Best of B.B. King: 20th Century Masters (CD - 1999)

Producers include: Bill Szymczyk, Esmond Edwards, Joe Zagarino, Dave Crawford, Lou Zito.

Compilation producer: Andy McKaie.

Recorded between 1966 and 1985. Includes liner notes by Joseph Laredo.

Digitally remastered by Erick Labson (MCA Studios, North Hollywood, California).

This is part of MCA's 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection series.

Like any record company worth their salt, MCA knows a good gimmick when they see it, and when the millennium came around -- well, the 20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection wasn't too far behind. Supposedly, the millennium is a momentous occasion, but it's hard to feel that way when it's used as another excuse to turn out a budget-line series. But apart from the presumptuous title, 20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection turns out to be a very good budget-line series. True, it's impossible for any of these brief collections to be definitive, but they're nevertheless solid samplers that don't feature a bad song in the bunch. For example, take B.B. King's 20th Century volume -- it's an irresistible ten-song summary of his MCA recordings. There may be a couple of noteworthy songs missing, but many of his best-known songs for the label are here, including "The Thrill Is Gone," "Ain't Nobody Home," "Let the Good Times Roll," "Don't Answer the Door," "Sweet Sixteen," and "Paying the Cost to Be the Boss." Serious fans will want something more extensive, but this is an excellent introduction for neophytes and a great sampler for casual fans, considering its length and price. That doesn't erase the ridiculousness of the series title, but the silliness is excusable when the music and the collections are good. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

A true best-of B.B. King album should be at least two or three discs. King is one of the giants of American music, up there with Gershwin, Ellington, Hank Williams, Louis Armstrong, and Elvis Presley. King played the blues, but he played them different--he combined a stinging, soulful guitar tone that was so polished one could practically "see the notes" shinning in the stage lights. (Oh yes, he was an influence on Eric Clapton and nearly every notable rock and blues guitarist in the '60s.) King had a deep, forceful yet restrained voice that was equally soulful and impassioned, yet unbowed. When King sang, you KNEW he had the blues, but he kept his cool AND his dignity.

This collection scoops together his best-known tunes from the '60s and '70s, plus the funk-flavored theme to the movie of the same name, "Into the Night." The classic "The Thrill Is Gone," which can alter the mood wherever it's played is here, as is "Guess Who," a love ballad for the ages. If you want to hear the blues delivered with guts, passion, grace, and style, this is the place. minimize