Blues legend, B.B King dies at 89

 

Blues legend, singer, songwriter and guitarist, B.B. King died yesterday May 14th at his home in Las Vegas. He was aged 89.His lawyer said the Blues king, who won 15 Grammy awards, died peacefully in his sleep around 9.40pm yesterday. He had been battling diabetes-related ailments and high blood pressure for years.

B.B King, real name Riley B. King, was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. Rolling Stone magazine ranked him at No. 6 on its 2011 list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. May his soul rest in peace, amen.

With Obama at the White House in 2012.

B.B. KING'S CONTRIBUTION TO BLUES MUSIC

Pre 1949 BB King, the nickname given to him as the Beale Street Blues Boy releases his first single Three O'Clock Blues

1949 Two other singles You Know I Love You and Woke Up This Morning closely follow 

1956 King reportedly appeared at 342 shows in one year 

1962 King gets a recording deal with ABC Records

1969 Released hit single The Thrill is Gone 

1971 King receives first of 15 Grammy Awards 

1977 Granted an honourary Doctor Of Music by Yale University

1987 Inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 

1989 Teamed up with U2 for When Love Comes To Town 

2006 Ran the 'Farewell' music tour but continued playing for another decade 

2008 A museum was created in honour of the 'King Of Blues' 

2009 Wins 15th Grammy Award 

2011 Played Glastonbury Music Festival 

2012 Invited to sing at the White House with President Obama 

2014 Continued to tour the US until he fell on stage and was rushed to hospital 

2014 Inducted into R&B Music Hall of Fame