Customer Reviews: Read 41 more reviews...
 Great audio, great performance, horrible edits August 30, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
So they finally went back and remastered the muddy audio on this classic album! The new sound is fantastic -- clear as a bell. Sadly, while the audio was being cleaned up, no one bothered to clean up the very, very sloppy edits (especially in the second half), such as when the second intro of B.B. (why two separate intros, anyway?) gets abruptly chopped off and goes right into a song that from the background crowd noise came at some other point in the show. If you're going to do a live album, the tracks should at least create the illusion of a live show, especially in this digital era when fade-outs and fade-ins are no longer used, and audience applause can be smoothly edited in to create seamless transitions!
The performance is powerful and this is definitely a 5-star recording that has been royally botched by sloppy and oh-so-obvious edits. In addition, many remasters go back and add in some bonus tracks. If no original source material survives (which may be the case 42 years after this performance!), then something from the era is added as a bonus and the CD is fleshed out to anywhere from 60 to 79 minutes long. Not here. You get the original 35 minutes. No more. No less.
Anyone who's seen what Legacy is doing with classic LPs (adding more to the original CD, plus a second CD of extra material) by Bob Marley, Eric Clapton, The Who, etc., surely have some idea how this great LP could have been updated for the 21st century. What we get is clearer audio, and nothing else. What a disappointment!
 Live At The Regal April 7, 2008
B.B. King-Live At The Regal *****
Recorded live at the Regal in Chicago in 1964 this went on to become what is now widely considered the all time greatest live blues album. This is rightly deserved as this is in fact the greatest live blues album of all time.
King's single note guitar lines are crisp as ever, and his vocals are beyond comparison. Aside from being obviously his best live recording, Live At The Regal is the best recording of King period. This is with out a doubt the best version of 'Sweet Little Angel' ever released. The essential version is more correct. 'Every Day I Have The Blues' and 'Its My Own Fault' are among some of the most inspired performances ever caught on tape. The albums closer 'Help The Poor' is just gut-wrenching. Pure bliss!
This performance is pure electric. With every passing listen to Live At The Regal I still get chills all down my spine, and if you ask me that is the mark of a fantastic album after all these years and listens.
The KIng at his best April 2, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As a Memphis native, I have heard B.B. on many occasions. Never have I seen or hear him play with the same passion he did here in 1964. The quality of the recording is outstanding, with Lucille giving the center-stage on many occasions. The clarity and quality is amazing for a forty year old recording. This is the live B.B. King recording to buy. The Cook County Jail performance from 1971 is a close second, but the quality is not nearly as good.
b.b. king at the top of his form. March 13, 2007
recorded live at the regal theatre, chicago in 1964, this is generally considered b.b. king's best album, and deservedly so. this is simply one of the great urban blues albums of all-time. b.b.'s singing is as powerful and nuanced on this recording as it was ever to be, before or after. his guitar playing is at a peak of expressive beauty here, far more tasteful and beyond the technic, at this point, of what any rock and roll guitarist was yet capable of. yes, the rock and rollers would improve greatly in time, but this was 1964, and King was the undisputed guitar king. a fine horn section, it should be mentioned, also graces the album. the whole affair is magical. a great night in recording history.
A must have for any blues collection December 28, 2006
BB King's Live at the Regal is a recording of a great show performed at the Regal Theater in Chicago in 1965. Considered among many, including myself, as his greatest album its a must for any blues collection. King is at the top of his form and you can hear it in his guitar playing. His band gives their all and, importantly, the song selections are magnificent.
Its a great recording of a great performance. Its also a perfect introduction to the blues for neophytes as well. Highly recommended.
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