I'll Play the Blues for You - Albert King | The Midnight Special

August 17, 1973
Follow us on Social Media:
/ themidnightspecialtvshow
/ themidnightspecialtvshow
/ themidnightspecialtvshow
/ tmstvshow
Visit The Midnight Special Store:
themidnightspecial.myshopify....

[@HellOnWheel]

Loved the "excuse me" before shredding an epic blues solo. 😂

[@michaelyolch79]

Albert Collins does the same on "If Trouble Was Money." I've always loved that. HA!

[@losingsleeep]

He he, yeah I love that too. Can't be more innovative and classy at the same time! It's in the original mix too.

[@MrJdubbya36]

You might be cool but you will NEVER be as cool as Albert playing "I'll Play The Blues For You" in a pink polyester leisure suit with a polka dot shirt collar folded on the outside. What a talent!!!

[@mathtrixmusiclix4248]

And an upside down Flying V!!!!

[@russelmurray9268]

Awesome outfit. Killer licks.

[@MARKIEBANUNCE]

And your guitar playing is cooler than your suit....

[@russelmurray9268]

@@MARKIEBANUNCE they're both super

[@rv6205]

that suit is so cool , all you need to do is walk out on stage with it, hit 5 notes ...and wham..instant star !!!!!!

[@mrstanbmw]

He said excuse me and then tore the house down with some of the nastiest guitar riffs you ever want to hear

[@michaelyolch79]

Albert Collins does the same on "If Trouble Was Money." I've always loved that. HA!

[@mrstanbmw]

yes sir I know about that too

[@DjangoThunders]

Well said!

[@kohlertfiftyseven2956]

Not to take anything away from Albert Collins but Albert King did it upside down....blows my mind...

[@lonesometomshi763]

he is not playing blues, he is the BLUES.

[@depretorevincenzo6617]

The Godfather of the blues, the Velvet Bulldozer the one and only Albert King. ❤️

[@williamflinchum-qo6ch]

I met Albert and his girlfriend at a local Laundromat after his show. We were headed home, and I saw his tour bus in the parking lot, me and my friend Mathew went in and talked to him for a few minutes.Some how we got on the subject of drugs, and he said he would fire anybody in his band that used drugs. And he said to me you know why, then he told me Jimi Hendrix gave him a joint one time laced with something, and he said .and man I got so high and I was sweating, and I put ice between my legs and under my arms. And he said he would never do any drugs again. I met him in Winston-Salem NC 1980! Cool story?

[@Aminharp1]

Very cool and very wise from the bulldozer Drugs would gave ruined his career Thx for narrating

[@bernardlauvray8703]

Quelqu'un peut traduire en français pour moi svp? J ai pas tout compris

[@TheNextGoogification]

Amazing how many people have NEVER heard of Albert King

[@DjangoThunders]

But they have heard his licks from Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, SRV, Jeff Beck and just about everyone else!

[@bsmarwa1712]

i'm from algerian i heard Albert King, stevie ray vaughan. B.B king. and other when i was sixteen years old

[@briangriffin5524]

On another website a guy was defending Kiss. I called them trash and he was upset.😄

[@elainemeyer5062]

Al’s considered as being one of the ‘Three King’s of the Blues’, along with B. B., and Freddie King. I guess some people just don’t like this type/genre of music in general. Too bad - they’re missing out on something 👍 imo!

[@jeffreycollier1059]

Who you been hanging with? (Just kidding, at least 'you' know!). 😊

[@makinbiscuits]

Albert King was a giant among men. His hands alone make that guitar look like a kids toy.

[@johnnyfleming522]

And he is playing it upside down and the big strings are on the bottom!!!!!😂🎉🎉🎉

[@BIZARBIES]

So good. SRV wouldn't have licks without this man.

[@daktarioskarvannederhosen2568]

u pls view srv and albert together in hamilton up close and personal early 80s.

[@daktarioskarvannederhosen2568]

Albert King with Stevie Ray Vaughan recorded live for television on December 6, 1983, at CHCH-TV studios in Hamilton The Canada when Vaughan was 29 and King was 60.

[@BIZARBIES]

@@daktarioskarvannederhosen2568 seen it 100 times my guy.

[@daktarioskarvannederhosen2568]

@@BIZARBIES are you the canada?

[@BIZARBIES]

@@daktarioskarvannederhosen2568 nope

[@gregoryduncan3067]

He played very clean.

[@AnthonyStJames]

But with nice sustain.

[@RawKnee1111]

as well as playing a guitar strung for right hand players.

[@michaelr.4878]

​@RawKnee1111 - Yeah..I don't understand how he pulled off a lot of those licks strug like that. He was always bending downward. I'm a leftlhanded player too..but I have lefthanded guitars...strung like lefthanded guitars. hehe. When I was a little kid, I had a righthanded guitar, but I strung it and set it up like a lefthanded gutiar. Some of these guys like King and Eric Gales just play righthanded guitar..strung like righthanded guitars. It is so odd to me. As weird as it is, it would be nice to be able to try other ppl's guitars. hehe. Being a lefty absoultely sucks. I can't try other dude's guitars..I can't try thigns at guitar stores...etc. When buying a guitar, it always has to be ordered and it is a huge gamble on if you like it or not. In fact, I paid about 4K to have a guitar made for me..and after waiting 2 years, I got it..and I hate it. But who am I going to sell it to? haha. The lefty market is small.

[@mrJimCharles]

Wait for it, he's gonna crank it up!!

[@michaelwalston2438]

He played a solid state amp, the Acoustic Control 360.

[@user-lk2og7rb2o]

This man is an American Treasure. Play it Albert. :)

[@mesaeddie]

Saw him in 72 in a small club in San Diego less than 20 feet away from him. Such an impressive man . One of my best memories from my Navy days.

[@MrJdubbya36]

Very jealous!!

[@jacknavajo4905]

Takes me to another world

[@bluesrocker6l6gc8]

Another pleasant Midnight Special surprise, first Muddy, and now Albert! Never knew they were on there until now!

[@petedazer3381]

Albert could bend a note from one zip code to another!

[@danerickson1632]

BB King and this man were awesome blues men miss them 😢

[@MoonPieCurtis662]

I saw them onstage together in Greenville, MS.

[@Dan0948]

I got to see Albert King a couple times and he performed this song

[@eileencastillo6323]

So lucky.

[@henryclay8462]

BB King is the Sweet, and Albert King is the Sour. Together they have the entire range of the Blues covered. Eric, Stevie, and everyone else learned from these giants. May both Kings rest in peace!

[@jamesnabower6751]

Don't forget Freddy

[@caniican]

In 1987 or so my buddy and me went to see King Albert @ the Lonestar Cafe NYC...less than 50 people in the afternoon.Glor y be...an intmate trip to heaven. On break Albert smoked a pipe..sat in a comfy chair and showed love for us showing love to him. He signed my Album cover... Live Wire Blues Power.. "Albert King Loves you" ..I cherish him on this earth...all blues players . It is sitting next to me ...most valuable possession🎸👍😁

[@greatesttoysevermade3693]

I own that album as well, one of my favorite albums and album covers.

[@andrewthomason3857]

1:22 There it is lurking in the background, that Acoustic amp with the big high frequency horn in the speaker cabinet. He played through this rig every time I saw him. It’s almost impossible to describe to anyone who goes to shows nowadays how loud Albert played on stage. It was glorious. B.B. was great, Freddie was great, but Albert was the King of the Kings in my book. Thank you, The Midnight Special, for posting this.

[@megatedassaultituary6783]

Yeah man some of the timing of his playing really hits the spot

[@thomasscott1570]

special underrated talent srv loved him

[@mossstephen1066]

​@@thomasscott1570 don't worry the srv fanboys can tell you that stevie invented all those riffs, everyone aspired to be stevie.

[@DidYouReadEULA]

Truth.

[@Martiniization]

The most mellow, smooth, and satisfying version of Albert King performing this rightfully famous song of his.

[@bernardmeyre]

This version is great but i think i like the version in Wattstax even more...

[@SuperTonybo]

IF IT WASN'T FOR ALBERT AND BB

[@fineartist7710]

I am white, and you are dam right!!!!!

[@mick1967]

The master of the Flying V. What a giant!! The guitar looks so tiny in his big hands but he plays it with so much sensitivity. No wonder that he influenced so many guitar heroes like Hendrix, SRV, Clapton or Gary Moore.

[@elainemeyer5062]

ALL of whom are 👏 Blues 🎸 🎤 ist’s imo. I’m 70ish now and have always 💟’d ALL genres of music, esp Blues!

[@zydeco2378]

My absolute favorite blues man, the guitar tone and that velvet and deep voice, a master ! Luckily I had the chance to see him live, Unforgettable !

[@troyjones2358]

Baddest solo ever played while wearing a pink polyester suit.

[@danielsweet858]

Think he was the only man who could pull that off!

[@user-pm3bo5no2b]

Facts

[@gfgranja]

@@danielsweet858Stevie too, he dressed like a gay pirate

[@howardgott4946]

And what’s wrong with polyester!

[@friendofbeaver6636]

He's known as the "Velvet Bulldozer!" A man who can sing and play an up-side-down guitar like that, can wear whatever he wants on TV.

[@bluesboy25000]

Happy 101st birthday to the Velvet Bulldozer, the King of the Blues. Albert King. Mike Bloomfield said Albert King could "take four notes and write a volume." His voice was suave as hell and cut his stinging guitar tone. He was truly the whole package. An inspiration to Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore and so many others.

[@curtisphilumalee1447]

Beautiful…..simplicity at its finest. But that Gibson Flying Vee 👀.

[@NitroModelsAndComics]

Best use of a late 50's Flying V ever. Ferocious tone and the voice of an angel.

[@kattyeedwards8212]

Met Albert years ago. While I was travelling with Bobby Bland . Albert had a great sense of humor

[@Buffrt66]

I saw him in 1982 at Fitzgerald's on White Oak Street in Houston TX. When I noticed he was playing a right hand guitar left handed with a right handed string setup, I was floored. I couldn't stop watching his hands play, backwards!! I had been a guitar player at that time too.

[@BIZARBIES]

It is a trip! Eric Gales plays like that as well, and he's a monster player.

[@KittyGrizGriz]

That’s some smooth blues playing, what a voice and 🎸, thank you Albert King…that’s right hang in there and be tough, whatever brings us down, we’ll still “be around”.

[@christophermitchum6829]

Don't forget Freddie 🎵🎶💯😎✔️

[@heyjarrod]

Never seen Freddie in a pink polyester suit, polkadot shirt, and collar folded out! But I bet he has something very similar.

[@CalderonPaul]

We did a documentary on the history of the blues in Los Angeles. We sat down with Robbie Kreiger and John Densmore of The Doors. They were huge fans of Albert King. The interviews were great. It's currently being edited. "When LA Had The Blues"

[@archstanton3763]

Alberts suit deserved an award, throw in his Flying Ver and we an absolute master class in style and delivery. Fantastic !

[@Shayler78]

Music has no colour - it's from the spirit, which is beyond creed or colour.

[@hooligan_56labelle22]

Blues is the best and it's real

[@b.rodclark334]

As he said in 1968 at the Filmore West: 'This is BLUES POWER!' Happy posthumous birthday Mr. King!

[@leebowens2631]

The late so so GREAT Albert King my all time favorite Bluesman !!!

[@mrJimCharles]

This is one of the best videos of him playing that was ever made, thanks for this upload!!!

[@NYCHFAN]

Oh, hell yeah! ❤🎶🎶

[@DjangoThunders]

Best comment, sums it up!

[@jeremychatelain1878]

That fella could pluck the paint off a guitar 🤘.

[@Yeahthatsright717]

This man influenced Stevie Ray Vaughan immensely. ❤🎶

[@stevetrivago]

Told Stevie he’s good but he’s gonna get gooder … < something like that 😊

[@RichardBinder-dx7fk]

Gary Moore was also a big fan of Albert along with SRV. Their playing really shows Albert's influence.

[@dariodiiasio6786]

The list Is longer i bet, and you forgot Hendrix!

[@lazlomattachine8334]

That suit with the Flying V- pure class and razor sharp! And the tone of his playing is just face-melting- a thing of beauty.

[@user-rf2rs8rh4q]

KING of KING

[@lisaweaver986]

Albert King was a genuine artist for certain ❤, thank you dear inspiration,

[@jonncockrell3606]

The Midnight was Special back in the 70s!

[@kentbergstrom3020]

Everything was special in the 70's 👍

[@GerardFrenchy59]

Another great blues master! He inspired so many guitarists! Long live the blues 👍🎶🇫🇷

[@johncoleman3953]

Two Kings, Albert and BB!!!

[@anunnaki7075]

Mr. Albert King’s rizz is incomparable 🙌🏻#bluespower

[@kevin6667]

Blues in Pink! 🎸

[@robertoluiz8094]

The Blues is Pink!

[@samueljohnson6468]

I say legend. My kid says you can't be a legend if everyone don't know who you are. Sorry a legend is some one every one might not know but the people who know you, know you well. Not a better musician to follow. Memphis TN Legend, we love you RIL. That guitar is like watching the steam come off Chelsea Ave on a hot rainy day

[@katamedo5703]

He’s one of the Three Kings. Albert, Freddie and BB. Blues guitar OG. Most certainly a legend

[@ErickHoward-qu7pe]

Great entertainer

[@oscarpolo6310]

Grandioso Albert King❤. Thanks for sharing.

[@lucalone]

Great live performance ! And what a beautiful pink suit !

[@kevincwilson4310]

NIGHTSTOMP on the jukebox at the Armadillo tavern in Jax Beach, 1974. Never forget.

[@unique74muzik]

Love him still..one of the forefathers..still trip on his issue with Hendrix..

[@DjangoThunders]

and that is why Albert King is my favorite blues guitarist

[@briangriffin5524]

An absolute master of the blues. This is the blues. 🎸☮️

[@mwooly1]

Albert King SRV hero

[@MsChristyCox]

That band is tight as could be . I hope there is more to come . The solo oml . Brilliant 😁

[@Bodiddley788]

I spent an entire day once with Albert when I was a kid.

[@ecwwwrasslin7663]

Oh sweet lord, this is beautiful music. 😢❤

[@RobHollanderMusic]

I love Albert! Have seen him perform many times and got to meet him and shake his hand. He was very gracious to this young kid at the time who was just starting to play guitar. Upside-down lefties rule!

[@brotherbob3569]

I allso shook his hand in Memphis right before he went on stage at a free concert around 81. Huge dude with huge hands. The essence of cool.

[@Genious.]

Half a century later and I still don't understand how someone can have such powerful hands that they can bend the E and B downward like that.

[@bluesman2001]

@@Genious. among other things (i.e talent), he used light strings and an alternate tuning

[@Genious.]

@@bluesman2001 I knew about the light gauge strings but not the tunings - thanks for that. Although my tiny little hands still wouldn't be able to bend in that way.

[@johncoleman3953]

Extraordinary soul! Mastery, Albert King!!!❤

[@VALINOR24]

Best blues guitarist of all time.

[@nicolasboeris5742]

Exelente Albert..maestro!

[@prdwilson]

albert king,,,,nuff said

[@dennisfleming5095]

I saw him on Midnight Special back in my high school days. Went out and bought "Live Wire Blues Power". That album taught me a lot about playing blues guitar.

[@johnzuggster375]

This man was a true gift, a part of God's creation!

[@christophermitchum6829]

There were three kings... and Albert had to be one 😎✔️👍🎵🔥✌️💥

[@RamonaHuguley2]

I am so glad I found this song. I haven't heard blues like this in many many years

[@jjamesmcguire6343]

Love his style and listen to him lots. Being a guitar player myself, I've always been amazed at how he could play upside down, backwards, not re-strung! His bends were just insane being that he could pull down with gravity instead of pushing up. It's another whole world of study to get into the mindset of all those microtonal bending nuances and subtlety! It mimics the human voice so well. SRV had him down to a science! Awesome smooth singing voice too. Gotta just love the B3 accompaniment filling stuff out, that would inspire anybody to play a smoke and solo over! But Albert was a King of dat business!

[@alexjohnson4778]

King of the Kings, maaaaaaaaaan.

[@ianhope3203]

Such a wonderful voice.

[@jpblauvelt]

Two words. Bad ass

[@MOS650]

So smooth… ❤️

[@fbales]

Albert King is my favorite blues artist. It’s cool that Joe Bonamassa owns, and plays, his guitar now.

[@PJ-wm9nq]

Just waiting for Joe to wear a pink suit!

[@VLVanDerMerwe]

Joe doesn’t “own” Albert’s guitar..

[@fbales]

@@VLVanDerMerwe I thought he did because I saw him playing it when he did I’ll Play the Blues For You. Must have borrowed it, or sold it.

[@mikehays3481]

The guitar he is playing was a right hand turned upside down, he had one special made left handed with the knobs on bottom like a left handed guitar should be, JB owns it but rarely ever plays it, or even at all. This is Albert’s first Lucy, his second was the special made with his name on it

[@VLVanDerMerwe]

@@mikehays3481Joe does NOT own Albert’s Korina V nor the Erlewine AK V. JB has his own custom Erlewine V with HIS name in laid in the neck. Again, JB does NOT own any of Albert’s V’s.

[@poempadgett4664]

🎸Awesome❤️‍🔥

[@mattaparicio571]

That guitar has good tone!!!!

[@contrabandjoe7974]

The best blues guitarist ever

[@VLVanDerMerwe]

Jesus.. I just can’t get enough of that last solo. His guitar tone is immense!!

[@daveartwood]

The Pink Velvet Bulldozer!

[@user-mf2gk5ju9f]

My Husband and I met his Twin nephews At BB Kings Club on Beale Street ,while on vacation.... They were very ( Real) and we talked awhile to them. Very Nice and Sincere young men.... We didn't get to see BB that night, but the Band that played were Spot On It!!! We had such a a Great Time..... God Bless All Of These Real Bluesmen,and Please Do Not leave Miss Etta James out..... Yes Indeed!!! Or Miss Bonnie Right,from a Different Generation...... Remember this,You Have To Have Had The Blues,To Understand , And Love The Blues 💯

[@stanleeikki]

Man o' man!! Smoking hot vocals and guitar!! Stevie Ray Vaughan certainly learned from this cat. Really nice.

[@user-fb6lf3vl7p]

Both Kings couldn't sing and play at the same time. But once left to play that guitar skills came out.

[@DaleBrotherton]

Fit For A King!

[@avrahambentzvi]

Probably best blues guitarist ever.

[@johnnybgoode1950]

That is one Big Bad Boy.

[@joeld5311]

Yesssir!!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🙏🏾

[@therealbarnekkid]

There he is with his million dollar guitar.

[@humanplant965]

Thanks for the release! The great string bender!

[@Goatchild90]

R.I.P. to a legend

[@philipsutton2316]

This about the most incongruous thing I've ever seen - a gigantic black dude in a pink polyester suit, playing an upside down guitar and sounding like a rock legend!

[@mrJimCharles]

The reason why he's "sounding like a rock legend" is because those rock guys were/are all trying to play like him! Close your eyes and listen again

[@aab9828]

What an amazing solo Mr. King!

[@umami0247]

I didn’t realize he was a plucker and didn’t use a pick. One of the greatest players period.

[@rodneyrichardson8286]

Reminds me of my dad would pull out his big ass Lincoln playing Albert king on way to the pool hall.

[@chocodiledundee1]

There’s is ONLY 1 King…. ALBERT KING !

[@ChrisStrat67]

I never get tired of Albert King.

[@brucemacmillan9581]

What an absolutely fabulous voice. His guitar playing is fine too. But his singing is the main thang.

[@longjaw-1]

Amazing - great to see Albert in his prime nailing it 👍