to time. It’s a good collection of his early hits and the overdubbed audience noise, fake as it is, makes for an enjoyable listen. The introduction by the MC alone is worth searching it out; “You heard him sing, you heard him popping’ strings, now we’re gonna see him really do the thing! The sensation maker, the record breaker, B! B! King!”
“Every Day I Have The Blues”, “Sweet Sixteen”, and his breakout “3 O’clock Blues” continue the compilation with the overdubbed audience still adding atmosphere. The original “Rock Me Baby” stands out in stark contrast from its later recordings simmering like an alley cat in heat and if any track benefits from the fake audience it’s this one. As great as it is on its own they sound like a completely natural response. The song is restored to its original primal intent, the easy lope of the piano and rhythm section providing the perfect backdrop for B.B.’s straight to the chase plea.
Side Two opens with his signature “Sweet Little Angel” picking up the vibe but not the tempo on “Baby Look At Me” followed by the rhumba “Woke Up This Morning” with its swinging big band middle and wailing sax. “You Upset Me Baby” keeps it uptempo shuffling along at a steady clip. “You Upset Me Baby” brings us back to the after-hours vibe that made up most of Side One which continues through “I’ve Got a Right To Love My Baby”. “Let Me Love You” verges on Gospel closing out the album with a nice landing, though our infamous screaming lady could have been used more sparingly here.
Although these sides can be found on any early recording compilation, and have been reissued time and time again, the audience noise gives it a nightclub setting reminiscent of Redd Foxx, Lawanda Page, and other comedy albums. The album has never been issued on CD but LPs pop up on eBay from time to time. It’s a good collection of his early hits and the overdubbed audience noise, fake as it is, makes for an enjoyable listen. The introduction by the MC alone is worth searching it out; “You heard him sing, you heard him popping’ strings, now we’re gonna see him really do the thing! The sensation maker, the record breaker, B! B! King!”
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