**1/2 B.B. King

BLUES ON THE BAYOU

(MCA)

I'm not sure why B.B.'s on the bayou, 'cause there's not a barking gator or a pot of bubbling gumbo -- or even a shot of New Orleans soul -- anywhere in these tracks. But this CD, apparently King's first entirely self-produced effort, is a good representation of his current live concerts: an uneven mix of inspired moments and fairly staid ones. The instrumentals provide the highs. King soars into the opener like a mix between Django Reinhardt and, well, B.B. King. And "Blues We Like" is a textbook example of the bending, squeezing, and vibrato that's made him perhaps the world's most imitated guitar stylist. The rest is listenable enough, even if numbers like "Blues in G" and the classic "Shake It Up and Go" are delivered in too stately a manner to excite. Hey, he's 73 -- maybe you can't ask King to be vigorous track-for-track. His vocals, in particular, show his years, though he can still kick up gravel in "I'll Survive" and "Tell Me Baby." But there's always at least a little magic when he's picking the strings. It's just disappointing that the brief guitar introductions he uses to set up many of these songs thrill more than the tunes themselves.

-- Ted Drozdowski