I love American blues music, and though are many, many great artists, the three classic Kings offer a seemingly unlimited vault of great music. Do you have a favorite?
BB. There can be only one King, and he is BB !
They’re all great. I saw BB twice - great shows. Freddie gave us Hide Away, though 
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You have neglected to mention the great Earl King. See for example: Come On.
My vote:
- Albert
- Earl
- Freddie
- BB.
Nothing against BB, they’re all great.
I love BB but for plain old blues licks I gotta vote Albert. Here you gol
Hard to choose, but I’ll give an edge to Albert.
Albert
Edge to Albert on guitar, edge to BB on vocals. Of course their individual styles, this goes for Freddie too, are best enjoyed without comparison. BB was a delta guy so I’m partial there. Saw him when I was at Ole Miss and he said playing there was the greatest night of his life. Given the time (1970) and culture I have no reason to doubt him.
Freddie in a walk for me. It’s all about the playing style: BB is a tasty minimalist; Albert is a badass minimalist; Freddie is a gunslinger who can hit you with a flurry of notes, or lay down a pumping groove like the breaks in Hideaway. His use of metal thumb + two fingerpicks gave him a biting, cutting tone when he needed a higher gear. He was known as the guy you never wanted to get into a cutting contest with onstage. You’d trade leads, he’d hear your best and then unload something amazing.
Freddie was most in the the tradition of the original Texas electric bluesman, T-Bone Walker, in terms of playing style, use of more complex chords and fills.
Freddie’s use of a Les Paul Gold Top with P-90 pickups pictured on the cover of an album is what got Clapton focused on Les Pauls. As I have said many times here, Hideaway was the Eruption of its day to British blues kids. Clapton’s cover on it on the Mayall “Beano” album is what led to the Clapton is God graffiti.
If I had to cite a blues player I aspire to play like besides T-Bone, it’s The Texas Cannonball, Freddie King.
Tough to choose, as it was BB who introduced me to the blues, but I give the edge to Albert because his music is more immediate and raw. BB had homogenized his sound to appeal to a wide range of record buyers, whereas Albert cultivated the Blues crowd, resulting in a more authentic sound.
Still and all, it would be nearly impossible to best “Live from the Cook County Jail”.
Man, that’s a tough choice. I went with Albert, but there are good arguments for all three.
My bias - A Best of Freddie is my go to road trip album
I voted for B.B., the only one I ever saw live. The one I have CDs for. Albert King was great though, probably the better guitarist but B.B. was a great showman.
Albert.
I went with Albert, but all three were formidable. Like a lot of folks, I saw B.B. King live, and appreciate his music, but for guitar work, the other two kings take the prize.
B.B. is by far the most famous (although if you go only by what’s ever played in a mainstream environment, he’s only got one song: “The Thrill is Gone”).
While I have nothing but respect for and love everything about Freddie King, and he’s clearly the best guitar player of the three in terms of technical prowess, my gut says go with Albert.
“I’ll Play the Blues for You” stands with anything the other two, or anyone else for that matter, ever produced. I just find the funky “Stax Sound” style more distinctive than the others.
- Freddie
- Earl
- B.B.
- Albert
I’ll be honest…haven’t heard nearly as much from Albert as the rest. Thanks to jaycat for adding Earl King to the mix - there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be mentioned in the same league with the other three.
Some of Earl King’s other noteworthy compositions besides the aforementioned “Come On”:
Those Lonely, Lonely Nights
Big Chief (Prof. Longhair version)
Trick Bag
Always A First Time
You’re More To Me Than Gold
Street Parade
Oh man, Trick Bag is such a great song.
I guess I don’t think of Earl as playing much lead guitar so haven’t thought of him in the same breath as the others.
And what of Little Jimmy King? He was not of this earth long enough to establish himself on anything like the same footing as the others, and his playing was certainly far more derivative, but it was not without its pleasures.