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Rating: Throughout its history, blues has had three kings: almost everyone knows who B.B. King is, many know who Albert King is, and probably far fewer know who Freddie King is.
Originally from Texas, he took the surname King from his mother, driven by the ambition to follow in the footsteps of the already famous Blues Boy. After moving to Chicago in the late '40s, he came into contact with the music of giants like Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Willie Dixon. After a failed attempt to get recruited by the legendary Chess Records, he found his first contract in the late '50s, releasing a single titled "Have You Ever Loved A Woman," which sold well and began to make his name known.
His debut album came in 1961 with "Freddy King Sings," followed a few months later by this "Let's Hide Away And Dance Away With Freddy King", a record that, as the cover suggests, is "strictly instrumental." The 12 tracks that make it up do not exceed three and a half minutes in length but showcase all the talent of the corpulent guitarist in creating riffs and phrases that in years to come would inspire numerous musicians of the caliber of Eric Clapton, Peter Green, and the Vaughan brothers, just to name a few.
King's style is particularly innovative. The choice to compose mainly instrumental pieces is already quite revolutionary, plus it gives little room to improvisation to prioritize more studied themes that can make up for the lack of vocals and easily capture the listener's attention. The essential and driving rhythm section, at times close to funky, provides an excellent backdrop for the pentatonic evolutions of the Texan guitarist, who can rely on a vast repertoire of phrases, played with his unmistakable touch.
From a technical point of view, Freddie King's dirty sound is achieved by playing with a pick on the thumb and one on the index finger, to have a more aggressive attack on the guitar, and, especially in the early part of his career, with a Les Paul with two P-90 pickups.
The album opens with the legendary "Hide Away," one of the most covered blues tracks ever, composed by assembling various parts of pieces by other artists. It condenses all the strengths of King's style mentioned above and alone could earn this album a 5-star rating, given its immeasurable influence. But as you let the various "Butterscotch," "Sen-Sa-Shun," "The Stumble," "San-Ho-Zay," "Just Pickin'," and all the other tracks on the album play, you encounter solos, phrases, and riffs that will feed entire generations of guitarists.
In essence, an essential album for those who love blues.
Tracklist and Videos
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