B. B. King (born Riley B. King on September 16, 1925) is an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter, widely considered one of the best and most respected blues musicians of all time.
+ Recording years
B. B. King arrived in Memphis for the first time in 1946 to work as a musician but after few months of hardship he left, going back to Mississippi. There he decided to prepare himself better for the next visit and returned to Memphis two years later. Initially he worked at the local R&B radio channel WDIA as a singer. In 1949, he began recording songs under contract with Los Angeles based RPM Records. Many of King's early recordings were produced by Sam Phillips, who later founded Sun Records. King was also a disc jockey in Memphis, where he gained the nickname "Beale Street Blues Boy", later shortened to "B. B." Before his RPM contract, B. B. had debuted on Bullet Records by issuing a single "Miss Martha King" (1949) that got a bad review on Billboard magazine and did not chart well.
In the 1950s, B. B. King became one of the most important names in R&B music, amassing an impressive list of hits under his belt including "You Know I Love You," "Woke Up This Morning," "Please Love Me," "When My Heart Beats like a Hammer," "Whole Lotta Love," "You Upset Me Baby," "Every Day I Have the Blues," "Sneakin' Around," "Ten Long Years," "Bad Luck," "Sweet Little Angel," "On My Word of Honor," and "Please Accept My Love." In 1962, King signed to ABC-Paramount Records, which was later absorbed into MCA Records, and then his current label, Geffen Records.
In November 1964, King recorded the legendary Live at the Regal album at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois.
King's first success outside the blues market was his 1969 remake of Roy Hawkins' tune "The Thrill Is Gone." King's version became a hit on both pop and R&B charts, which was rare for an R&B artist. It also gained the number 193 spot in Rolling Stone's Top 500 Songs Of All Time. He gained further rock visibility as an opening act on The Rolling Stones much-ballyhooed 1969 American Tour. King's mainstream success continued throughout the 1970s with songs like "To Know You Is to Love You" and "I Like to Live the Love." Between 1951 and 1985 King appeared on Billboard's R&B charts 74 times.
+ Going mainstream
The 1980s, 1990s and 2000s saw King recording less and less. Yet throughout this time he maintained a highly visible and active career, appearing on numerous television shows and performing 300 nights a year. In 1988 King reached a new generation of fans with the single “When Love Comes To Town,” a collaborative effort between King and the Irish band U2 (on their Rattle and Hum album). In 2000, King teamed up with guitarist Eric Clapton to record Riding With the King. In 1998 B. B. King appeared in "The Blues Brothers 2000" playing the part of the lead singer of the Louisiana Gator Boys, along with Eric Clapton, Dr. John, Koko Taylor, and Bo Diddley.
In 2003, King shared the stage with the rock band Phish in New Jersey, performing three of his classics and jamming with the band for over 30 minutes.
In June 2006, King was present at a memorialization of his first radio broadcast at the Three Deuces Building in Greenwood, Mississippi, where an official marker of the Mississippi Blues Trail was erected.
B. B. King also made an appearance at the Crossroads Guitar Festival put on by Eric Clapton. On the DVD he plays "Rock Me Baby" with Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy and Jimmie Vaughan.
Over the years more than 100 B. B. King concerts have been broadcast on radio and TV in many countries.[citation needed]
In June 2006, a groundbreaking was held for a new B. B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola, Mississippi. The museum is scheduled to open May 1, 2008.
+ Farewell tour
Aged 80 at the time, on March 29 2006, King played at the Sheffield's Hallam Arena. This was the first date of his UK and European farewell tour. He played this tour supported by ex-shredder/rocker turned bluesman Gary Moore, with whom King has previously toured and recorded, including the song "Since I Met You Baby". The British leg of the tour ended on April 4 with a final UK concert at Wembley Arena.
In July King went back to Europe. He bid a fond farewell to Switzerland, playing twice (July 2nd and 3rd) in the 40th edition of the world famous Montreux Jazz Festival and also in Zürich at the Blues at Sunset on July 14th. During his show in Montreux at the Stravinski Hall he jammed with Joe Sample, Randy Crawford, David Sanborn, Gladys Knight, Lella James, Earl Thomas, Stanley Clarke, John McLaughlin, Barbara Hendricks and George Duke. The European leg of the Farewell tour ended in Luxembourg on the 19th of September 2006 at the D'Coque Arena (support act: Todd Sharpville).
In November and December, King played six times in Brazil.
During a press conference on November 29th in São Paulo, a journalist asked King if that would be the actual farewell tour. He answered: "One of my favorite actors is a man from Scotland named Sean Connery. Most of you know him as James Bond, 007. He made a movie called "Never Say Never Again."
On July 28th 2007, B. B. King Played at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival with 20 other guitarists to raise money for the Crossroads Center, Antigua for addictive disorders.
+ Legacy
Over 52 years B. B. King played at least 15,000 performances.[1]
According to a 2003 listing in Rolling Stone magazine, King is one of the greatest living guitarists, ranked 3rd among the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".[2]
He has made guest appearances in numerous popular television shows, including The Cosby Show,[3] The Young and the Restless,[3] General Hospital,[4] The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,[3] Sesame Street,[5] Married With Children[3] and Sanford and Son.[3]
King is the subject of an acclaimed biography, B.B. King: There is Always One More Time, by the noted New York-based music writer David McGee.
+ MORE INFORMATIONS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BB_King
Music 4 World - BB King (Blues/R&B/Soul) - Biography - B. B. King (born Riley B. King on September 16, 1925) is an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter, widely considered one of the best and most
