Home » Jazz Musicians » B.B. King
B.B. King
“King of the Blues”
Born on a plantation in Itta Bena, Mississippi in 1925, Riley B. King would start from very humble beginnings. His family moved around the area, and the young Riley experienced early a life of constant motion. As a youngster he was a farm laborer, but drawn to music, he took up the guitar; he played on street corners, and would sometimes play in as many as four towns a night. In 1946, he hitchhiked to Memphis, to pursue his music career. Memphis was a large musical community where every style of music could be found, a good place for a young man who wanted to play the blues. Riley stayed with his cousin Bukka White, a celebrated bluesman in his own right, who was able to show him first hand the guitar foundations of the blues.
Playing an acoustic set of rural blues, he kicked around a lot of the clubs in Memphis, getting a break in 1948 when he performed on Sonny Boy Williamson's radio program on KWEM out of West Memphis. This led to steady engagements at the 16th St. Grill in West Memphis, and later to a ten-minute spot on black Memphis radio station WDIA. “King's Spot,” became so popular, it was expanded and became the “Sepia Swing Club.” Becoming a popular local disc jockey, Riley needed a professional sounding name. He was the Beale Street Blues Boy then Blues Boy King, and eventually B.B. King. This led to the studio recording of “Miss Martha King” for the local Bullet label, which didn’t cause much of a stir, but it did stimulate B.B. to pursue a recording contract.
He recorded a couple of singles for Bullet, and then signed with Modern’s RPM where he did “Three O’Clock Blues”, in 1951. This song proved to be a major hit, and he quickly followed that with “Please Love Me”, “You Upset Me Baby”, “Every Day”, (which would become his theme song), “Ten Long Years”, and “Sweet Little Angel”. These are available as “The RPM Hits 1951-1957” (Ace). These recordings rose to the tops of the R&B charts, and he went on the road to promote the songs, thus starting his life of incessant touring. This is how he developed his unique and signature style, every night, playing the blues. By 1955 he had a full time band, and hit the road, where he’s been ever since.
Riding the wave of popularity generated by the RPM records, he churned out a string of hits for their subsidiary Kent label, and stayed with them throughout the ‘50’s. This is the period where he made a name for himself, both in the record charts, and promoting the records by playing live. But by 1961, he had decided to change labels, looking to get a better deal than he was getting at RPM/Kent. He signed with ABC/Paramount records, which had just scored big by signing Ray Charles from Atlantic, they were aware of a bigger market, knew how to market B.B.’s music and were willing to pay for it. B.B. King received a $25,000 signing bonus. The overall environ was much more professional, and though they brought in first class arrangers and musicians, they pretty much gave B.B. a free reign, or so he thought.
Read moreTags
B.B. King: In France: Live At The 1977 Nancy Jazz Pulsations Festival
by Pierre Giroux
B.B. King In France captures the blues legend at a pivotal moment in his career, showcasing his impeccable musicality and performance style rooted in nuance rather than sheer force. In this live recording produced by Zev Feldman, King offers something akin to jazz standards, channeling timeless emotional narratives through a blues lens that feels as classic as it does fresh. With King on guitar and vocals, the ensemble surrounding him represents a rich tapestry of musical experience with Walter King ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King: In France: Live At The 1977 Nancy Jazz Pulsations Festival
by Ian Patterson
By the time B.B. King arrived in France in the autumn of 1977 he could already reflect upon a good year. After a string of misfiring crossover albums, the Indianola blues musician had returned to studio form with the mostly straight-ahead blues of King Size (ABC, 1977). An invitation to Yale saw King become only the second African American after Duke Ellington to be awarded an honorary doctorate by the esteemed institution. And in June, King returned to Indianola for ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King: Through the Years
by Alan Bryson
Sixty-six years passed from the time in 1948 when Riley King auditioned for a spot on Sonny Boy Williamson's radio program, until his final performance at the House of Blues on October 3, 2014 in Chicago. His life was a remarkable odyssey from a sharecropper's cabin to the pinnacle of success. We'll never know how many millions of miles he logged on his tour bus in the 50s and 60s --he and his band essentially lived on the road in ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King: Live in Cook County Jail and More…
by C. Michael Bailey
In his ALLMUSIC artist's biography of B.B. King, Bill Dahl states, Universally hailed as the king of the blues, the legendary B.B. King was without a doubt the single most important electric guitarist of the last half of the 20th century." That is hyperbole of the order of Stephen Thomas Erlewine's introduction in the same publication to Johnny Cash as, ..."one of the most imposing and influential figures in post-World War II country music." Of course, neither statement is hyperbole ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King Live At The Hollywood Bowl, September 5, 2007
by AAJ Staff
One of the greatest blues figures is, of course, B.B. King. King fused the Texas blues playing of T-Bone Walker with a broader, almost literary sensibility; his thicker solo lines provide the opportunity to tell a story, to impart depth, and to dominate a horn section or at least supplement it on equal terms. Walker had learned his art from leading Blind Lemon Jefferson around from bar to bar when Walker was a young teenager in Dallas. Jefferson ...
Continue ReadingB. B. King in Denver
by Geoff Anderson
B. B. King Buell Theater Denver, CO April 19, 2010
B. B. King is the last of the authentic Delta bluesmen. That group includes legends like Robert Johnson, Charley Patton, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. King is the real deal. He was born in the Delta and grew up on the plantations, doing farm work. He logged many a mile guiding a plow behind a mule. Later, he drove tractors ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King: One Kind Favor
by Woodrow Wilkins
It's well-established that the blues, an art form born out of the Mississippi Delta cotton fields in the early 1900s, is a root of all forms of popular music: rock, pop, jazz, funk and even hip-hop. The man known as Riley B. King was born in the environment of that Delta, and has since become the most recognized name in blues--and perhaps, the most influential as well: B.B. King. Though Itta Bena, MS has long been recognized ...
Continue ReadingB.B. King (1925-2015)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
It was bitter cold in 2011 as I waited for B.B. King's two tour buses to arrive at the Independence Events Center just outside of Kansas City. It was early January and one of those florescent late afternoons where everything seems to be in black and white and the sun takes a slide at 3:30. When the coaches arrived, one snuggled up next to the building's stage ramp while the other hooked left into the parking lot. A few minutes ...
read more
Interview: B.B. King
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Proud of your vast CD collection? Think your iTunes library is bursting with great stuff? Trust me, B.B. King has you beat. Two weeks ago, when I was in Missouri to interview the 85-year-old blues legend while he was touring on the road, I spent time with the Boss" in the back of his cozy bus. My interview appears in today's Wall Street Journal (go here). Like a kid eager to show off a cool toy, B.B. was only too happy ...
read more
The B.B. King Treasures: Photos, Mementos & Music from B. B. King's Collection
Source:
All About Jazz
In 1947, with a two-and-a-half dollars in his pocket and his guitar on his back, Riley B. King, a sharecropper moonlighting as a blues and gospel musician, hitchhiked to Memphis from his home in Indianola, Mississippi.
Today, after touring the world as an ambassador of the blues for more than half a century, B. B. King is a living legend.
Like a celebration thrown by B.B. for his countless fans, published for the occasion of his 80th birthday, The B. ...
read more
Announcing the Winners of the Eagle Rock B.B. King Live at Montreux 1993 DVD Giveaway
Source:
All About Jazz
Enter the Eagle Rock Entertainment "B.B. King - Live at Montreux 1993" DVD Giveaway Contest
Source:
All About Jazz
All About Jazz members are invited to enter the Eagle Rock Entertainment B.B. King - Live at Montreux 1993 DVD giveaway contest starting today. We'll select FIVE winners at the conclusion of the contest on July 25th. Click here to enter the contest
(Following B.B. King at AAJ automatically enters you in the contest.)
Good luck! Your Friends at Eagle Rock Entertainment
About Live at Montreux 1993 B.B. King has, since 1949, recorded some of the ...
read more
B.B. King "Live at Montreux 1993" DVD out June 2nd
Source:
Universal Music Group
B.B. King/Live At Montreux 1993/Blu-ray & DVD Perhaps the greatest living bluesman, B.B. King was but a mere 68 when he appeared at Montreux in 1993 to wow the faithful. And he didn’t disappoint. Both DVD and Blu-ray contain his classic 16-song set. The Blu-ray has an exclusive three-song bonus (“Why I Sing The Blues,” “When Love Comes To Town,” and “Guess Who”) from his Montreux appearance 13 years later in 2006 at the age of 81. The ...
read more
B.B.King to Appear at Blues Music Awards
Source:
All About Jazz
B.B. King will be on hand at the Blues Music Awards ceremony on May 7 in Memphis to present an award named in his honor, the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year.
Nominees for this award are Janiva Magness, Watermelon Slim, Bobby Rush, Lil' Ed and Magic Slim. This year's awards ceremony and concert should be fantastic. Performers (info courtesy of the Blues Foundation) will include:
Bettye LaVette Detroit-born singer has performed at the Kennedy Center and at ...
read more
B.B. King Tour Stops at the Venue in Hammond
Source:
All About Jazz
B.B. King's 401(k) must have taken a hit during this economic tsunami. Why else would the 83-year-old blues legend still be working instead of fishing his days away.
(that's what people do, you know, when they retire)? Maybe because he loves playing and touring and can still rock, as a 2008 Grammy for his latest CD, One Kind Favor, proves.
As does a roaring crowd at Eric Clapton's 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival, where most of the attendees think ...
read more
Nokia L.A. Live December Calendar
Source:
All About Jazz
Celine Dion, Stevie Wonder and B.B. King healine the December schedule playing the NOKIA Theater at L.A.Live.
Stan Kenton Christmas Carols with the Boston Brass & Brass All-Stars Big Band opening act for Duran Duran December 2nd. Celine Dion Grammy Nomination show with B.B. King on the 3rd, while King returns December 27th & 28th. Stevie Wonder brings his show to L.A. Live on Saturday the 13th.
Attending live entertainment in Los Angeles is an all new experience when you ...
read more