This is an illuminating opportunity to get up close with blues maestros Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King as they join forces for a Canadian TV show recorded in 1983. What makes it so special is at there are no fancy production tricks getting in the way. The premise of the programme was as simple as the title suggests: just set the two of them up and press play.
King was 60, Vaughan was 29, so there’s an element of master and precocious pupil that’s obvious from the moment King launches into his signature Born Under A Bad Sign before handing over to Vaughan for the first solo of the night. And Vaughan does not disappoint.
There is also history between them, as King reminds Vaughan during one of their chats as they ease themselves into another blues. A decade earlier, King had reluctantly allowed a teenage Vaughan on stage, only to have his own licks fired back at him. So there is plenty of mutual respect going down.
They’re using King’s band, so he gets to call the shots, although Vaughan’s two contributions – Texas Flood and Pride And Joy – take up half an hour. Naturally there’s the odd timing issue and a few inconsequential rambles, but that’s all part of the unexpurgated truth.
