SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ALBERT KING & STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN – IN SESSION (DELUXE EDITION)

ALBERT KING & STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN
IN SESSION (DELUXE EDITION)
STAX RECORDS/CRAFT RECORDINGS

In 1983, Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan came together to record a session for CHCH-TV, a television network based out of Hamilton, ON. Accompanied by pianist Tony Llorens, drummer Michael Llorens, and bassist Gus Thornton, In Session was released in 1999; however, the original record featured an abridged cut of the performance. Now, available for the first time in its entirety via Stax Records and Craft Recordings, In Session (Deluxe Edition) features all sixteen recorded tracks.

In Session opens with the infectious grooves of “Born Under A Bad Sign”, a song driven by winding rhythms and an ongoing call and response between King’s baritone vocals and Vaughan’s clean electrifying lead lines. The interplay between the two blues giants is central to the album, however, “Born Under A Bad Sign” may very well be one of the greatest moments that showcases this masterful dynamic. The album continues with one of two Vaughan originals, a scorching, 20-minute rendition of “Texas Flood”. Starting off with a quiet vamp where King discusses how he’d come to know Vaughan, again accompanied with an array of lead lines set over drums and an organ, the song grows organically as Vaughan begins to take the lead, first with a solo, before transitioning into the song fully with his signature vocals that are somehow equally raspy as they are smooth. Between “Born Under A Bad Sign” and “Texas Flood”, In Session immediately pulls the listener in with a pair of blues classics that prove to be absolutely essential.

Where the original 1999 release featured 11 tracks, In Session (Deluxe Edition) features an additional five cuts that only serve to elevate the album. Throughout the near two hours it takes to listen to the album, there is not a moment of weakness in their performance as King and Vaughan demonstrate their significance to not only the blues, but the guitar and music as a whole. With album highlights including “Old Times”, “Match Box Blues”, “Don’t Lie To Me”, “I’m Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town”, and the second Vaughan original, “Pride And Joy”, the legendary status of both King and Vaughan is only further developed with a performance that can only be described as a masterclass of musicality, technique, expression, and the blues.

In many respects, In Session represents a passing of the torch within the genre. Albert King, the esteemed veteran, an accomplished leader within the blues and Stevie Ray Vaughan, the virtuosic young gun on the road to revolutionising the genre for the ‘80s. Having only made his highly impressive debut, Texas Flood, six months prior to recording In Sessions, the album captures a unique moment in time that demonstrates a level of mastery among two of the greatest blues artists. Truly, In Session (Deluxe Edition) is a remarkable snapshot of two of the greatest blues guitarists at differing stages of their careers. In this sense, In Session (Deluxe Edition) is absolutely essential; standing as a rare reissued expanded collection that actually manages to go beyond that of the original.

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