Albert King - History of his Guitars

I have the following corrections (it's not always like this!):
Thanks to my friend Henry Kaiser he has informed me that the photo with Fred Below is in fact Otis Rush from Henry who is convinced of that:
The drummer is FRED BELOW. So it’s in Chicago.I am pretty sure the guitarist is a young OTIS RUSH’. He is playing left-handed. And the strings are reversed. Albert was born April 25, 1923 and the photo looks like 1958 when Albert would have been 35 years old. The guy in the photo is too young for 35. Otis was born April 29, 1934 so he would have been 24 in 1958. The dude in the photo looks like he is 24.
100% that it’s not Albert, due to the age of the guitarist. It does look like a 24 year old Otis. But there are not other young pix for comparison. So, I say 98% likely it is young Otis, due to the left hand stringing and playing. 100% for sure, the drummer is Fred Below. At age 32.
also thanks to @haloskater24 who informed me the photo at 3:49 is in fact Tommy McClennan.
thanks to B. Rod Clark - I Wanna Get Funky is the eighth studio album by Albert King, covering various blues tunes with heavy funk overtones, by Albert King, recorded in 1972 and released in 1973

[@ed.z.]

I had the pleasure to spend about half an hour talking with Albert King before a show at The Village Gate, Greenwich Village, NYC. I wanted to ask him about his performance, decades earlier, at the Fillmore East. He was very generous and patient. A genuine blues master, legend, and his smoky voice is unforgettable. He is greatly missed.

[@stuartpenney6829]

Saw Albert a couple of times live. Once he couldn't get the sound he wanted and spent half the set berating the sound man. Then he broke a string and with no spare guitar he pulled an E string out of his back pocket and changed it himself while the band vamped. Finally, it all came good and the last 30 mins were amazing.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Great to hear this thanks

[@Lookup2Wakeup]

I saw Albert Collins at the town & country club in London in the mid 1980s. He wanted the guitar / amp set up in a certain way. The venue disagreed with him, came on stage to say if the sound was crap, it was not their fault. Any way, it all sounded good to me......

[@abnerlook3869]

Was that Sawtell RSL?? I was there front row and we got that string and have still got the huge poster from the foyer Tues 4 Dec 199? with canned heat support

[@stuartpenney6829]

@@abnerlook3869 The show I saw was in Perth, W. Australia. I forgot to add that while he changed the string Albert told a long story with the theme: Boy meets girl. Boy loses girl. Boy gets the blues. The guitar was one of the Brad Prokopow. King or Dan Erlewine walnut flying Vs

@@Lookup2Wakeup So did I. And Buddy Guy & Junior Wells. And I think Otis Rush played there once.

[@dwightruffin9461]

Albert King was the kindest and nicest guy. I was in the 5th grade in Forrest City, Ar. A friend and me was riding bicycles around the convention center and heard a band warming up inside. I'd been playing guitar since I was 5 so we went inside and I hollowed : I play guitar. and the guy hollowed back well get on up here and I did. He handed me his "V" and I turned it over and played the old song Gloria and the band played along. Well, the old gentlemen started talking about his new amp(big ass Acoustic amp) then he took us out to his Cadillac and pulled a couple albums out and gave to us and signed them! We went back inside and he sat down and talked a few minutes and took a couple sips off that whiskey bottle. I spent the next year learning some Albert King licks. I was as they say: At the right place at the right time and thank the lord I was! Rest in peace sir and thank you for your kindness and the influence you gave me!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thank you Dwight for this

[@johngerson7335]

"Big Albert" for sure! Man makes a Flying V look like a toy when he's wearing it. My favorite bluesman, he's the bridge between trad-blues and heavy blues-rock for sure. Thanks Ramon!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Pleasure John

[@michaeltaylor8734]

Albert's V that was repaired by Rick Hancock in Memphis was actually in Albert's hotel room in West Memphis where he was staying at the time. A tornado came through West Memphis at I-40/55 at Ingram Boulevard and destroyed Albert's hotel room, thankfully Albert was not there at the time but LUCY was. Michael Woody, Alberts bus mechanic at the time went by to check on Albert but he was not there, this was before cell phones. Michael saw Lucy lying on the floor with the neck broken in several pieces and took the guitar along with Albert's other possessions and later caught up with Albert to return to him. Albert took the guitar to Rick and the rest is history. I know this to be true because I knew Albert,Rick and Michael Woody.

[@frantisca]

Once again, thank you Ramon for this thorough study on Albert King's guitars. In today's race for gear, it really humbles one to look at the master's first guitars ! I had the pleasure to record Albert king in 1973, while I was woking for the Montreux Jazz Festival. Albert played his Lucy made by Dan Erlewine as I was sitting in the booth with Stax Engineer/Producer Henry Bush (what a character !) and we later all had a party with Chico Hamilton who sang me happy birthday (boy what memories...).

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Rene! Very kind!

[@limpindug]

Enjoyed this short history, Albert one of the Giants, sadly not many left now. Respect and stay healthy all.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thank you - yes I agree most are sadly gone.

[@rooseveltdavis9559]

I think Buddy Guy is the only one left.

[@willdenham]

I discovered Albert with an old friend and bandmate. We developed a strong bond over our love of Albert. One day I was listening to Floyd and it seemed like almost everything Gilmour was playing sounded like Albert. His David's tone on Wish You Were Here is pure Albert. I guess that's why I like Gilmour so much.

[@BatmanBoss]

Albert King 👑

[@b.rodclark7349]

'I Wanna Get Funky' album is from 1974, not '86 and that Stratocaster was only for the photo session of that album and it's not known that he ever played that Strat. In 1977 my father took my mother brother and me to see him at a cocktail lounge in Detroit and it was the Erlewine Lucy V he played that evening and I would never forget the way he looked at me with a smile singing 'I'll Play The Blues For You' and did he ever? That was around the time he came out with 'Call My Job' which was recorded here in Detroit at United Sound System Studios.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks

[@AdrianAndersson]

You are right in that we don’t know if he ever played a strat at one time in concert. I don’t see why he wouldn’t be able to play a strat however if it was setup in a way that albert preferred. Photos have surfaced of him playing an epiphone riviera once in concert though.

[@b.rodclark7349]

@@TheGuitarShow no problem!

[@rams6702]

kinda cool that two of the three kings both had encounters with a lucille and named their guitars after them

[@BatmanBoss]

My favorites of his songs are “As Tge year ago passing by” and “I’ll play the blues for you”

[@michaeltaylor8734]

Another guitar fact about Lucy. Before Albert died he had been playing gigs at Blues City Cafe on Beale St across from BB KIngs Club in Memphis. Albert had been locking Lucy in the club owners office in between shows. When Albert died the guitar was locked in the office and the owner and his son claimed it was "NOT" there... so LUCY was supposedly MIA for many years until Steven Seagal began to visit Memphis Beale St. and became friends with Blues City Cafe owners. Magically!! next thing ya know Steven Seagal had acquired LUCY from where do ya guess???? LUCY left Memphis secretly and Seagal still has LUCY to this day.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for the info

[@guitarmanrommel3865]

It was SRV who Introduced to the world by playing in the Let's Dance album with Bowie. He said 'I wanted to see how many styles of music Albert King's playing fits "

[@TheGuitarShow]

You are write he did introduce a new generation but Albert had hits in the 1960s and he was always on the scene with BB King . Thanks Gutar man Rommel.

I love Let’s Dance as a song and an album.

[@davidallen346]

@The Guitar Show One of Jimi Hendrix guitar hero also Clapton in the Cream band cover born under the bad sign and Feel Free solo was inspired by Albert King as well

[@guitarmanrommel3865]

@@davidallen346 and what about Strange Brew of The Cream! 👍Mark Knopfler's lead on Dylan's Another Slow Train Coming.. Albert King influence.

[@guitarmanrommel3865]

@@TheGuitarShow thank you!✌️🎵

Looking forward to the next video. I was lucky enough to see him several times in London the late 80s and early 90s. The man had such presence on the stage. During a gig, he would take everything out of the PA except for his guitar and voice, and make the band really quiet. Even the incorrigible talkers, including the ones I would have already asked to shut up, would stop talking to see what was going on. He's my favourite blues guitarist. He could make one note do the work of a five minute shred. Utterly captivating on stage - and I'm not one who goes for the 'show', but the music.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for a brilliant comment

@@TheGuitarShow You’re very welcome. I was lucky enough to see all the great blues men that came to London, except for John Lee Hooker, due to few dates and work commitments. But that’s ok, as I’m not a huge fan. I like him, but can’t listen to too much.

[@TheVatonaught]

loved your post.

@@TheVatonaught Thank you.

[@kevinharnan8378]

Saw Albert King & John Lee Hooker in 80s. Both unspeakably great

[@josephpashka7369]

Albert King played the white Prokopow guitar during a WTTW Soundstage concert in Chicago in 1982. My photo of him there is on Wiki. He was so cordial. It would be nice if WTTW would release video of that show. It was on TV.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for this Joseph, and thanks for the info

[@glenkepic3208]

This is a great ! Just thinking about Gary Moore's "King Of The Blues" today. "He was born in Mississippi, 1924 " :). Blues At Sunrise is a must have for any Blues fan. I bought a 'best of" about 10 years ago and the cover photo looked the '67 style was a sunburst. After playing V types since the 80's, the only Gibson SB i ever saw was one family had. He played it from Slim's to CBGB's.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Great tune!

[@rickslickrickharvey9112]

Came home to both V's on my bed My partner , gibson blues rep, memphis was his band leader at peabody alley , club at the peabody memphis find gary belz there might be some vids of his show Albert was a gentleman. I had a blast hanging out with him his last years on beale st miss you my friend . Barb. .

[@maartendijkstra9829]

Love the history of his guitars videos! Thanks

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Maarten lots more coming very soon

[@Sldumas1983]

Great stuff man, Albert is one of my top favorite guitars all time I was just in the 4th grade when he died and I remember crying saying dang I hoped to meet him one day, I to play upside down it just feels better to me that way.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Samuel - he was the source!

[@johnrazer9736]

Love the series! Cheers.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks John

[@TheOlmecindian]

Awesome video as always 😎

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thank you

[@jinjxmusic]

I'm glad you made reference to the strat at the end. I've always wanted to know what was the deal with that one. :)

[@donciseau]

Great video and very educational too!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Don

[@misterwillguitar]

One of mt favourite players sir! Thank you!!!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Good lad

[@sauletto1]

Great video ! Thank you for this !

[@TheGuitarShow]

My pleasure!

[@xrhstosm7]

Excellent, as John Mayer introduction of Albert King in Rock n Roll Hall of Fame!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thank you Christos

[@robinrhodie1540]

OH LATE GREAT ALBERT KING OF BLUES MAN GOD BLESS LIVING LEGEND OF BLUES MAN ALL AWAYS 🎵🎵🎵👑👑👑🙏🙏🙏✝️✝️✝️🕊️🕊️🕊️

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for watching!

[@promerops]

Hi Ramon, It's taken me a long time to get to this video, but I'm so glad I have - it's the usual fascinating, informative and entertaining presentation. I have this vague idea in my mind that, during a lull in his career, Albert operated a bulldozer and was then 're-discovered' and put back on stage. I can't seem to find any reference to this in my 'library' and an internet search mentions the bulldozer work as being vey early in his life. A great pity I never got to see Albert live. Thanks and regards, Colin.

[@TheGuitarShow]

I think you are right - I did read that also. Great comment thanks

[@markwright9352]

I do enjoy these 👍🏻

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Mark

[@marksguitars5617]

very nice, I was able to see the pink sparkle V at Stax Museum, great info, thanks for sharing

[@TheGuitarShow]

Pleasure Mark, oh thats nice and shows what a nice guy Billy Gibbons is.

[@marksguitars5617]

@@TheGuitarShow yes indeed!

[@derekclacton]

Great video Ramon 👍 Born Under a Bad Sign and I’ll Play the Blues For You are two of my favourite albums of all time. Albert King was also one of Gary Moore’s biggest blues influences. Moore told of them playing a session together, after which King told him to play every other note ... Gary listened to his advice 🎸 Looking forward to your follow-up video.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Derek, yes I loved his work with Gary - style video coming tomorrow!

[@derekclacton]

@@TheGuitarShow That’s brilliant! Will it involve a suit?

You can see that in some of his later work. In particular, his cover of Al Kooper’s I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know on his last album. I don’t think there’s a better version and the playing is sublime.

[@derekclacton]

@ Absolutely agree.

[@williampayne7678]

Albert King what a Guitarist.

[@Longhorn.Rock_Roll61]

Great ur back .

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks Scott!

[@zetho6190]

YES!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks

[@lucasmanhaes1767]

Great!!!

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thank you Lucas

[@marvinwhittaker1760]

I love all of Albert King's material but the two songs that l really like is the remake of Elmore James "The Sky Is Crying" and the 1974 version of "Crosscut Saw".

[@willpayne6249]

AWESOME video

[@TheGuitarShow]

Glad you enjoyed it Will.

[@Johngonefishin]

About a year ago Juliens auction house had an old Gibson Flying V they claimed was the original Albert guitar..........

[@AdrianAndersson]

It was less than a year ago, by the end of last year actually

[@marvinwhittaker]

I love all of Albert King's Stax material, but my favorites are "The Sky Is Crying" and the 1974 version of "Crosscut Saw".

[@COLDMKULTRA]

Its very interesting that Albert did not swap the strings around (as many leftys do) when playing His guitars left handed . A proper lefty 😊👍

[@TheGuitarShow]

Yes I agree its a real unique way of playing Ralf

[@peghead]

Others who didn't restring; Otis Rush and Coco Montoya.

[@moonchild4806]

Man Seagal also owns Jimi Hendrix's jazzmaster. To be a 2D action star staring in 3 word movie titles

[@TheGuitarShow]

I'm a fan.

[@VideoHound62]

Jimi bought that Jazzmaster at Cotton Music in Nashville, TN., his first pro guitar. They closed a few years ago but in the 1990s I was there picking up supplies for John Prine and they showed me the sales receipt for that guitar.

[@newking70]

@@TheGuitarShow He runs like a girl.

[@user-xk6dn7tu5d]

You foolz sound salty and jealous

[@MBRMrblueroads]

👍👍👍

[@j.m.harrincourt2208]

Albert used his guitars with a right-handed string order. Apparently that's how he learned it as a child. This usually happens when a right-handed older sibling or parent owns the guitar in the family. So before he bought his first guitar at the age of 20, he learned to play a 6-string instrument on a right-handed person's guitar.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for your comment!

[@Lookup2Wakeup]

Good research Mr Goose......👍

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks bro

[@mrlowquality711]

If you look at Albert Kings live performance in Sweden 1980, Lucy has double cream pickups that look like dimarzio pickups. Anyone know anything about this?

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for this

[@Longhorn.Rock_Roll61]

One of my favorite guitar players useds or maybe still does Frank Hammons Tesla guitarist a flying V

[@divingduck1970]

I've been wondering about that picture of AK playing a Strat on the album cover for a while. Did he ever really play one?

[@AdrianAndersson]

No picture of him playing one in concert, im sure he has at least attempted to play one off-stage however

[@marvinwhittaker1320]

Albert King mixed blues and funk together

[@James_RC]

V Good! 🤓

[@TheGuitarShow]

thanks James

[@Alex-lm7cx]

Such a shame that one of Albert's guitars ended up in the possession of a tool like Seagal.

[@bignig3435]

Albert king on a strat?! Niice

[@rorysteele9884]

When you do the Tony iommi history of his guitars video I will be looking forward to seeing a Tony iommi guitar style lesson 🙏

[@TheGuitarShow]

Okay Ill do both soon

[@rorysteele9884]

@@TheGuitarShow cool not trying to bust your ass ♥️

[@rorysteele9884]

@@TheGuitarShow am I The only one who has asked you to do a Tony iommi history of his guitars video

[@markwroe4326]

Hello.what microphone are you using?

[@TheGuitarShow]

Hi Mark - I change around but for this video it was a AKG C 2000 E -sometimes I use a Audio Tecnica) a cheap everyday mic for speech. I use a Neumann for singing and playing along with some vintage ribbons.

[@monkeysbum999]

Alber King

[@haloskater24]

Good video but some of these photos are not Albert King.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Ill do a little more research on it - as it stands you might be wrong or correct.

[@stratman9449]

Albert King...the true blues story....... and i like his use of the flying V......the best choice then for a "leftie".....

[@TheGuitarShow]

I agree!

[@ybblue2732]

2:39 that’s not Albert???

[@haloskater24]

That Photo of “Albert and Fred below” has been passed around for years. It’s definitely not Albert King, doesn’t even look like him

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for this - yeah I asked around about it - Ive heard one person say its Otis Rush but I don't think so .

[@TheGuitarShow]

What were the other photos you were questioning? Or is it just that one?

[@haloskater24]

The Guitar Show one of them was tommy McClennan

[@TheGuitarShow]

@@haloskater24 what time was that?

[@haloskater24]

@@TheGuitarShow 3:40

[@LuckyKoman7]

Album I wanna get Funky is from 1973….not 1986.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks

[@depretorevincenzo6617]

I love Lucy

[@newking70]

The guitar in the poster looks like a Gibson ES-300, the tailpiece looks like a ES-300.

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks for this

[@yestoES355]

Of the three kings Albert is my favorite singer, Freddie is the better instrumentalist/soloist, and B.B is the perfect mix of it all. Also, blues guitarist: Steven Seagal? 🤣

[@TheGuitarShow]

Steven was my hero growing up in the 80s! Yeah man the 3 kings! Love them all

[@clarencetrice4442]

there about half a dozen 😊😊 left 👈 😊 hand guitar 🎸 😅 players only a few they had 2 restring there guitars upside down there wasn't any left 👈 😊 hand guitars even made back then it wasn't until years later on they wasn't common back then at all 😮😮 and there was another king also buddy king I have only heard a bit of his music 🎶 and that was only on the radio 📻 program blues be 4 sunrise never on the radio be 4 then / and when I was growing up there was a radio station that played the blues music 🎶 😊 on Saturday nights and another radio station 2 day / its not like it was like in the 1950s at all when a new song was made U could hear on the radio 📻 😊 or go 2 record store and buy alot of them was be 4 my time the only 2 I remember was plan 9 and peaches record store and there was a 3rd 1 I don't remember it at all that was older I think 🤔 there was a tower record music 🎶 😊 store also 😊😊 OMG 4 25 2O24

[@boooboooboy]

Lmao Lucy=Lucifer

[@jacestephenweatherall1732]

He was born in 1923

[@TheGuitarShow]

Thanks

[@jacestephenweatherall1732]

@@TheGuitarShow you’re welcome

[@TheGuitarShow]

@@jacestephenweatherall1732 always great to learn these facts, thank you

[@jacestephenweatherall1732]

@@TheGuitarShow you’re welcome again greetings from Australia, can you do a video of history of bb king’s guitars please?

[@Pr0God]

Wrong about the tuning but close

[@yakamarezlife]

it really makes me mad the sigal has two of his guitars

[@tomcarl8021]

STAX was a hugely successful label when Albert signed with them. Only Motown had a larger market share in R&B and Soul. Do me a favor and stick to the British guys, because you clearly know very little about Soul and R&B.

[@TheGuitarShow]

That's cool!

[@simonvanderheijden432]

Don't call Steven Seagal a blues guitarist. He's a collector and he can't play worth sh.t.

[@joshuagibson2520]

Bingo. Sad that he has that guitar. I'd rather see Bonamossa have it. Fuck Segal.