September 16, 1970 – Jimi Hendrix goes to see his good friend Eric Burdon’s new band War, and is invited on stage to play guest guitar. This is his last time on stage as he dies less than 72 hours later. September 16, 2005 – Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil tears his calf when he leans over to sing along with … Continue reading CDJ Today: September 16 in Classic Rock →

January 21, 1987 – Twenty-two artists are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the 2nd annual awards show, held in New York City.  Keith Richards inducts Aretha Franklin, B.B. King is inducted by Sting, ZZ Top inducts Bo Diddley, Mick Jones of Foreigner inducts Eddie Cochran, Ricky Nelson is posthumously inducted by John Fogerty, and … Continue reading CDJ Today: January 21 in Classic Rock →

May 14, 1988 – Led Zeppelin reunites with John Bonham’s son, Jason, playing drums at Atlantic Records’ 40th Anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Other featured artists include Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Yes, Foreigner, Genesis, Vanilla Fudge and Crosby, Stills & Nash. May 14, 1957 – Elvis Presley swallows his own porcelain tooth … Continue reading CDJ Today: May 14 in Classic Rock →

I usually don’t write many opinion pieces and definitely try to shy away from being a critic. Someone once said, “Critics are the people who come down from the mountain after the war is over and shoot the wounded.” That pretty much sums it up for me. Not that there aren’t some critics of the … Continue reading Are We Modern Day Blues Players Losing the Plot? →

An official biopic based on the life of the late blues great B.B. King is in the works, according to a new report by Variety. The film, as yet untitled, will go into pre-production in 2021, the chairman of King’s estate confirmed to the outlet. The news come after actor Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Selma) … Continue reading Official B.B. King Biopic In the Works →

After two of B.B. King’s daughters alleged that their father died due to poisoning by one of his close aides, an autopsy has finally revealed that there was no foul play involved in the blues legend’s death. “At this point we can say with confidence that Mr. King died of natural causes,” Clark County Coroner … Continue reading Autopsy Reveals No Foul Play in B.B. King’s Death →

Stevie Wonder paid tribute to the late, great B.B. King on Saturday night at Milwaukee’s Summerfest by covering the blues legends’ hit ‘Thrill is Gone’. King died May 15 at his home in Las Vegas. He was 89 years old.

The City of Memphis has filed an application to re-name a section of one of the city’s downtown streets for the late B.B. King. Upon approval of the application, a section of Third Street will become “B.B. King Boulevard”. The renaming will required that street signs at 35 intersections be changed. Blues legend B.B. King … Continue reading Memphis Street to Be Re-Named for B.B. King →

The people of Memphis honored the late, great B.B. King Wednesday with a procession on Beale street, where the Blues legend got his start.  The New Orleans style farewell began around 1pm and the black hearse carrying King’s body paused temporarily outside of B.B. King’s Blues Club before turning onto B.B. King Blues Highway.  King’s … Continue reading Memphis Pays Tribute to B.B. King with Beale Street Procession →

Hundreds of people lined up outside a funeral home in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon to pay their final respects to the late, great B.B. King. ABC News reports that the crowd for the 4 hour public viewing grew to over 1,000 people.  Ushers handed out cards printed with King’s date of birth, death and … Continue reading Hundreds Line Up To Pay Respects to B.B. King →

The body of legendary blues musician B.B. King will return to the Mississippi Delta next week, where funeral arrangements are being made in his home town of Indianola.  King’s final resting place will be on the grounds of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center. A public viewing will be held in Las Vegas … Continue reading B.B. King Will Be Laid To Rest in Mississippi After Las Vegas Viewing →

by Paul Rappaport When I became serious about learning to play electric blues guitar, my first influence was Michael Bloomfield playing along side Elvin Bishop in the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.  Man, that was a lot of notes, but I began to pick them apart, note by note-phrase by phrase.  He played relentlessly to make … Continue reading B.B. King: Special Insights From The Man Himself →