A Guitar And Gear Support Forum

Last night while driving home from band practice I was listening to an FM station out of Charlotte that broadcasts a blues music program. When I was almost home a song came on that grabbed me with its spellbinding guitar playing. I had no idea who it could be, but I sat in the driveway until it was over, mesmerized by the exquisite guitar tone and licks. In the main solo there were all these Jimmy Page-esque and Clapton-like phrases. Who the hell was this amazing guy?

When the song was over the DJ came on and to my astonishment identified it as B.B. Kings "3 O'Clock Blues," which was B.B.'s first hit in 1950.

A few thoughts:

1) Another reminder that I am so very ignorant, and that life is so short and with so much to learn. There's so much I don't know. Funny how a chance occurrence could reveal such a glaring blind spot in my musical education.

2) The original sources are the most pure representation of an artistic form of expression. It's great to learn from Page and Clapton, but it's even better to learn directly from what they listened to.

3) I must study and learn this song note-for-note.

Do yourself a favor: If you've never heard this, if the only B.B. your familiar with is the older, more rotund, deep voiced gentleman who plays Lucille, and if you're into those young British lads who in the mid 60s called themselves "blues scholars," then watch the video below and hear true greatness.

I was listening to a Gary Clark Jr cover of this the other day and thinking that it must be a BB King song but that I could hear the influence of T Bone Walker as well. I don't even know if I checked to see if it was a cover of BB King, because I remembered thinking that BB's early music resembled T Bone's to my ear.

That hits the spot, thanks. I hadnt heard BB that early.
T-Bone Walker, also a pioneer of early blues lead guitar phrase evolution, comes to mind.
He played guitar professionally from 1925 to 1973.
He pioneered a lead sound from early technique of quite simple repetitive notes, to blues and jazz-blues phrases that inspired so many, like Clapton.

I'm surprised you weren't familiar at least in passing with it. But that's showing my age, 64. I started listening to 40's 50' blues back in the 70's. Of course a good bit of T-bones style was from playing in swing big bands where a lot of jazz chords were used. Then T-bone was a flashy player too, known for playing behind his head while doing the splits. Or picking with his teeth.

BB’s guitar work from the 50’s and 60’s is definitely very different than his later style where he was more focused on the vocals, and also reaching a wider whiter audience.

The Brits that fell in love with him, like Clapton and Peter Green were listening to this earlier stuff. Obviously since the later stuff hadn’t happened yet!

Personally, I like all eras of BB. He was a great guitar player, singer, and entertainer and I was never disappointed when I saw him live.

So, here's the thing, musicians all listen to and ummm learn from others. Unless you are old enough to have heard the original sources while they were producing their sounds you would have to either:

1. Have someone tell you who, what, when they were and did.
2. Take a music history class?
3. Search for them (which, even with the internet can be hit or miss)
4. Read.

I got a lot of my jazz history from a broadcaster, in my younger days, by the name of Felix Grant, who had a late night radio show on WMAL (here in my home town of Washington, DC) called "The Album Sound 'til Midnight." Felix is gone now, and so I look for documentaries and books to continue my music history education. It ain't over till you stop breathing.

I guess, what I'm really trying to say (in my long-winded roundabout way) is, we gotta educate each other. And THANK you for sharing that clip, TMC!