Burglar (album)
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- Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, England
- Criteria, Miami, Florida ("Sugar Sweet")
| Burglar | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1974 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Length | 37:38 | |||
| Label | RSO | |||
| Producer | Mike Vernon | |||
| Freddie King chronology | ||||
| ||||
Burglar is an album by the American musician Freddie King, released in 1974.[1][2] King signed with RSO Records on the advice of Eric Clapton.[3] King supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Rush, among others.[4] Burglar charted on Billboard's Soul LPs chart.[5] In 2023, Lurrie Bell recorded an interpretation of the complete album.[6]
The album was produced primarily by Mike Vernon, with Tom Dowd doing some work at Criteria Studios.[7][8] Clapton played guitar on "Sugar Sweet"; he and his band recorded three other songs with King during the session, which were released later.[8][9][10] Bobby Tench also contributed on guitar.[11] King, who wrote two of the songs, added elements of pop and funk to his Texas blues sound.[12][13] "Pack It Up" is a cover of the Gonzalez song.[14] "She's a Burglar" was written by Jerry Ragovoy.[15] "Pulp Wood" is an instrumental.[16]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [8] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [17] |
| The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues | [18] |
Billboard wrote that "King sings in his usual rough vocals but continues to let his fluid and graceful guitar do most of the talking."[19] The Bracknell and Ascot Times praised King's "incomparable wailing, bending and soaring electric guitar and superb voice."[20] The Hammersmith and Shepherds Bush Gazette deemed the album "an exciting mixture of the traditional slow blues and the wilder, more extroverted rhythm 'n' blues."[21] The Lincoln Journal Star stated that "King can fool you because he plays with such a big beat, but he is a sensitive guitar player when he gets down."[22]
AllMusic wrote that "Burglar is one of those gems that journeymen can put together in their sleep."[8] The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings noted that King's "guitar solos rarely descend below the eighth fret."[17] The Plain Dealer included the album on its list of the "100 greatest guitar albums from Rock & Roll Hall of Famers", concluding that "King puts it all together as artist, creating a mix of blues and funk with his guitar and voice."[23]