Albert King Ether's

ALBERT KING

Ethels

Except for its small marquee,

Ethel's Cocktail Lounge on Mack

near Grand Boulevard looks a lot

like most other east side bars.

But after you walk in the front

door, you are greeted by a warm

and friendly red decor and an

even friendlier proprietor, Mr.

Alvito Johnson.

The legendary Albert King

and his "Flying V" guitar swoop-

ed down to Detroit to share Eth-

el's hospitality just last weekend

to the squealing, screaming delight

of a big crowd of natural blues

lovers, this reviewer included.

Following the warm-up by Al-

bert's solid new back-up band,

(photo)

MC Gip Roberts provided comic

relief with a monologue touching

on the familiar bases of women,

money, high livin', etc.

Then came the moment every-

one was waiting for as Albert

King strutted out in a plaid suit

and the band swung into "Tele-

phone  Blues." He continued to

demonstrate his impeccable taste

and well-developed intelligence

and wit by playing and singing

 tunes like "Can't Control the Fu-

ture," "Cold Women, Warm

Hearts," "Everybody Wants to

Laugh (Nobody Wants to Cry),"

and his smash single about the

lure of factory work in Detroit,

"Cadillac Assembly' Line."

An accomplished and very

powerful guitarist as well as a

singer/songwriter of strong inter-

est, King and his Flying-V smok-

ed throughout. On the slow bal-

lad "Ain't Nothin' I Can Do" he

traded licks with his extremely

competent second guitarist to

great effect.

He may be a country boy

from Mississippi, but he sure can

give a thrill to the hearts and

minds of big-city audiences. Let's

bring him back again, soon- we

need a lift like this!

--Jim Tomlinson