July 3, 2012
B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center
Indianola, Mississippi

"The blues are the three L's:  living, loving, and hopefully, laughing..."

-B. B. King

Gentle Reader,


The B.B. King Museum in Indianola has been one of the musical highlights of the seminar so far!  The museum does a phenomenal job tracing his life and his many influences.  The opening section of the museum focuses on the significance of "church" in the development of the blues.  B.B. King exudes kindness and compassion, and he treats everyone he encounters with dignity and respect.  He wanted to let everyone he worked with as he traveled on the road that their roles were appreciated, unique, and worthy of respect.  He was very much a people person, with an animated face and a smile that is rich and genuine.  

 "...The way I feel today, as long as my health is good and I can handle myself well and people still come to my concerts, still buy my CDs, I'll keep playing until I feel like I can't..."

B. B. King

 Nobody loves me but my mother, and she could be jivin’, too.

                                             - B B King

"... The blues was like that problem child that you may have had in the family. You was a little bit ashamed to let anybody see him, but you loved him. You just didn't know how other people would take it..."

-B.B. King

 Many of museum's displays focus on the role of gospel music in the development of The Blues...

 This part of the museum is actually an old cotton gin.  It is now rented out for parties, weddings, meetings, and various celebrations.  Proceeds go to the museum.

The Early Years

Born near the tiny settlement of Berclair in 1925, Riley B. King learned soon enough that life in the Mississippi Delta could bring heartache as well as hardship. His parents separated when he was four and his mother died five years later, at which point Riley began living with his grandmother.

After his grandmother died, Riley began living and working on a small farm owned by a friendly white man who taught him about kindness, respect and hard work. Through him, Riley learned to judge people by actions, not skin color.

Coming of Age with the Blues

African-American music was changing as Riley was coming of age in the 1940s. Spirituals were now competing with gospel and the blues.

Headed for Memphis

Seeing that music could be a means to a better life, Riley considered Memphis. His reluctance to move because of a new wife and a steady job faded when he damaged a tractor. Fearing the wrath of his employer, he grabbed his guitar and headed to Memphis. He gained a year's wisdom from his cousin, blues musician, Bukka White and returned to the farm long enough to work off his debt. He left again to pursue music, this time for good.

Riley soon had his own radio show on WDIA, nightclub gigs and recording sessions. In 1951, "Three O'Clock Blues," entered Billboard charts.
For over 10 years, B.B. and his band toured the Chitlin' Circuit, a loose network of African-American clubs across the southeastern United States.

From Indianola to Icon

B.B.‘s electrified, big-band style fell out of favor with the general public until the mid 1960s when audiences began to rediscover him, partly due to the influx of British bands. The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Who, and Eric Clapton’s Cream had grown up admiring and imitating recordings of B.B. and other blues performers.

Along the way to becoming an international icon, B.B. had heeded his mother’s advice. He treated the people he encountered with honesty, civility, and compassion. And the work ethic he learned in his youth guided the businesslike management practices he applied to his large traveling entourage.
As you roam through the Museum exhibition and collection, you will see how well these philosophies repaid him, and how much this man from the Delta has contributed to American culture. For millions of fans the world over, B.B. King, a man of character as well as talent, will always rule.

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"About 15 times, a lady has said: `It`s either me or Lucille.` That`s why I`ve had 15 children by 15 women."

-B. B. King