One of the blues’ most legendary exponents – indeed, the ‘King of the Blues’ – BB King, has died at the age of 89.
The guitarist and singer’s lawyer broke the news, revealing King died in his sleep in Las Vegas having recently been taken to hospital with a diabetes-related illness.
Born in Mississippi, King was showing off his prestigious talents way back in the 1940s, working his way from life on farms in the deep south to the forefront of blues in the fifties where he’s remained ever since, inspiring pretty much every blues guitarist of note in the process.
A famous workaholic who until recently played around 100 concerts a year, he won his 15th Grammy award in 2009 thanks to ‘One Kind Favor‘ and has been inducted into both the Blues Foundation Hall Of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame.