When it comes to the three Kings of modern blues, the somptuous and essential monarchs of groove, vocals and electric guitar, B.B. King is certainly the boss, coupled with a great gentleman

Intro

In the early 1950s, B.B. King revolutionized the world of blues with his unique electric guitar style, that extended the voice in a single duet. He became a DJ in Memphis on one of the first radio stations to target an African-American audience. B.B. King developed early a great technical dexterity, all-round, clear, obvious, with his Gibson guitar named Lucille, which became an extension of his voice&nbsp;(1). B.B. King had a great influence on other blues and rock guitarists, like Eric Clapton, Ben Harper, and Derek Trucker (2). Like other African-American bluesmen, his career was revived when he opened for the Rolling Stones on their 1969 US tour following their album Beggars Banquet. Despite his multi-Grammy status, B.B. King's income as a blues player was not that of a white rock star. He toured extensively for most of his life, regularly playing over 300 concerts a year for decades. He always maintained his dignity in the face of acute segregation in the American South, saying&nbsp;«&nbsp;If you hurt me, chances are I won’t tell you. I’ll just move on. Moving on is a method of healing my hurt and, man, I’ve been moving on all my life. » (1) We saw B.B. King in July 1979 at the first of his 21 appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival, surrounded on stage by great guest guitarists: <a href="https://ethnicfolkdance.com/article/82" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Albert Collins</a>, Clarence «Gatemouth» Brown, <a href="https://ethnicfolkdance.com/article/17" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Little Milton</a>, Roy Clark, Taj Mahal and Lonnie Brooks.--- (1) «Lucille kept her own pace, sometimes pausing and lingering on a sorrowful tone before lurching forward and crashing to a halt in a jumble of notes» writes Daniel de Visé in his excellent comprehensive biography <a href="https://danieldevise.com/product/king-of-the-blues-the-rise-and-reign-of-bb-king" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of B.B. King</a>&nbsp; [Atlantic Monthly Press, 2021]. (2) In 2025, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-guitarists-1234814010/joni-mitchell-12-1234814235/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rolling Stone</a> ranked B.B. King 8th among the 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. «He's the embodiment of breaking through and keeping your spirit. There's no bitterness. When he sings, it lifts the spirit of the place» said in Rollling Stone Derek Trucker from the Allman Brothers Band.

B.B. King

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B.B. King | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1979

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My selection of music records

Titre music

Wails - Crown (US) 1958

Chapter One - Blue Horizon (UK) 1969

Chapter One - Blue Horizon (UK)  1969

Live At The Regal - ABC Paramount (US) 1965 

Live At The Regal - ABC Paramount (US) 1972 

Completely Well - Bluesway (US) 1969

The Thrill is Gone

Lucille

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The Staple Singers took on their full dimension with the raucus and sultry contralto voice of Mavis Staples, a major singer in the world of soul music

The Staple Singers were a rare example of a mixed group from the 1950s to 1970s that first achieved significant success in gospel, then maintained their rank by playing soul music. Despite the success, this family ensemble of three sisters and one brother has remained tight-knit under the leadership of their father and singer-guitarist Roebuck Pops Staples (1).&nbsp; The family, heir to the minimalism and expressiveness of Delta blues and country gospel (1), moved early from their Mississippi farm to Chicago to record with the big labels Vee-Jay, Riverside, Epic, then Stax, and was strongly involved in the Civil Rights Movement and the birth of protesting folk music. The group took on its full dimension with the raucous and sultry contralto voice of Mavis Staples (2,3) which unfolded in spectacular fashion above the melodic line often sung a cappella and simply accompanied by the guitar of Pops. In 1981, the Staple Singers&nbsp;performed their unique show at the Montreux Jazz Festival (Mavis Staples alone will return to the festival 4 times). --- (1) Pops has built up a large repertoire of traditional songs with his grandfather, who was born a slave and then lived as a free man for a long time. (2) In 2025, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-singers-all-time-1234642307/mavis-staples-9-1234643125/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rolling Stone</a> ranked Mavis Staples 46th among the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time and quotes Bob Dylan: «That just made my hair stand up, listening to that. I mean, that just seemed like, That's the way the world is».&nbsp; (3) &nbsp;For more information, visit <a href="https://mavisstaples.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mavis Staples</a> official website.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Staple Singers

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Mavis Staples - The Staple Singers&nbsp; | Montreux Jazz Festival - July 1981

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Titre vinyl

Wattstax, The Living Word - Stax (US) 1972

Bealtitude: Respect Yourself - Stax (US) 1972

Hammer And Nails - Riverside (US) 1962

From roots gospel to funky soul

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Staple Singers

Freddie King is one of the three Kings of modern blues, the somptuous and essential monarchs of groove, vocals, and electric guitar

Originally from Texas, Freddie King left for Chicago where, as a teenager, he joined the small club of the great Chicago bluesmen, including Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters,&nbsp;and Little Walter. His style on the electric guitar is based on thorough musical developments, which are complemented by fiery drives and an incendiary energy on stage. Freddie King is a recognized master who has had a great influence on major British blues guitarists such as Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Jeff Beck,&nbsp;and Mick Taylor&nbsp;(1). We went to see Freddie King in July 1973 for his unique show at the Montreux Jazz Festival,&nbsp;backed by&nbsp;Melvyn Jones on organ, David Maxwell on piano, Benny Turner on bass and Charles Myers on drums. --- (1) In 2025, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-guitarists-1234814010/freddy-king-3-1234814257/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rolling Stone</a> ranked Freddie King 19th among the 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. → Photo: Freddie King poses for the kids that we are, who managed to enter the hall in the afternoon during sound-check. In the evening, the concert started around midnight and ended around 3 a.m. with the audience dancing standing on the chairs of the Palais des Congrès.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Freddie King

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«Texas Cannonbal » Freddie King concert was introduced by Dr. John, who will play the next day in a crazy New Orleans night with the Meters, Allen Toussaint&nbsp;and Professor&nbsp;Longhair&nbsp;&nbsp;

Dr John

Charles Myers

Melvyn Jones (founder in 1963 of Baby Huey &amp; the Babysitters)

Melvyn Jones 

David Maxwell 

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On the same night, the Sonny Terry &amp; Brownie McGhee duo also played, as well as Mickey Baker and Memphis Slim, backed by the Freddie King's orchestra → For more information about Mickey Baker, see his biography, <a href="https://www.editions-seguier.fr/produit/alone/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Alone</a> (available in French only)&nbsp;

Sonny Terry Brownie McGhee

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Tire records

Have You Ever Loved A Woman - Federal (US) 1960

Have You Ever Loved A Woman

Hide Away - Federal (US) 1961

Hide Away

Sings - King (US) 1961

I’m Tore Down

Texas Cannonball - Shelter (US) 1972

Big Legged Woman

Dr. John / Gris-Gris - ATCO (US) 1968

Mama Roux

Dr. John / In The Right Place - Atco (US) 1973

Such A Night

Texas Cannonball

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Club New Morning, Geneva, Switzerland, January 1980 . → Fine Art Prints on professional Ilford pearl photo paper → Limited edition of 100, hand numbered and signed on back → Sold unframed; shipping fees offered → All images are available to buy as print on request

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Albert King #10

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Albert King #03

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Nicknamed Velvet Bulldozer, Albert King is one of the three Kings of modern electric blues, the somptuous monarchs of groove, vocals and guitar

Albert King, Velvet Bulldozer (1), is especially appreciated for his funky soul music with long, slow, and hypnotic guitar phrasing supported by the powerful rhythm section of the Stax label and the brass of the Memphis Horns. Self-taught left-handed musician, he simply plays his guitar upside down without changing the position of the strings. Albert King had a great influence on guitarists such as Jimmy Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Duane Allman (2). --- (1) With a height of 1.93 m for 118 kg (2) In 2025, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-guitarists-1234814010/albert-king-3-1234814283/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rolling Stone</a> ranked Albert King 22th among the 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

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ALBERT KING

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Albert King | Club New Morning Geneva - January 1980

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Born Under A Bad Sign - Stax (US) 1967

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I’ll Play The Blues For You - Stax (US) 1972

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I Wanna Gat Funky - Stax (US) 1974

ROCK &amp; ROLL

A Decade after its explosion in the 1960s, rock has grown a bit wise and is being rocked by the surge of punk rock. The raw energy of rock &amp; roll opens to the new wave

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Rock & Roll

«&nbsp;For our purposes I think it is enough to say that the blues came out from Mississippi, sniffed around in Memphis and then settled in Chicago where it is more likely it will peacefully live out the rest of its days. » [Peter Guralnick, Feel Like Going Home, 1971]

Big Blues

Shaken by the relentless commercial hype of disco fashion, African American artists of blues, soul, and funk are nonetheless fully present from the 1970s to today

Soul Funk

Velvet Bulldozer

Albert King

For lovers of up-tempo rock’n’pop, Rockpile was the dream ticket

Rockpile was a British rock’n’roll and power pop band, with elements of country and rockabilly. They were active from December 1976 to early February 1981. The band consisted of Dave Edmunds (guitar &amp; vocals), Nick Lowe&nbsp;(bass &amp; vocals), Billy Bremner (guitar &amp; vocals), and Terry Williams (drums). Apart from great studio recordings (1), the band was an excellent hard-driving live band. They toured intensively and were almost always on the road which included five US tours. The concerts were short and very intense, the slow numbers were left at home, and lasted no more than around an hour.&nbsp; But, after almost 4 years of constant touring and recording, which also included production work for other artists, the band was coming to an end. In February 1981, to much surprise for the fans and people in the music business, Rockpile abruptly disbanded. The official explanation was mainly contractual disagreements, but probably Nick Lowe was correct when he later said the now-famous words: We got together for fun and when the fun all had been had we packed it in.&nbsp; I just wish that they had stayed together for a few more years! They really were that good.&nbsp; Rikard Bengtsson We watched Rockpile at the Montreux Jazz Festival in July 1980 as the opening act for Elvis Costello. --- (1)&nbsp;The fact that Dave Edmund and Nick Lowe were signed to different record labels (Dave to Swan Song/Atlantic and Nick to Radar/Columbia) meant that they - for the first three years - could not record under the Rockpile name. But Dave Edmund’s solo albums Tracks on Wax 4, Repeat When Necessary, and Twangin’ and Nick Lowe’s Labour of Lust are all with the full Rockpile line-up, apart from a few other guesting musicians such as Huey Lewis and Albert Lee.&nbsp; It would not be until 1980 – when Dave&nbsp;and Nick's contracts came to an end – that they could cut the first true Rockpile album, the much-awaited Seconds of Pleasure, which was released in the autumn of 1980. Rockpile also backed other artists like Carlene Carter on her 1980 album Musical Shapes (on all songs except two) and on Mickey Jupp’s Juppanese from 1978 (a-side).&nbsp;

Rockpile

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Rockpile - Billy Bremner, Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe, Terry Williams | Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland - July 1980

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This project is something quite unique. Crawling From the Wreckage is the first book ever written about Rockpile, the British rock ’n’ roll band that was formed in London in 1976 by Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe. It contains more than 200 photos, including exclusive shots from the infamous concert at the Bottom Line in New York, 1978, when Keith Richards from the Rolling Stones&nbsp;joined the band on stage, and previously unseen photage from the Roundhouse in London the very same year.&nbsp; Devoted fans, as well as people in the music business such as Gregg Geller, former A&amp;R at Columbia Records, shares their memories and stories. Interviews have been conducted with guitarist Billy Bremner and drummer Terry Williams, but also with Rockpile’s tour manager Andy Cheeseman&nbsp;and the band’s recording engineers Aldo Bocca, Roger Bechirian and Neill King. Barry Farmer at Pathway Studios also talks about the group and their very first recording – They Called it Rock. The foreword is written by the British musician, author and music journalist Will Birch and the afterword by the Swedish journalist and author Mats Olsson – both true Rockpile devotees by heart. When Nick Lowe in recent years was asked why there never was a Rockpile reunion, he replied that it was better for people to remember Rockpile for what they were. And that’s the very essence of the book; memories of a band that is considered by many to be one of the best live acts that have ever entered a stage.&nbsp; As Will Birch puts it in the foreword: For lovers of up-tempo rock’n’pop, Rockpile were the dream ticket. Rikard Bengtsson – co-editor&nbsp; &gt;&gt;&gt; For book orders, please e-mail Rikard at: rikard@hammarsjon.se

Crawling from the Wreckage - A Tribute to Rockpile [Sweden 2021]

Slider book

Rockpile, Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe | Concert US

Hanson US

Rockpile, Dave Edmunds, Terry Williams | Werchter Festival, Belgium 1978

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