This site provides support for the Office of the Lt Governor. For updated info on the Governor, use Governor.illinois.gov.

Office of Governor Pat Quinn

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B.B. King



            B.B. King was recognized by Rolling Stone magazine as the greatest living guitar player in the entire world in 2006.  But in addition to his proficiency on the guitar, he has helped build an international audience for blues music, the true American art form.  Thanks in part to B.B. King, Chicago is the sweet home of the blues.

 

            Riley B. King, better known as B.B. King, was born on September 16, 1925, in Itta Bean, Mississippi, just outside Indianola. In the early years of the Blues music, King joined the masses of African-American musicians who came from the Delta Region to Chicago. They created a distinctive kind of music that joined West African forms with the emotional power of spirituals and deep soulfulness that spoke straight to the heart.

 

            King has inspired generations of great musicians through his Grammy Award winning albums, famed club and live performances. In recognition of his lifelong pursuit of musical greatness, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn declared August 19, 2007 as �B.B. King Day� in Illinois.