Guitarist B.B. King - Essay Example

Guitarist B.B. King Riley B. King was an American guitarist, song and blues singer. He lived between September1925 and May 2015. He was born on a cotton plantation in Mississippi as the only son of Albert and Nora Ella King. At the age of four, the parents divorced, and he was forced to live with his grandmother. He participated in the gospel choir at the local Baptist church. With the help of his relatives, he bought his first guitar at the age of 12. In 1943, he started working as a tractor driver while playing guitar and performing in various churches in Mississippi. Three years later, King relocated to West Memphis where he hoped to make several performances. In 1948, he got the chance to perform on Sonny Boy’s radio show and began to get audience. His popularity expanded during his ten-minute stint at Memphis radio station. The radio spot later changed to Sepia Swing Club (BBKING). His music career officially started in 1949 when he started recording with RPM records based in Los Angeles. Shortly before then, he had made his debut with a single titled “Miss Martha King” but is reception was poor. He assembled his named as the B.B King Review that toured across the U.S. while performing in major theaters (Morris). His name became one of the most prominent in R&B music in 1950s after his 3 O’clock Blues hit ranked number one on the Rhythm and Blues chart. After several releases, his earnings rose to the excess of $2500. In 1956, he founded his record label named as Blue Boys Kingdom. He engaged in rock music in the 1960s, and the Grammy Award in 1970 saw his song, The Thrill is Gone, list among the 500 greatest songs in history. Since 1980 till his death, he made several appearances on television shows, as well as, live performances (BBKING). King focused much on blues and led him to writing his autobiography titled “blues all around me.” His delta blues style is characterized by an emphasis on instrumentation and rhythm. His wailing guitar and world-weary voice brought to the global scene and at the top of American blues. He had a voice that groaned with love and lust and was recognizable to millions of people. During performances, he wrung notes with the guitar resting on his neck. Most of his songs, including the thrill is gone, were of pain and perseverance in love (Morris). King was simplistic in terms of the equipment he used. He played guitars and people associated him with the Lucille model. He also used amplifiers such as the Lab Series L5 2x12. The combo amplifier was the work of Norlin Industries, and he started using it in the 1980s. It had an onboard parametric equalization and compressor, and four inputs. He also used a 65 Fender Twin Reverb. There are no other significant equipment B.B. King is known to have used. With his songs having won several top awards, he is certainly one of the few blue guitarists of all times. His technique of vibrato and expression are talents that the world will miss. His influence on other blue musicians goes beyond that of other famous guitarists such as Eric Clapton. His extensive tours that averaged at 250 concerts per year are of no match to those of present guitarists. I think he also helped grow the audience for blues by giving people what they wanted to hear. He indeed deserves for than the earthly awards for his exceptional work. Guitarist John Winston Ono Lennon He was an English songwriter and singer. He lived between October 1940 and December 1980. He was in England to parents Julia and Alfred Lennon. He spent most of his childhood and adolescence with his uncle after his parents’ separation. Julia would still visit her son with Elvis Presley records, and they would play together. In 1956, her mother bought him the first guitar, Gallotone Champion acoustic. He failed his GCE-O examinations and was expelled from college for the poor performance and behavior (Christgau). In 1957, he formed the Quarrymen group and performed several songs during summer. He also wrote his first song titled “Hello little girl” and remained as a top hit in the U.K. for about five years. In 1960, he formed the Beatles with two of his friends. The group engaged in a 48-hour performance in Hamburg the same year and two other times in consecutive years. The group achieved massive success in 1963 to the extent that his first son was born when away. The group’s breakthrough was in 1964 when it appeared on the Ed-Sullivan show. In 1966, he decided to quit the band having had several successful live performances. The following year, he took part in a black comedy and went ahead to produce a television film by the name “magical mystery tour” (Chrisgau). Before the end of 1968, he featured in the Rolling Stones Rock as a Dirty Mac group member. He married Ono in 1969, and they recorded three music albums together. He then embarked on a solo career and made an emotional solo album that got praise from the audience. He embarked on several performances until 1975 when he got his second son. He did his last recording in October 1980 before he was murdered in December the same year (Christgau). Lennon’s music can fit into the blues and pop styles. At the start of his music career upon leaving college, his songs were full of emotions and love. His first song titled “hello little girl” is a classic example of the love in his songs. Together with his band, they produced other love songs such as Love do me and please please me. After parting with Beatles, he got enclosed in the studio, and he felt the urge to perform in front of people. He started performing songs on stage, but they differed with the love songs he performed in early years. Lennon used a number of musical instruments that led to his fame. Besides the guitars, he used pianos, amplifiers, drums, banjo, and keyboards. Lennon, for example, used a Steinway upright piano to compose his solo hit “Imagine.” He also used various amplifiers such as the Marshall, Fender, and AC-30 amplifiers. He fashioned his songs to rhyme with the current social events that were of importance to him and the band members. It is a fact that Lennon had a gift that enabled him to produce timeless music. His career would have even been better that it was if he avoided the use of drugs. Besides, he lived for a short time and he would have perhaps produced other electrifying songs had he lived longer. Works Cited "B.B. KING B.B. KING BIOGRAPHY." BBKING.Com. Web. 22 June 2015. . Christgau, Robert. "John Lennon | Biography - British Musician." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 Sept. 2014. Web. 22 June 2015. . Morris, Christophher. "Blues Legend B.B. King Dies at 89." Variety. 15 May 2015. Web. 22 June 2015. . Read More