Following up on my earlier post on the Santa Cruz Blues Festival, the highlight of the day came when BB King arrived on stage to close out Saturday's show. King had played two other bay area gigs that week. At 83, he moves a bit slower than he used to, but he's still got the chops on guitar. Many in the audience, myself included, felt priveleged to see such an historic and influential musician live.
BB King's influence on rock and blues guitar cannot be overstated. Alongside Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters, BB King put his imprint on music in a fashion that paved the way for Eric Clapton, Jimmi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and many others. With a career that spanned more than 50 years and 15,000 gigs, you can hear the influence of his minimalistic style and powerful vibrato in almost any modern blues rock guitar solo.
Much of the power of King's set came from his 8 piece band including a great horn section and rhythm guitarist. It's clear that these are top-rated veteran musicians who could be headlining venues on their own. Nonetheless, they provide a great introduction and a tight musical groove for King to show off his stuff.
At 83, you don't expect to see King dance around on stage. And sometimes his vocals seemed to fade into the background. But when he rips into a solo, it's clear that his musical abilities are still wonderfully intact, both on new songs as well as from his classic blues repertoire. He told a few good stories along the way but not to the point of being a distraction. In fact, I was surprised that he played a full 90 minute set and still offered to sign autographs. You could tell he was getting a little tired on occasion, but the audience just adored him and I'm sure that's part of what keeps him out of retirement.
For me, the highlight of the show was his signature song, "The Thrill is Gone," which I was able to capture on video.
BB King continues to tour through the summer in Europe and the US. At this point you just never know how many more gigs there will be. And if he's not playing in your town, pick up the re-released DVD Live at Montreux 1993
- Photos & Videos: PicasaWeb, YouTube
- BB King: Official Site, Tour, Wikipedia, Live at Montreux 1993
- Santa Cruz Blues Festival: Main, Info
- Hub Pages: BB King - Real Guitar Hero
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