Freddie King - Blues Journey Vol. 1 (Live) (Remastered, 2020) [Hi-Res]

A definite journey in blues from the legendary Freddie King – as the guitarist was really burning up the clubs across the US at the time of these recordings – playing with energy that may well top his well-received studio albums during the same stretch! There's not much in the way of details here, but that's OK with us – as the quality of the recordings is great, all of it really showing that stunning maturity that Freddie had hit in just a short span of time since his initial recordings for King Records.
On the CD 'Blues Journey vol. 1' contains twelve tracks. In the opening song Let The Good Times Roll by Shirley Goodman & Leonard Lee from 1956 you can immediately hear the characteristic razor-sharp guitar solos. San-Ho-Zay is King's well-known instrumental from 1961.
Boogie Funk is on the album in two versions. A fast boogie, stinging guitar solos over a bath of organ tones and at the end a long drum solo.
The beautiful slow blues Ain't No Sunshine is played from the album Texas Cannonball , a cover by the recently deceased Bill Withers. Ain't Nobody's Business, the blues standard from the 1920s, will be given a typical King performance with rousing guitar work and his expressive strong vocals, which can also be heard in Woman Across the River . Of course, Hide Away is not missing , King's great instrumental hit from 1961 with the flamboyant guitar work.
Flaming guitar licks, organ and bass solos can then be heard in Goin' Down , Don Nix's rock 'n' roll standard. Wee Baby Blues is a beautiful slow blues by Big Joe Turner. Something You Got by R&B singer Chris Kenner from 1961 has been covered a lot and in Freddie King's performance there are the fierce guitar licks and a very present drummer.
The last song on this CD isKey to the Highway , the blues standard by Charles Segar & Big Bill Broonzy. Besides the tight rhythm section and a sparkling piano solo, Freddie King can also be heard here with his fierce guitar licks and strong vocals.