We'll finish off March with a ten-alarm fire of a show from a long departed heavyweight player.
I wasn't going to post it, but it's just too good not to.
This one was taped on the home turf of its star, at the height of his immeasurable artistry.
Hometown shows often bring out the very best in musicians, and this 65 minutes of blazing Blues battery is no exception to that axiom.
Born in Texas in 1934, by the mid 1970s Freddie King was a guitar destroyer at the peak of his powers.
No disrespect to Albert and Riley B., but Freddie was always my personal favorite of the Three Kings of The Blues.
He'd be gone less than two years after this was recorded, and this broadcast was replayed in the wake of his death at the end of 1976 by Dallas FM institution KZEW, The Zoo.
This is where our share today is sourced, taped as it was 44 years ago today in another Dallas institution -- this one a legendary recording studio -- January Sound Studios.
Look out for the (not awfully politically correct) beer ad at the end, featuring Freddie... it is truly something else.
Freddie King
January Sound Studios
Dallas, Texas
3.31.1975
01 KZEW-FM intro by Ken Rundell
02 Big Legged Woman
03 Woman Across the River
04 The Moon Is Rising
05 Ain't Nobody's Business
06 Key to the Highway
07 Hide Away
08 Going Down
09 Early One Morning
10 Come On
11 Have You Ever Loved a Woman
12 KZEW-FM outro by Ken Rundell/Lone Star Beer commercial
Total time: 1:05:23
Freddie King - vocals & guitar
Benny Turner - bass & vocals
Melvyn "Deacon" Jones - keyboards
probably Charles “Sugar Boy” Myers - drums
seems like an off-air master cassette of a vintage Dec. 1976 KZEW-FM broadcast in memory of Freddie King
305 MB FLAC/March 2019 archive link
I repaired a small volume dip in one of the songs in this, and amended some of the incorrect band and title info, but otherwise it is here in its unaltered state.
We'll hit the ground running in April with two consecutive milestone birthday jams on behalf of two long gone legends, so stay tuned.
And do make sure you pick up on this shredding anniversary show from the mind-crushingly talented Mr. King... trust me, it's a Texas sized cannonball.--J.
9.3.1934 - 12.28.1976