This essential LP release includes B.B. King’s splendid album, The Blues, which was originally issued in 1958 and marked his second LP on the Bihari brothers’ Crown label. It collects a dozen sides King cut for RPM and Kent between 1951 and 1958. This album is distinguished by a raw, ragged feel, which proves refreshing in light of the artist’s subsequent slicker recordings. It has a loose, roadhouse vibe and features B.B. King backed by a full band, including horns, piano, harmonica, and a thumping rhythm section.

In addition to the original LP, this collector’s edition includes 4 bonus tracks from the same period: the staple “Everyday I Have the Blues,” the heart-felt blues ballads “Sweet Little Angel,” “My Sometime Baby,” and the joyful “I’m In Love.”
PERSONNEL:

    B.B. KING, vocals and guitar, plus:
    THE MAXWELL DAVIS ORCHESTRA; Probable personnel: Maxwell Davis, Jack McVea, Charles Waller, Lorenzo Holden, Bumps Myers, Maurice Simon (tenor sax, Jewell L. Grant (alto sax), Floyd Turnham (baritone sax), Jack “Vernon” Porter (trumpet), Tommy Tedesco (guitar), Red Callender or Ralph Hamilton (bass), Willard McDaniel (piano), Jesse Sailes or Jesse Price (drums). Unidentified harmonica.

Recorded between 1951 and 1958.