Blues Journey by Freddie King

Blues Journey is the most complete live compilation of the late Freddie King.

In a 1985 interview, Eric Clapton cited Freddie King's 1961 B-side "I Love the Woman" as "the first time I heard that electric lead-guitar style, with the bent notes... [it] started me on my path," Clapton shared his love of King with fellow British guitar heroes Peter Green, Jeff Beck, and Mick Taylor, all of whom were profoundly influenced by King's sharpened-treble tone and curt melodic hooks on iconic singles such as "The Stumble," "I'm Tore Down," and "Someday, After Awhile." Nicknamed "The Texas Cannonball" for his imposing build and incendiary live shows, King had a unique guitar attack. "Steel on steel in an unforgettable sound," says Derek Trucks, referring to King's use of metal banjo picks, "but it's gotta be in the right hands. The way he used it - man, you were going to hear that guitar." Trucks can still hear King's huge impact on Clapton. "When I played with Eric," Trucks said recently, "There were times when he would take solos and I would get that Freddie vibe." King's blues style was fluid, but with biting power that was arguably more forceful than that of many other bluesmen of his day. King used thumb and finger picks and would just dig into his Gibson 355 - hung precariously over just his right shoulder - creating what are now classic, deeply influential and riveting solos.