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Let me say it right up front so there's no mistake: B.B. King's latest CD is his best album in a long time, and one of his best ever. It's a return to his roots, and the music of the musicians who inspired him to play the blues.
You can almost sense King's sentiments here: A look back at his own legacy as he approaches his 83rd birthday (Sept. 16) and the opening of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in his hometown of Indianola, Miss., on land where King had once planned a home.
He may not be saying goodbye, but it sounds like he's saying that his life was rich with music, and he's thanking these old pioneers who helped make it possible. And making sure that his own legacy in the blues is secure.
The title track is a revelation. His electrified but elegantly spare version of the classic Blind Lemon Jefferson's "See That My Grave is Kept Clean" emphasizes an especially poignant vocal, driven by unique percussion and gentle organ riffs, with a brilliantly simple guitar intro and later solo. It's a minor masterpiece that sets the tone for the rest of the songs.
Plus, its haunting lyrics " ... dig my grave with a silver spade and lay me down with a golden chain ... " are blues poetry at its best. A great choice for the opener and the theme of the whole set.
The basic band here -- Jim Keltner on drums, Nathan East on upright bass and Dr. John on piano -- are effective but not intrusive, letting King's vocals through with a sensitivity and passion that hasn't happened for while in his recordings. They recorded as a studio unit, with only the horns being dubbed. It's the way any music was meant to be played and recorded. I can almost forgive the horn dubbing. King's guitar playing is tough, sweet and always lyrical, and T Bone Burnett's production keeps it clean and upfront with the vocals.
It's the complete CD, with no filler, no low points. If you never hear another King CD, this is the way you'll want to remember the man. After the intimate opener, he and the band dig into T-Bone Walker's "I Get So Weary" with its swinging opening riffs, and King launches a tough vocal session that romps right to the sweet closing guitar lines.
"Get These Blues Off Me" is a powerfully slow and moving ballad; "How Many More Years" is a melodic romp through the Howlin' Wolf number; "Waiting for Your Call" is another torchy ballad; "My Love is Down" is King's languid take on the intricate Lonnie Johnson tune, one of his main bluesmen; "The World is Gone Wrong" updates the Mississippi Sheiks -- "I can't be good no more baby, honey because the world is goin' wrong ..." This is a great old song, and King makes its spirit ring true.
Jon Lee Hooker's "Blues Before Sunrise" highlights Dr. John's piano in counterpoint to King's guitar, wrapped lovingly around the vocal. Big Bill Broonzy's "Backwater Blues" is another treat featuring piano, guitar and gritty vocals.
Then there's a prime cut of the Sheiks chestnut "Sittin' On Top of the World," and then the closer, another very fine Johnson tune, the very gentle "Tomorrow Night," on which Dr. John and King again open with magical interplay, then a soft sax fill, then those fat, liquid BB guitar notes.
It's a great outing for King, and assuming he keeps recording, it will be hard to top.
Couple this effort with Buddy Guy's latest "Skin Deep," and you have a pair of powerful statements from two of the few remaining blues legends that they are not going softly into the dark blue night of their careers.
-- Jim White
(Read more on this CD and other blues on Jim White's BlueNotes blog at community.post-gazette.com/blogs/bluenotes/)
Terrence Howard gave a hint of his musical skills when he played an aspiring rapper in the 2005 film "Hustle & Flow." He performed the movie's catchiest tune, "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp," which went on to win the Academy Award for best original song.
The actor didn't write that song, but he wrote, arranged, produced and performed on all 11 tracks on his debut album, "Shine Through It," making good on his longtime musical aspirations.
The album is a satisfying sampler of Howard's skills and varied influences. There are Latin rhythms, island beats, soaring strings and jazzy horns surrounding lyrics about love, life, youth and yearning.
Howard gets personal, musing about the power of love on the flute-and-piano tinged "Love Makes You Beautiful" and confessing his relationship sins on "No. 1 Fan." But he tends toward the dramatic, opening the instrumental track "It's All Game" with this deadly serious observation: "In every relationship, there's this factor of least interest involved, meaning the person least interested in maintaining it will dominate it because they won't compromise. Think about it."
Howard is at his best on the upbeat songs that comprise half the album.
He invokes Stevie Wonder on "I Remember When," a carefree, harmonica-infused tune punctuated by a whistling choir. Whistles also open "She Was Mine," a song suited for a speakeasy with its groovy blend of keyboards, piano and walking bass. Cuban rhythms and bright horns enliven "Mr. Johnson's Lawn," while a hip-hop beat enhances the pop nature of "Plenty."
With a two-album deal in place, Howard's impressive debut sets him up to travel in any musical direction.
-- Sandy Cohen, Associated Press
First Published: September 4, 2008, 4:00 a.m.
