MEMPHIS,Tenn. — Riley B. King, better known as B.B. King, was born in 1925 in Itta Bena, Mississippi where he grew up playing his music on street corners.
When he was 22, he hitch-hiked to Memphis and that’s when the real magic began.
Wednesday, King took his final procession down the famed Beale Street, with all the pomp and circumstance the King of the Blues truly deserved.
It would take more than a few rain showers to keep hundreds of B.B. King fans away from Beale Street.
Memphian Jack Avens was among them.
“We’re going to miss him a lot. Been a fan of B. B. King’s for a long time. Came down here to pay final respects to B. B.,” said Avens.
Folks traveled from near and far, lining the street where B.B.’s “soulful sound” first took root in Memphis.
“I was raised up on his music all of my life. My mom and dad, they listened to it, all of my family. Yeah, B.B. King, the thrill is gone,” said one fan from Little Rock.
And Wednesday’s sendoff was indeed fitting for musical royalty.
Members of the “Beale Street Procession Band” played their hearts out for the man many of them considered far more than a “blues” icon.
“He was our leader, he was our mentor. And the fact that he passed, that shocked a lot of people in the “blues” world,” said musician Ashley Bishop.
Bishop played the snare drum and performed with King many times on Beale Street.
He said there’s nowhere he’d rather be than “laying down a beat on Beale” and leading the hearse carrying King’s remains.
“I’m probably going to be very emotional, along with the rest of the crew behind me and around me,” said Bishop.
He admitted it would be hard to hold back tears on this special day, but felt certain B.B. would understand.
“We’re going to give it all that we’ve got for him. And hope we honor him well, ” he said.
