Albert King (1923-1992), billed as the "King of the Blues Guitar," became one of the most important artists in blues history through his powerful string-bending style, soulful smoky vocals, and deep dramatic sound that was widely imitated by blues and rock guitarists. His identity was a longtime source of confusion: in interviews he said he was born in Indianola on April 25, 1923 or 1924, and he often claimed to be a half-brother of B. B. King, but surviving official documentation suggested otherwise, including a 1942 Social Security application in which he gave his birthplace as "Aboden," most likely Aberdeen, Mississippi, signed his name as Albert Nelson, and listed his father as Will Nelson. Musicians also knew him as Albert Nelson in the 1940s and '50s, but when he made his first record in 1953, after B. B. King had become a national blues star, he became Albert King, and by 1959 he was billed in newspaper advertisements as "B. B. King's brother." He also sometimes used the nickname "Blues Boy" and named his guitar Lucy, while B. B. King said Albert was a friend rather than a relative. According to King, he was five when his father left the family and eight when he moved with his mother, Mary Blevins, and two sisters to the Forrest City, Arkansas, area, and he said the family had also lived in Arcola, Mississippi. He made his first guitar from a cigar box, a piece of a bush, and a strand of broom wire, later bought a real guitar for $1.25, and as a self-taught left-hander learned by turning his guitar upside down. Before supporting himself as a musician, he picked cotton, drove a bulldozer, did construction, and worked other jobs. His first band was the In the Groove Boys of Osceola, Arkansas; in the early 1950s he also worked with the gospel group the Harmony Kings in South Bend, Indiana, and as a drummer with Jimmy Reed in the Gary-Chicago area. He recorded his debut single for Parrot Records in Chicago before returning to Osceola and then moving to Lovejoy, Illinois. Recordings in St. Louis brought new attention to his talent, and his years with Stax Records in Memphis from 1966 to 1974 put him in the forefront of the blues. Rock audiences and musicians formed a devoted new fan base, while his funky soulful approach helped him maintain a following in the African American community. Among his most notable records were Live Wire/Blues Power, recorded at the Fillmore in San Francisco, and the Stax singles "Born Under a Bad Sign," "Cross Cut Saw," "The Hunter," and "I'll Play the Blues for You." He remained a major name in blues, was elected to the Blues Hall of Fame in 1983, and died after a heart attack in Memphis on December 21, 1992, though he never matched the commercial success of some of his followers, including Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan.
