Photos by Mark C. Austin

B.B. King deserves a break. If the genial Buddha of the blues, now 83, would rather spend the bulk of his two-hour set bantering with the sold-out crowd about Viagra (groan) and the wayward ways of womankind instead of, you know, singing and playing, he's earned it. And besides, he's a pretty funny guy.

"You look 30!" one audience member cried out shortly after King went onstage Saturday night around 9:20 p.m.

"You need new glasses," the King shot back.

King had the luxury of acting as comic relief in his own show because he relies on his superlative band - "'bout half of 'em are from Texas anyway," he said near the end - to handle the musical heavy lifting, and did they ever. From the opening notes of a speedy jazz shuffle warmup to the final tear-stained chords of "The Thrill Is Gone," they hit all their marks with consistently engaging, exuberant solos and lockstep precision. To use the jazz term, they cooked.