Albert King discography
Prominent American blues musician
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Albert King (1923–1992) was an American blues guitarist and singer who was active from the late 1940s to 1992. During the earlier part of his career, he recorded several singles for smaller record labels. In 1966, he began an association with Stax Records, where he enjoyed his greatest commercial success with both singles and albums. His 1967 album, Born Under a Bad Sign, has been acknowledged as one of the most important blues albums.[1][2][3]
Studio albums15
Live albums15
Compilation albums22+
Singles47
| Albert King discography | |
|---|---|
| Studio albums | 15 |
| Live albums | 15 |
| Compilation albums | 22+ |
| Singles | 47 |
After Stax's bankruptcy in 1975, King recorded for several smaller labels. Meanwhile, his former record companies issued a number of live recordings, compilations, and re-packaged material. This trend accelerated after King's death in 1992, resulting in some charting releases as well as the inevitable redundancies.
Albums 1962–1992
Studio albums
| Year | Title | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&B | US | |||
| 1969 | Years Gone By | Stax (STS-2010) | 133 | |
| Jammed Together (with Steve Cropper & Pops Staples) | Stax (STS-2020) | 171 | ||
| 1970 | Blues for Elvis - King Does the King's Things | Stax (STS-2015) | ||
| 1971 | Lovejoy | Stax (STS-2040) | 29 | 188 |
| 1972 | I'll Play the Blues for You | Stax (STS-3009); 2012 reissue: Stax (33716) | 11 | 140 |
| 1974 | I Wanna Get Funky | Stax (STS-5505) | 37 | |
| 1976 | Truckload of Lovin' | Utopia (BUL 1-1387)[a] | 26 | 166 |
| Albert | Utopia (BUL 1-1731)[b] | 54 | ||
| 1977 | King Albert | Tomato (TOM-6002) | ||
| The Pinch[5] (re-released in 1992 as The Blues Don't Change)[6] | Stax (STX-4101); Stax (8570) | |||
| 1978 | New Orleans Heat | Tomato (TOM-7022) | 74 | |
| 1983 | San Francisco '83 (re-released in 1992 as Crosscut Saw: Albert King in San Francisco with 2 bonus tracks) | Fantasy (F-9627); Stax (8571) | ||
| 1984 | I'm in a Phone Booth, Baby | Fantasy (F-9633); Stax (8560) | ||
| 1986 | The Lost Session (archive release; recorded 1971; with John Mayall) | Stax (8534) | ||
| 1991 | Red House | Essential! (ESSLP 147) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Live albums
| Year | Title | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&B | US | |||
| 1968 | Live Wire/Blues Power | Stax (STS-2003) | 40 | 150 |
| 1972 | Wattstax: The Living Word (also various Stax performers) | Stax (STS 2-3010) | ||
| 1974 | Montreux Festival (also Chico Hamilton and Little Milton) | Stax (STS-5520) | ||
| 1977 | Albert Live | Utopia (CYL2-2205)[c] | 182 | |
| 1988 | Blues at Sunrise[d] | Stax (8546) | ||
| 1989 | I'll Play the Blues for You (also John Lee Hooker; recorded 1977) | Tomato (2696141) | ||
| 1990 | Wednesday Night in San Francisco[e] | Stax (8556) | ||
| 1990 | Thursday Night in San Francisco[f] | Stax (8557) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Compilation albums
| Year | Title | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak US[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | The Big Blues (re-released in 1969 as Travelin' To California) | King (852) | ||
| 1967 | Born Under a Bad Sign | Stax (S 723); 2013 reissue: Stax (34334) | ||
| 1969 | King of the Blues Guitar | Atlantic (SD 8213) | 194 | |
| 1969 | Door to Door (also Otis Rush) | Chess (LP-1538); 1990 reissue: Chess/MCA (CH-9322) | ||
| 1979 | Chronicle (also Little Milton) | Stax (STX-4123) | ||
| 1982 | Masterworks | Atlantic Deluxe (AD 2-4002) | ||
| 1986 | The Best of Albert King | Stax/Fantasy (FCD-60-005) | ||
| 1989 | Let's Have a Natural Ball | Modern Blues (MBLP-723) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Posthumous albums (since 1993)
Selected live albums
| Year | Title | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak Blues | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Blues at Sunset | Stax (8581) | ||
| 1994 | Chicago 1978 | Charly (754) | ||
| 1998 | Rainin' in California | Wolf (120.500) | ||
| 1999 | In Session (with Stevie Ray Vaughan) | Stax (7501); Stax (31423) | 1 | |
| 1999 | Live in Canada | Charly (755) | ||
| 2001 | Godfather of the Blues: His Last European Tour 1992 [DVD release] | P-Vine | ||
| 2003 | Talkin' Blues | Thirsty Ear (THI 57129.2) | ||
| Live 69 | Tomato (TOM-2068) | |||
| Blues from the Road (reissue of Albert Live) | Fuel 2000 (03020 61318 26) | |||
| 2014 | Live in the '70s | Rockbeat (ROC-3245) | ||
| 2015 | Live at the Fabulous Forum! 1972 | Rockbeat (ROC-3324) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Selected compilation albums
Numerous Albert King compilation albums issued by a number of record companies have been released over the years (AllMusic shows over 100 compilations).[7] The following lists some of the more notable and current releases:
| Year | Title | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak Blues | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | The Ultimate Collection | Rhino (71268) | ||
| 1994 | The Tomato Years | Rhino (71623) | ||
| Funky London | Stax (8586) | |||
| 1996 | Hard Bargain | Stax (8594) | ||
| 1999 | Blues Masters: The Very Best of Albert King | Rhino (75703) | ||
| 2001 | More Big Blues | Ace (827) | ||
| 2001 | Guitar Man: An Essential Collection | Fuel 2000 (03020 61129 24) | ||
| 2002 | Blue on Blues (also Freddie King) | Fuel 2000 (03020 61186 29) | ||
| 2004 | The Complete King & Bobbin Recordings | Collectables (2887) | ||
| 2006 | Stax Profiles: Albert King | Stax (8622) | ||
| 2007 | The Very Best of Albert King | Stax (30296) | 13 | |
| 2011 | The Definitive Albert King On Stax | Stax (32765) | ||
| 2013 | Roadhouse Blues | Stax (34406) | ||
| 2017 | Stax Classics: Albert King | Stax/Concord (STX-00200) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Singles 1954–1992
| Year | Title A-side / B-side | Label (Cat. no.) | Chart peak[8] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&B | US | |||
| 1954 | "Bad Luck Blues" / "Be on Your Merry Way" | Parrot (798) | ||
| 1959 | "Why Are You So Mean to Me" / "Ooh-Ee Baby" | Bobbin (114) | ||
| 1960 | "Need You By My Side" / "The Time Has Come" | Bobbin (119) | ||
| "Blues at Sunrise" / "Let's Have a Natural Ball" | Bobbin (126) | |||
| 1961 | "I Walked All Night Long" / "I've Made Nights by Myself" | Bobbin (129) | ||
| "Don't Throw Your Love on Me So Strong" / "This Morning" | King (5575)[g] | 14 | ||
| "Travelin' to California" / "Dyna-Flow" | King (5588)[h] | |||
| 1962 | "I Get Evil" / "What Can I Do to Change Your Mind" | Bobbin (135) | ||
| 1963 | "I'll Do Anything You Say" / "Got to Be Some Changes Made" | Bobbin (141) | ||
| "How About that Old Blue Ribbon" / "I've Made Nights by Myself" | Bobbin (143) | |||
| "This Funny Feeling" / "Had You Told It Like It Was" | King (5751) | |||
| 1964 | "Worrisome Baby" / "C. O. D." | Coun-Tree (1006) | ||
| "Lonesome" / "You Threw Your Love on Me Too Strong" | Coun-Tree (1007) | |||
| 1966 | "Laundromat Blues" / "Overall Junction" | Stax (190) | 29 | |
| "Oh Pretty Woman" / "Funk Shun" | Stax (197) | |||
| 1967 | "Crosscut Saw" / "Down Don't Bother Me" | Stax (201) | 34 | |
| "Born Under a Bad Sign" / "Personal Manager" | Stax (217) | 49 | ||
| 1968 | "Cold Feet" / "You Sure Drive a Hard Bargain" | Stax (241) | 20 | 67 |
| "(I Love) Lucy" / "You're Gonna Need Me" | Stax (252) | 46 | ||
| "Blues Power" / "Night Stomp" | Stax (0020) | |||
| 1969 | "The Hunter" / "As the Years Go Passing By" | Atlantic (2604) | ||
| "Drowning on Dry Land Pt. I" / "Pt. II" | Stax (0034) | |||
| "Tupelo Pt. I" / "Pt. II" | Stax (0047) | |||
| "Water" / "Opus De Soul" | Stax (0048) | |||
| "Cockroach" / "Wrapped Up in Love Again" | Stax (0058) | |||
| 1970 | "Can't You See What You're Doing to Me" / "Cold Sweat" | Stax (0069) | 50 | 127 |
| 1971 | "Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven" / "Lovejoy, Ill." | Stax (0101) | 38 | 103 |
| 1972 | "Angel of Mercy" / "Funky London" | Stax (0121) | 42 | |
| "I'll Play the Blues for You Pt. I" / "Pt. II" | Stax (0135) | 31 | ||
| "Breaking Up Somebody's Home" / "Little Brother (Make a Way)" | Stax (0147) | 35 | 91 | |
| 1973 | "Playing on Me" / "High Cost of Living" | Stax (0166) | ||
| 1974 | "That's What the Blues Is All About" / "I Wanna Get Funky" | Stax (0189) | 15 | |
| "Flat Tire" / "I Can't Hear Nothing but the Blues" | Stax (0217) | |||
| "Crosscut Saw" / "Don't Burn Down the Bridge" | Stax (0228) | |||
| "Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin'" / "Don't Burn Down the Bridge" | Stax (0234)[i] | |||
| 1975 | "I'm Doing Fine" / "Ain't It Beautiful" | Stax (0245) | ||
| 1976 | "Cadillac Assembly Line" / "Nobody Wants a Loser" | Utopia (10544) | 40 | |
| "Sensation, Communication Together" / "Gonna Make It Somehow" | Utopia (10682) | 80 | ||
| "Guitar Man" / "Rub My Back" | Utopia (10770) | 79 | ||
| 1977 | "Ain't Nothing You Can Do" /"I Don't Care What My Baby Do" | Utopia (10879) | 95 | |
| 1978 | "Call My Job" / "Love Shock" | Tomato (10001) | 72 | |
| "Chump Change" / "Good Time Charlie" | Tomato (10002) | 72 | ||
| "The Pinch Paid Off Pt. I" / "Pt. II" | Stax (3203) | |||
| 1979 | "The Very Thought of You" / "I Get Evil" | Tomato (10009) | 87 | |
| "Born Under a Bad Sign" / "I've Got the Blues" | Tomato (10012) | |||
| 1983 | "Ask Me No Questions" / "Honey Bee" | Fantasy (940) | ||
| 1986 | "Down the Road I Go" / "Money Lovin' Woman" | Stax (1071) | ||
| A blank space under "Chart peak" indicates a release that did not reach the charts. | ||||
Footnotes
- Also issued as Tomato TOM-6003
- Also issued as Tomato TOM-6004
- Also issued as Tomato TOM2-7005
- Recorded 1973, Erlewine 1996, p. 148
- Recorded 1968, Erlewine 1996, p. 148
- Recorded 1968, Erlewine 1996, p. 148
- Also issued as Bobbin 131
- Also issued as Bobbin 130 and King 6265
- Also issued as Stax 3225