From radio host to blues legend: The remarkable journey of B.B. King

It's been nine years since we lost a true legend. B.B. King was the first blues artist to ever move into the musical mainstream of pop and rock. He was a man with extreme determination to achieve this remarkable distinction.

B.B. King grew up on a cotton plantation and started playing the guitar at a young age. Growing up in church, King was deeply influenced by gospel music, as well as the blues that he heard all around him.

He was born Riley B. King on September 16, 1925, in Itta Bena, Mississippi, in the heart of the delta. His parents separated early in his life and by age seven he was doing the work of a grown man in the fields, working for a sharecropper.

By the time that he was 14 years old, he was living on his own and working at a cotton gin just a short distance from Memphis. The young King felt compelled to play the blues and he asked his employer for an advance in pay to buy a guitar. Like many young blues singers, King would move to Memphis in hopes of making it big and starting a better life.

It was common for the best blues performers in those days to get their start by hosting a radio show. At a time when radios were the main way people received news and entertainment, radio stations were looking for young talent to draw in listeners. But there would be stiff competition by many talented and capable musicians.

B.B. King in the WDIA radio studios.

King listened to these radio shows every day, wondering how me might get a chance to become a radio disc jockey and sing his songs in advertisements like Howlin' Wolf or Sonny Boy Williamson. He often wrote short little jingles on his guitar, listening to the spoken radio ads he heard, just to prepare himself should the opportunity arise.

In the evenings he would go down to Beale Street to play guitar and sing to earn some money and gain any amount of recognition. There were dozens of clubs and hundreds of gifted musicians on every corner.

In the late 1940s King would become an essential part of the blues scene along Beale Street. "Beale Street was where it all started for me," King remembered. Soon his talents would be recognized and he would be called "Blues Boy" by his fans.

In 1948, King was invited to perform on WKEM radio in Memphis. After the show was over, the owner walked into the studio with a new advertiser, "Can someone write a short jingle for this man?" King recalled the exchange and he picked up his guitar and quickly sang a short catchy two line jingle and he was invited back as a regular guest. He did so well he was given his own 15 minute radio show on WDIA, where he would gain a larger audience. It was at this time his friends shorted his nickname "Blues Boy" to B.B. and a legend was born.

In 1951, B.B. King would record his first hist record called "Three O'Clock Blues" and he would never look back. Within ten years, King would be known internationally as a blues guitarist and rising star.

During his lifetime, King was known as one of the hardest working performers in show business, performing on the road over 275 days of the year. As he grew older, he continued this touring regiment, even after being diagnosed with diabetes and suffering for years from congestive heart disease.

B.B. King toured an average of 275 days a year starting in 1951 until his death in 2015.

B. B. King would pass away on May 14, 2015 in Las Vegas after a series of strokes, leaving behind a legacy of music and recordings. He has been remembered fondly by generations of fans, music artists and friends.

What is your favorite B.B. King song or performance?

Leave a note in the comments and let me know. Rob

TheRockandRollProfessor.com