University of Virginia Library

King: Boss Bluesman Speaks Out

There are a lot of things I don't
understand, yes. Now I know that
it has to be something, and has to
be something that's you know,
kinda outta sight, 'cause I can't play
it, you know. And things that I
think is needed because, as we was
talking about earlier, fuzz and all
the many different tones, I get
ideas from these things myself. By
me getting the ideas, I can further
what I'm doing.

See, I learn constantly. I study
and I learn constantly. In fact, if I
wasn't talking to you, I would
possibly be reading a book, or may
have the guitar out. And I study a
lot, not physically on the guitar,
but mentally, on paper. In other
words, my mind is on music as
much as I can keep on it.

I've read that you've recently
cut an album in London with Steve
Winwood and Ringo Starr. I'd like
to know a little more about it, if
possible. When will it be coming
out, and what's the title?

It should be out next month,
and I think the title is "B.B. King
Live in England", or, "in London".
Yeah, there was Ringo Starr on
drums, Steve Winwood on piano,
then Gary Wright on piano, Duster
Bennett sat in on guitar, so did
Peter Green. Klaus Voormann on
bass and Alex Cord on acoustic
guitar, in which I made my first
acoustic record, you know, playing
non-electric guitar. It's the first
time I ever did it in my career.

I know people'll be looking
forward to it.

I think it was good. We used
quite a few people that I can't even
remember their names, but I
remember their music; they were
beautiful. Really together.

I hope it's a successful album.
Howlin' Wolf has an album out,
also done in London, with Steve
Winwood and Eric Clapton, among
others. I wonder if there is a trend
of people going back to England to
some of the people responsible for
getting Americans listening to Black
Blues in the first place.

Well I didn't think of it as a
trend, really. If I had known that
Howlin' Wolf had did it, I wouldn't
have. Not then anyway, because we
wasn't trying to copy anyone. But
good musicians, wherever you find
them, you use them. I would do
that anytime, but not to try and
copy a different trend.

I love to be creative. This is why
nightly I never try to play the same
thing. I don't think I could if I
wanted to, unless it was on paper.
What I mean is each night, what I'm
playing, like "The Thrill Is Gone," I
wouldn't try to play it tonight like
I played it last night, 'cause I don't
feel the same way I did last night.
So each night that I play I would
be doing what I feel then, not what
I think went over well last night.

Let's look into a crystal ball for
a while and suppose that you're
giving a concert at the University of
Virginia, and you're on a double
bill with the Allman Brothers. Have
you heard anything of the Allman
Brothers?

Are you kidding? I told you I'm
their grandfather! I've been around
a long time. Sure I heard of them,
seen them too.

What do you think of them?

We go right back to what I've
said; I haven't heard any "bad"
music, I've heard some good, some
better, but I haven't heard any bad
music. I think music is good, you
know. I think they're a terrific
group, a terrific group, don't
misunderstand me. I do like the
Allman Brothers. I do like many of
the groups, but I don't like all of
anything. I don't like all of B.B.
King's music. But there is some on
everybody I hear that I like.

I mean it this way. There are a
lot of groups that I don't like
everything they do. But I do like
the Allman Brothers, and many
other groups I like, but I don't like
them all, but I like certain things
they do, if I'm making any sense.
But it would be a thrill for me to
work on a show with them.

Let's generalize now. What do
you think of college audiences,
usually in a large, sold-out,
standing-room-only auditorium?

They are the best audiences that
I have ever played to, the college
audiences, because they come there
to listen. They're not there to be
seen or to see who's going to be
there other than the performers.
'Course all people I love, playing
where it seems they're enjoying
themselves, but at college, it seems
like to me that the people give you
attention that you don't got any
other place. That is, they listen.

Have you been giving any
thoughts to retirement?

Yes, when I die. Or when the
people decide they don't want to
hear me.

I do know that you've got four
grandchildren and I wondered if
you might pass your talents on to
them...

I think of it this way: they have
their mothers and fathers, I'm their
grandfather. So when I can get with
them, to say "hello", or tell them
about the things I've done, take 'em
around with me a little bit, then
maybe...they might decide they
want to do the same things. And I
think I would kinda be letting them
down if I retired. I mean
completely retired.

I never intend to stop as long as
people want to hear me. And the
reason I mentioned their mothers
and fathers, which are my sons and
daughters, well it's their children.
I'm the grandfather, so I think that
to settle down in the backyard and
play with grandchildren wouldn't
be enough fun for me.

In 1968, in an article in the New
York Times Magazine, you said that
your only ambition was "to be one
of the great blues singers and to be
recognized" as such. Do you think
you've gotten any closer to this
goal?

I think I've gotten closer, yes. I
don't think I've ever obtained that
goal, but I think I've gotten closer.

Once you said that you thought
there should be something that
could measure the blues inside a
person, and you said that
sometimes you felt that you had
trouble getting it all out, that you
still felt that what was in you
wasn't coming out. Do you still feel
this way?

Yes. I don't know the words to
express my complete feelings. Not
yet, and I doubt if I ever will. But I
think if I keep working at it, maybe
I can get a little more out of it each
time.

I've just about run out of
questions. My knowledge of your
music and blues is very limited, and
only recently...

Well, I think most people's
knowledge of my music is very
limited. I don't know a lot of the
things I done myself. I can tell you
this: I've recorded about 312 single
records and about 39 LPs. And half
of them I can't remember, I have to
look at my songbook and look 'em
over. Sometimes people surprise me
and bring up an album and say,
"Remember when you recorded
this?," and I have to hear part of it
to remember it. Because a lot of
times we don't do the things...we
only do our most popular tunes
most of the times, I mean the tunes
that people ask for.

So I made a repertory of the
tunes that the people ask for
mostly, if I'm making any sense,
and these are the ones we do most.
But a lot of the things I used to
enjoy doing, we hardly do them,
unless we get a request to do them,
and sometimes I have to go back to
my songbook to remember what
key it's in, especially the words.
Sorta hard. After 300, it's not too
easy to remember them all.

But I'll tell you..without asking
me, in case this may help some of
your readers that might be
interested in music. It's not all easy
and it's not all fun, but if one
decides this is what he wants to do,
he really has to stick with it, he
really has to stick with it. But, he
can expect many, many...many,
many pitfalls, many but, after you
start to obtain any success with it,
one beautiful day, with one
beautiful audience, can make you
forget about all of those bad days,
you know. And I think that's
what's exciting about this kind of
work. Because you can have a bad
week, and then come Sunday or
Saturday, and you have one good
day and you forget about all those
bad days during the week, and
you'll say "It was worth it."

How have you enjoyed your
stay at Wolf Trap?

It's been a beautiful stay, man.
Anytime that people think enough
of you, just like, I mean look, those
cats brought me two watermelons
tonight. This to some people may
mean nothing, but to me it means a
whole lot. It means somebody's
thinking about me. People sit
around and talk to me, like you're
doing. Whether it means something
to you, it will mean something to
somebody I'm sure. Somebody
would love to hear what B.B. King
feels or thinks himself.

And to me that's a great feeling,
'cause many of the artists that I
idolized over the years as I was
coming up, I never was able to hear
them speak, only was able to read
about things people said about
them. I never did get a chance to
know what a lot of these guys had
to think or what they said
themselves.

So it's really, man, a thrill for
me to be able to talk and you can
write what I say, or people can hear
me on radio or television, or
records, and hear me talk and give
my own ideas about certain things.
I think this helps a lot of people,
and it makes me very proud, man,
very, very proud.