It's unlikely B.B. King had to push hard to get an impressive lineup of A-listers to appear on this album celebrating his eightieth birthday. The blues giant's career predates rock by more than a decade, and most of the duet partners on this CD (Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Roger Daltrey, Elton John) were in diapers while he was laying the groundwork for a style of music they would devote their lives to. Every guest takes a swing at reworking a B.B. King standard, with a pretty high batting average. Clapton adds his slowhand touch to "The Thrill Is Gone" while Morrison and King sound like long-lost brothers as they growl through "Early in the Morning" together. There are a few missteps — Elton John's rockabilly romp through "Rock This House" being the worst offender — but, overall, 80 works surprisingly well.

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.