Another giant gone.
A great blues guitarist. I saw him once in the early 70’s. I took this babe to see Rare Earth and King was the warmup act. She asked me who B.B. King was.
“What? You never heard of B.B. King?” (She was only 18 and I think she only listened to top 40 AM radio. This was the early 70’s before FM took over.)
“Nope. Is he any good?”
I told her that a lot of big names in rock had been influenced by him, people like Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and the Rolling Stones.
Then, when she saw the large band start to play she thought this was gonna be her parents’ music. The band played for a minute or two until King strolled on to the stage and started to play. It was a great set. After he walked off the stage after his encore she turned to me and said, “That guy was good. He was nothing like I expected.” I’m glad I broadened her musical horizons somewhat. Unfortunately, I got nowhere with her. That was our only date.
Great blues! Fantastic musician. He could really make Lucille sing. He was 89 years old. Had a good long life. Gave us a lot of great blues music.
He was in his late 70’s in this clip.
Another giant gone.
Saw him perform at a movie theatre in Madison, WI in the early ’80s. His entourage of full-figured ladies, all decked out in their Sunday best (tight skirts, gold jewelry, and high heels) were dancin’ in the front rows. In the middle of a song he stopped and scolded the mostly white, liberal, mid-western stick-in-the-mud audience and told them if they didn’t start whoopin’ it up and showin’ some more appreciation that he was gonna pack it up and go. I respect him a lot for that. He was the real deal and he didn’t go in for pretenders and phonies.
R.I.P. B.B.
I remember somewhere watching B B King trade licks with Eric Clapton. As the set progressed, Clapton let his ego get in the way and started hoggin’ lead. BB let it go for a spell but Clapton wasn’t picking up . Finally right in the middle of the song, BB stopped, looked E C straight on and told him to stop being so greedy.
Clapton deflated then and there and looking sorta sheepish, smartened up and shared better.
BB did it with a certain style & grace like putting an out of line youngster in his place in a constructive way.
Yes he was one of the greats and it seems to me that the younger generations don’t understand that in the entertainment business. showmanship is king… along with competence.
I saw him four or five times over the years. Atlanta, Charleston and Myrtle Beach. It was sad to be witness to his decline. he was a great performer. he was completely at ease on the stage and put on a great show. He will be greatly missed.
He will be greatly missed for his class.., which the next generation of singers, musicians and yes sadly rappers do not have in any way shape or form. Every night at work I listen to young rappers being played and its pretty damn sad. No talent, no class. Just hate and profanity. Yes I will miss B.B.King a great deal. To bad the younger generation will never know him at all.
Many years ago (early 70’s ish), in a small venue in WI (I think it was Oshkosh because that’s where I was stoned most of the time and can’t remember much through the haze) BB King performed and my seats were just a short distance back from the front. I remember being awestruck by his talent and humility.
Defshepard – proud to say my youngest (26 YO) likes BB King and was saddened by the news.
Dpddj, that is good news. I hope more like him discover and grow to like and appreciate B.B. King in the future.
Yep. Another loss to our culture. Been burning the candle brightly for the past three days just having a big ‘ol time listening to B. B.’s stuff on the pontoon. What sez it all for me about him is this: https://youtu.be/3MbaGJN2ioQ?t=5m37s
Re light strings. I’ve got lights on both of my Strats. Unfortunately after two many bends the high E string has a tendency to break. I got to get to the guitar store since both of my Strats need new E strings. Broke them playing the guitar solo for Highway Star.
Had the pleasure of watching him at Billy Bob’s here in Fort Worth a couple of years ago. The man had everyone on their feet in just a couple of minutes. One of the finest Bluesmen I have ever heard.
In a recent post, Eric Clapton suggested everyone listen to B.B. King’s album “Live at the Regal”. Recorded in 1964, it is blues at it’s finest. You can listen to the whole album via YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLGdTD5Dt-Y
I saw BB King play at the hockey arena in Fairbanks AK back in 2001 or 2002. the acoustics were lousy, but he put on an awesome show.
I saw BB King play at the hockey arena in Fairbanks AK back in 2001 or 2002. the acoustics were lousy, but he put on an awesome show.
Hey, there was a guy with the same name as you who was there, too!
Here in Erie back in the 1950`s/1960`s there was a Juke joint known as “The Pope Hotel” where B B King played a time or two …It was the accepted local venue for Black Artists during that time frame & many now legendary Blues performers visited there multiple times. Even drew a respectable number of fans from Cleveland & Buffalo.
The place is gone now , so are most of the Blues people. The Pope Hotel was dominated by a black cliental with a fair percentage of white folks who appreciated real Blues music & this being a now bygone era very little violence & no racial confrontations happened. You know before the arrival of Black Race Baiting Poverty Pimps & Obama
While I liked B.B. King my all time favorite was “Lightening Hopkins”