Albert Tatlock Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 My work colleague just arrived and told me this. My response (which I'm quite proud of): "So, for once, he didn't wake up this morning". A bit of British black humour there. Seriously though, bad bad news. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqUhdBAJfsk Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jcamp Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Riding with the King!RIP BB King. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
remphish1 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Wow sad! I had the pleasure of meeting him once. He was one of the nicest celebrities I ever met. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 What can I say? Like countless others, he was an immense part of my formation as a musician and a lover of music. My first album was Blues on the Bayou. My favorite is Live in Cook County Jail. Listen to the way in a single tune he could make Lucille growl like a Mississippi hound dog and sing sweetly like some blues angel. I was fortunate to catch a few of his shows in my life. The way he barked his vocals, shook his fists and then winked at the ladies in the front row. The precision, dexterity and control he had over his instrument, his voice and his band. The tremendous joy, laughter and inspiration he brought to the world through his music cannot be measured. I'm thankful to have been a fan. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
KO11 Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 There is some music that is best heard "live" , I think BB King's music was best heard live.Very sad to hear he has moved on...it's up to us to keep his music alive....RIP.Damn so sad... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mr. Heartbreak Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Well, 89 is a pretty good run...especially when you factor in diabetes and obesity. But it's always hard to see any of the greats go. Unfortunately for me, I never got to see him in his prime. I caught B.B. once, and it was about 4 or 5 years ago. He talked more than he sang, barely played the guitar. When he did, it sounded great, and the band behind him would crank it up...but then he would lapse right back into another rambling story. It was kind of sad. Buddy Guy was the opener that night, and really should have been the headliner. He was high octane from the get-go, and totally blew away the whole room. Maybe Buddy and B.B. looked at it more like co-headlining and not competition...but for me, in the audience, it was the clearest example I have ever seen of an opening act blowing away a headliner completely. Oh well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Doug C Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Re Mr. Heartbreak above.Damn. That story is basically about the cold slap of reality. This should be in it's own thread but... Hell why not! See other thread. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jw harding Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Only saw him once, at some blues fest benefit concert type thing. Just a few years ago. Sounded and played great. Key to the Highway, with the line "and when I leave this town, I won't be coming back no more..." had a certain weight to it. Knew then I'd probably never see him again, glad I got the chance. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Caught him in Roanoke in, around, 1987. I was not in a normal state of mind and the guy I went with didn't have a seat with me but somewhere else. I ended up in the middle of the row between a bunch of older ladies who would holler "Amen!" and "Hallellujah!" pretty much after everything BB said or sang. It got too intense for me and I had to bail about half-way through. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Moss Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Got to see him a few times and I was always impressed by his ability to work a crowd. He had Red Rocks hopping by the end of his set. I guess you learn something doing 200+ gigs a year for 60 odd years. What an instantly identifiable sound, both guitar and vocals. Amazing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 Once again this is the end of an era. Got to see him a time or two. I think two, but unfortunately I only remember one clearly. BB had a great career to say the least. He had success when he was young and never looked back. Of the old school only Buddy Guy remains I think. LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boss_Tweedy Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 Such an irreplaceable treasure. I was fortunate enough to be front and center (about three or feet away from him) for his late-night show at Club Ebony in Indianola during his 2001 homecoming. An experience I'll never forget. He was great ambassador for my home state and for the blues. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
uncool2pillow Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 Live in Cook County Jail was one of my early record purchases. Probably 1985 or 1986. Listened to it yesterday. He will be missed, but he had a great run! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jff Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 If you have the PBS streaming channel, they've added a few pieces of B.B. King content since his passing. One of his Austin City Limits performances, a Blank on Blank animated interview, and part of his interview with Tavis Smiley (in which Tavis does 90% of the talking, but B.B. says some interesting stuff when he can get a word in.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boss_Tweedy Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 You're gonna want to click on the link below & make sure the sound on your computer is on. http://www.bbkingmuseum.org/in-memoriam Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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