I’m saddened by the death of blues legend B.B. King. I wasn’t really into the blues, I wasn’t his biggest fan, but there are many artists that I do like that were influenced by him. There were so many. Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn, ZZ Top and the list goes on. The man was a legend and was as important to the music industry as any other music legend before or after him. He was respected by all.
His death got me thinking. Why do I feel sad? It’s funny how human nature works when it comes to death. Death sparks life into others in the form of a variety of emotions. We start to wonder why we didn’t pay more attention to the individual before he/she passed. We wonder if we should feel guilty, or are we feeling guilty about feeling guilty. Or maybe, and this is usually after some time has passed, did we do all we could with what we had at the time.
So why am I saddened by the death of B.B. King? I certainly could not have spent time with him. Perhaps I could have listened to his music more often? Bought more of his recordings? No. It’s because I feel like I know him. Through the years I have seen him perform at different venues throughout the world, not in person but on TV. I have seen him perform with different musicians of diverse backgrounds. I have seen many interviews and always remember his smile and laughter. And I have seen him maintain a high level of respect from so many artists. I can’t remember a negative word ever said or written about B.B. King. After all I have seen and read, I truly believe the world has lost an authentic, genuine individual who touched so many in a positive way.
Maybe I’m feeling guilty that I don’t affect more people in a positive way. There aren’t too many like him left in the world, he will be missed.
