366Art | B.B. King

Today is the birthday of the legendary B.B. King, one of the greatest blues musicians of all time. The edit above and his portrait on the musical birthday calendar/reference below are made by me, Frieke.

B.B. King, born Riley B. King on September 16, 1925, in Itta Bena, Mississippi, is globally regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues musicians of all time. His nickname, B.B., stands for Blues Boy, derived from his time as a DJ at a Memphis radio station where he was known as Beale Street Blues Boy.

B.B. King grew up in poverty in rural Mississippi, where he picked cotton on plantations as a child. His parents separated when he was young, and he was primarily raised by his grandmother. His first musical experiences came from playing an old acoustic guitar that he made himself. On this guitar, he developed a unique playing style, where he didn't pluck the strings but rather caressed them, a technique that would later become a hallmark of his sound.

In 1946, King moved to Memphis, Tennessee, a major center for rhythm & blues (R&B). His big breakthrough came in the 1950s with hits like Three O'Clock Blues and You Upset Me Baby. He gained national recognition and began touring the U.S. extensively from that point on. His musical style was a blend of blues, jazz, and rhythm-and-blues. His guitar solos, characterized by his smooth string bending and expressive vibrato, became iconic.

He started calling his guitar Lucille after an incident in the winter of 1949 when he was performing in a dance hall in Arkansas. During the show, a fight broke out between two men, resulting in a fire that engulfed the hall. As everyone fled, King realized outside that he had left his beloved guitar inside. He rushed back in to save it, nearly losing his life in the process. Later, he learned that the fight that caused the fire was over a woman named Lucille. Grateful for saving both his guitar and his life, he decided to name the guitar after her. From then on, every guitar he played was called Lucille, and he even wrote a song about this story, which was released in 1968 on the album Lucille.

King was signed to the record label Modern Records and later to ABC-Paramount. He had hits such as Every Day I Have the Blues -  Sweet Little Angel, and The Thrill Is Gone (1969), one of his greatest successes. This song is still a blues classic and earned King his first Grammy Award. B.B. King had an exceptionally productive career with numerous albums and hits. It is estimated that he released over 50 studio albums. Some of his most famous include Live at the Regal (1965), Completely Well (1969, Live in Cook County Jail (1971 and Blues Summit (1993).

King's influence extended beyond just the blues. He played with legendary rock artists such as Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, and U2, and he inspired generations of guitarists. He received 15 Grammy Awards throughout his career, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He also received numerous other honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2006 from President George W. Bush.

Though King had much success in his career, his personal life was complex. He was married twice, with both marriages ending in divorce. He reportedly had 15 children, though there were disputes over the exact number of children he fathered. King also experienced health problems later in life, including type 2 diabetes. Despite his age and health issues, he continued performing well into his eighties. B.B. King passed away on May 14, 2015, at the age of 89 in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is remembered as one of the greatest artists in the history of blues.