# I saw B.B. King last night. Holy crap! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 23, 2003, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783 "2003-11-23T02:41:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/1 "2003-11-23T02:41:18Z")
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”). ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/2 "2003-11-23T02:44:16Z")
What a great show he puts on. Does he still have the horn player who bobs his head when he’s not playing and it looks like it’s gonna fall off? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/3 "2003-11-23T02:54:46Z")
Yeah, I think they call him “Boogie”. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/4 "2003-11-23T06:24:23Z")
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. He even was in funny cell phone ads. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/5 "2003-11-23T08:40:21Z")
Nice to hear that at his age and despite the diabetes, the “Blues Boy” still has it !! ---
**Author:** ![Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ebca7d/32.png) [@Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Violet)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/6 "2003-11-23T19:06:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bill H. \* > \*\*Does he still have the horn player who bobs his head when he’s not playing and it looks like it’s gonna fall off? \*\* 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: > **[Homepage - MJF](https://www.montreuxjazzfestival.com/fr/)** > > Fondé en 1967 par Claude Nobs, le Montreux Jazz Festival est devenu au fil des ans un rendez-vous incontournable, générateur d’histoires et de performances légendaires. Viva BB King! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/7 "2003-11-23T20:04:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by wolf\_meister \* > \*\*Nice to hear that at his age and despite the diabetes, the “Blues Boy” still has it !! \*\* 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. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/8 "2003-11-24T02:16:50Z")
**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 !!! ---
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/9 "2003-11-24T02:28:06Z")
Big Joe Turner sang from a chair near the end too. ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/10 "2003-11-24T03:12:07Z")
As did John Lee Hooker ---
**Author:** ![Heart\_On\_My\_Sleeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/77aa72/32.png) [@Heart\_On\_My\_Sleeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_On_My_Sleeve)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2003, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/11 "2003-11-24T22:14:08Z")
Oh man, I really want to see him!!! ---
**Author:** ![Pablito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@Pablito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablito)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2003, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/12 "2003-11-25T03:25:48Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![pesch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pesch/32/4925_2.png) [@pesch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pesch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2003, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/13 "2003-11-25T03:51:01Z")
He’s coming to Lancaster County, Pa., in January, so I think I’ll go see him. Glad to hear he’s still putting on a great show. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/14 "2003-11-25T14:41:14Z")
Yes, B.B. is one of the few remaining living legends. Go see him at all costs! ---
**Author:** ![Mithril](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mithril/32/3517_2.png) [@Mithril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mithril)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-b-b-king-last-night-holy-crap/214783/15 "2003-11-26T02:40:31Z")
I saw him a few years ago, and he was both an amazong bluesman and a seemingly really nice guy. Also, my mom knows one of his publicity people. He got me a genuine used BB King guitar pick. I keep it in a tiny little frame.