''Completely Well'', released in 1969, is a studio
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by the
blues guitarist
B. B. King
Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimm ...
. It is notable for the inclusion of "
The Thrill Is Gone
"The Thrill Is Gone" is a slow minor-key blues song written by West Coast blues musician Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell in 1951. Hawkins's recording of the song reached number six in the Billboard R&B chart in 1951. In 1970, "The Thrill Is Gone" ...
", which became a hit on both the R&B/soul and pop charts and which earned him a
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
for
Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1970.
The album was released in the US as an
LP record
The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and ...
in 1969 and as a
CD in 1987; in the UK only as an LP. San Francisco critic
Ralph J. Gleason's liner notes are mostly a profile of King, with only a passing reference to the actual music contained in King`s commercial breakthrough album.
Track listing
#"So Excited" (B.B. King,
Gerald Jemmott) -- 5:34
#"No Good" (Ferdinand Washington, B.B. King) -- 4:35
#"You're Losin' Me" (Ferdinand Washington, B.B. King) -- 4:54
#"What Happened" (B.B. King) -- 4:41
#"Confessin' the Blues" (
Jay McShann
James Columbus "Jay" McShann (January 12, 1916 – December 7, 2006) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader. He led bands in Kansas City, Missouri, that included Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson, Walter Brown, and ...
,
Walter Brown) -- 4:56
#"Key to My Kingdom" (
Maxwell Davis
Thomas Maxwell Davis, Jr. (January 14, 1916 – September 18, 1970), was an American rhythm and blues saxophonist, arranger, bandleader and record producer.
Biography
Davis was born in Independence, Kansas in 1916. In 1937, he moved to Lo ...
,
Joe Josea
The Bihari brothers, Lester, Jules, Saul and Joe, were American businessmen of Hungarian Jewish origins. They were the founders of Modern Records in Los Angeles and its subsidiaries, such as Meteor Records, based in Memphis. The Bihari brothers ...
, Claude Baum) -- 3:18
#"Cryin' Won't Help You Now" (
Sam Ling
Samuel Jack Ling (born 17 December 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for National League club Dagenham & Redbridge.
Career
Ling began his career at Leyton Orient, progressing through the O's academy to becom ...
,
Jules Taub; LP has only B.B.) -- 6:30
#"You're Mean" (B.B. King, Gerald Jemmott,
Hugh McCracken
Hugh Carmine McCracken (March 31, 1942 – March 28, 2013) was an American rock guitarist and session musician based in New York City, primarily known for his performance on guitar and also as a harmonica player. McCracken was additionally a ...
,
Paul Harris,
Herbie Lovelle
Herbie Lovelle (1 June 1924 - April 8, 2009) was an American drummer, who played jazz, R&B, rock, and folk. He was also a studio musician and an actor.
Lovelle's uncle was the drummer Arthur Herbert. Lovelle began his career with the trumpete ...
) -- 9:39
#"
The Thrill Is Gone
"The Thrill Is Gone" is a slow minor-key blues song written by West Coast blues musician Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell in 1951. Hawkins's recording of the song reached number six in the Billboard R&B chart in 1951. In 1970, "The Thrill Is Gone" ...
" (Rick Darnell,
Roy Hawkins; LP has Arthur H
rtBenson, Dale Pettite) -- 5:30
Personnel
*
B.B. King
Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...
:
Vocals
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...
,
lead guitar
Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the feature ...
*
Hugh McCracken
Hugh Carmine McCracken (March 31, 1942 – March 28, 2013) was an American rock guitarist and session musician based in New York City, primarily known for his performance on guitar and also as a harmonica player. McCracken was additionally a ...
: Rhythm guitar
*
Paul Harris:
organ, acoustic and
Fender Rhodes
The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, th ...
electric piano
*
Jerry Jemmott
Gerald Stenhouse Jemmott (born March 22, 1946, in the Morrisania section of the Bronx, New York City) is an American bass guitarist. Jemmott was one of the chief session bass guitarists of the late 1960s and early 1970s, working with many of th ...
:
Bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gu ...
*
Herbie Lovelle
Herbie Lovelle (1 June 1924 - April 8, 2009) was an American drummer, who played jazz, R&B, rock, and folk. He was also a studio musician and an actor.
Lovelle's uncle was the drummer Arthur Herbert. Lovelle began his career with the trumpete ...
:
Drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...
*Bert "Super Charts" DeCoteaux:
string and
horn arrangement
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestr ...
s
References
{{Authority control
B.B. King albums
1969 albums
Albums produced by Bill Szymczyk
BluesWay Records albums