Burglar is an album by the American musician Freddie King, released in 1974.[1][2] King signed with RSO Records on the advice of Eric Clapton.[3] King supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Rush, among others.[4]Burglar charted on Billboard's Soul LPs chart.[5] In 2023, Lurrie Bell recorded an interpretation of the complete album.[6]
Production
The album was produced primarily by Mike Vernon, with Tom Dowd doing some work at Criteria Studios.[7][8] Clapton played guitar on "Sugar Sweet"; he and his band recorded three other songs with King during the session, which were released later.[8][9][10]Bobby Tench also contributed on guitar.[11] King, who wrote two of the songs, added elements of pop and funk to his Texas blues sound.[12][13] "Pack It Up" is a cover of the Gonzalez song.[14] "She's a Burglar" was written by Jerry Ragovoy.[15] "Pulp Wood" is an instrumental.[16]
Billboard wrote that "King sings in his usual rough vocals but continues to let his fluid and graceful guitar do most of the talking."[19] The Bracknell and Ascot Times praised King's "incomparable wailing, bending and soaring electric guitar and superb voice."[20] The Hammersmith and Shepherds Bush Gazette deemed the album "an exciting mixture of the traditional slow blues and the wilder, more extroverted rhythm 'n' blues."[21] The Lincoln Journal Star stated that "King can fool you because he plays with such a big beat, but he is a sensitive guitar player when he gets down."[22]
AllMusic wrote that "Burglar is one of those gems that journeymen can put together in their sleep."[8]The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings noted that King's "guitar solos rarely descend below the eighth fret."[17]The Plain Dealer included the album on its list of the "100 greatest guitar albums from Rock & Roll Hall of Famers", concluding that "King puts it all together as artist, creating a mix of blues and funk with his guitar and voice."[23]