Man, the old bluesmeister still has it. He’s 78 years old now and has diabetes, but other than the fact that he sits throughout the concert, you’d never know it.
I thought maybe it would be one of those sets by an aging performer wherein the artist actually only plays or sings four or five numbers and the band takes up the rest of the slack, whole thing over in 45 minutes.
King and his band went wall-to-wall for two solid hours and brought the crowd to its feet more than once. What a talented group of musicians; and what a great voice King and ‘Lucile’ still has. The most poignant moment of the concert was when he sang “I won’t be back again”.
So if you get the chance, folks, take in his concert if it comes to town. The old guy still does 200 concerts a year, so he may be coming to your neck of the woods at some point.
Even the warm-up group was great: a local band called “Joey Fender and the 55s”. They played my favorite kind of balls-to-the wall, kickass blues-rock (think Stevie Ray Vaughan and “If The House Is a-Rockin”).
I saw him a couple of years ago at the end of a night of blues, and he was still a master, even compared to the young guys. A great musician and a great showman.
I saw this guy when BB performed in Kansas City! Something you never forget!
Saw BB perform at the Montreux Jazz Festival two years ago, and the man was incredible. The stamina! He kept going on and on into the wee hours of the morning, and I was ready to pass out. He also gave a fun workshop. There is a statue of BB in Montreux:
And I should clarify that I’m not implying that diabetics can’t lead normal lives; I’m type 2 myself. The main point is that he’s 78 and has more energy than I had at 38.
Chefguy
Nor did I mean to imply anything demeaning about diabetics (and I hope no one took my remark that way).
I only metioned it because it is not something that is going to make things easier for you, or give you more enrgy, etc.
And long live the Blues Boy !!!
As did Jerry Garcia. And Frank Zappa, too, when I saw him one night when he gave a concert while he was sick.
I saw BB about 15 years ago, and he was in a chair then, too. The thing that impressed me most about him physically was the way he seemed to have a neck made of rubber, because he would swing his head from one side to the other, ears virtually touching his shoulders each way, with almost every note. Truly an amazing neck.
His music, by the way, was simply outstanding and certainly the best live blues I’ve ever seen.
