bb king :: essays research papers

B.B. KingBack in 1951, a young color guitarist call ind Riley King had his first hit song call "3 Oclock Blues. The song was so great, promoters whisked the young man from his Memphis, Tennessee home to the big top of New York City, where he shortened his stage name from Beale Street Blues Boy to "B.B. Boogie woogie pianist Robert "H-Bomb Ferguson recalls the first time he met B.B. King before the legendary guitarists first show at the Apollo subject in Harlem. "When I saw B.B., man, I laughed. This cat came out on stage with a purple suit, red shirt and green tie, says Ferguson. King agrees with Fergusons memory, still notes that the color scheme was different. " It was a red suit with a red tie with red shoes. Red and black sock and black shoes, notes King. Over the preceding(a) forty years, King has established himself as the indisputable king of blues guitarists. His creative style of blending gospel, jazz, and deep Delta blues has influenced two genera tions of blues and lean guitarists. Unabashedly, King admits that hes an original "Theres a whole lot of things I dont do as well as other people, but I can do and do very well being B.B. King. King launched his career as a professional musician on the streets of Memphis during the 1940s. He played gospel and blues on street corners for tips. Standing in-between blues and gospel, King took the path offering the promise of more financial rewards. At 66, King remains indefatigable. He does about 300 concert dates annually. Few artists who have attained the success that King has continue to drive themselves at such a grueling pace. The attract pushing King to stay in front of the spotlight is simple. He wanted to be remembered. "If youre out there, people never forget you. That is one of the things I believe in today, never being forgotten. I would like to be remembered as a person that love people and wanted to be loved by them. King has wrought a unique style of blues often imitated, but never duplicated. Despite an unorthodox approach to the music, King has helped to regularise the blues by bringing it into the mainstream. He hates when people label the blues as sad music. "Blues to me is many things, notes the King. "It has to do with people, places and things.