Blues on the Bayou

Blues on the Bayou
Studio album by B.B. King
Released	October 20, 1998[1]
Recorded	1998 at Dockside Studio, Maurice, Louisiana[1]
Genre	Blues, R&B, soul
Length	64:13
Label	MCA Records
Producer	B.B. King
B.B. King chronology
Best of King (1997) Blues on the Bayou (1998) Live in Japan (1999)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[2]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings	[3]

Blues on the Bayou is the thirty sixth studio album by B.B. King, released in 1998.[1]

In the CD liner notes, B.B. King writes: "Of the many records Lucille and I have had the pleasure of recording over the years, this one is especially close to my heart. It's also one of the most relaxed and, for me, satisfying [...] No one was telling us what to do. No one needed to tell us what to do." He adds that he considers the band playing on this album as his best ever and that he got to the studio with the idea of keeping the music simple ("I've felt the urge to go back to basics."). With this state of mind, the record was cut in four days: "Found some old B. B. King songs. Wrote some new ones. [...] All live, all real. No overdubs, no high-tech tricks. Just basic blues."

The album won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album.

Track listing

All tracks composed by B.B. King; except where indicated

1. "Blues Boys Tune" - 3:25
2. "Bad Case of Love" - 5:28
3. "I'll Survive" (B.B. King, Saul Samuel Bihari) - 4:53
4. "Mean Ole' World" - 4:29
5. "Blues Man" - 5:20
6. "Broken Promise" (B.B. King, Saul Samuel Bihari) - 3:34
7. "Darlin' What Happened" (B.B. King, Saul Samuel Bihari) - 5:26
8. "Shake It Up and Go" (B.B. King, Jules Taub) - 3:10
9. "Blues We Like" - 5:08
10. "Good Man Gone Bad" (B.B. King, Jules Taub, Ferdinand Washington) - 3:20
11. "If I Lost You" (B.B. King, Jules Taub) - 4:57
12. "Tell Me Baby" (B.B. King, Saul Samuel Bihari) - 3:26
13. "I Got Some Outside Help I Don't Need" (B.B. King, David Clark) - 4:37
14. "Blues in G" - 3:28
15. "If That Ain't It I Quit" - 3:20[1]

Charts

Chart (1998)	Peak position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[4]	93
UK Albums (OCC)[5]	93
UK Jazz & Blues Albums (OCC)[6]	1
US Blues Albums (Billboard)[7]	2
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[7]	186

Personnel

• B.B. King - electric guitar, lead vocals
• James Bolden - trumpet, bandleader
• Walter R. King - contractor
• Tony Coleman - percussions
• Calep Emphrey Jr. - drums
• Melvin Jackson - saxophones
• Leon Warren - electric rhythm guitar
• Michael Doster - bass guitar
• James Sells Toney - piano, Hammond B-3 organ
• Stanley Abernathy - trumpet
• Phil Marshall - orchestrations
• Tony Daigle - engineer
• Jim Watts - assistant engineer
• John Porter, Joe McGrath - mixing engineers
• Stephen Marcussen - mastering engineer
• Gary Ashley - A&R
• Sidney A. Seidenberg - Executive producer[8]

Recorded at Dockside Studio, Maurice, Louisiana; Mixed at Sound Castle, Los Angeles, California; Mastered at Precision Lacquer, Hollywood, California

References

1. Koda, Cub. "Blues on the Bayou – B.B. King". AllMusic. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
2. Tyehimba, Cheo (October 30, 1998). "Blues on the Bayou". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
3. Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin. p. 359. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
4. "Offiziellecharts.de – B.B. King – Blues on the Bayou" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
5. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
6. "Official Jazz & Blues Albums Chart Top 30". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
7. "B.B. King Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
8. "Blues on the Bayou - B.B. King | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved May 25, 2021.