B. B. King

The crowds treat me like my last name. When I go onstage people usually stand up, I never ask them to, but they do. They stand up and they don’t know how much I appreciate it.

The great jazz instrumentalists taught me how to sing and interpret a song. they showed me how a horn can have as much personality as an actor.

I’ve known people that was a part of a family and always feel that the family liked everyone else but them. That hurts, and that’s as deep a hurt as you can possibly get. I’ve known people that would have problems with their love life. This is kind of how blues began – out of feeling misused, mistreated. Feeling like they had nobody to turn to. Blues don’t necessarily have to be sung by a person that came from Mississippi as I did, because there are people having problems all over the world.

I’d rather be B.B. King. That’s the way I started. Let the heavy metal guys play heavy metal, let the others play the other… I try to do what I do better, not get away from it.

It seems like I always had to work harder than other people. Those nights when everybody else is asleep, and you sit in your room trying to play scales.

I tell my children now that they are older, ‘If something happens to me… don’t make no big fuss over me. Don’t make no big expense on my funeral. Don’t put any pressure on the rest of the family. I’ve loved everybody, and I hope they loved me. But don’t create this big expense for the family.’

I try to teach by example and not force ideas on a young musician. We’re here to be part of a process of exchange.

Jazz is one of the best things that you can find in your life, it can always be your friend.

Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life.

I’ve noticed that the more adventurous and in that mode that I am, it seems that the more the audience really likes it.

The value of music is not dazzling yourself and others with technique.

A Jazz musician is supposed to find his voice, find his niche and do his thing.

In music the passions enjoy themselves.

If you’re trying to be hip, be hip!

For years the Trio did nothing but play for musicians and other hip people. We practically starved to death.

After you’ve done all the work and prepared as much as you can, what the hell, you might as well go out and have a good time.

You have to practice improvisation, let no one kid you about it!

To rise above the crowd, discipline yourself unceasingly to the strict demand and realities of your ambition.

A lot of singers think all they have to do is exercise their tonsils to get ahead. They refuse to look for new ideas and new outlets, so they fall by the wayside… I’m going to try to find out the new ideas before the others do.

I’m always thinking about creating. My future starts when I wake up in the morning and see the light. Then I’m grateful.

The word “jazz” means to me no category, but when you get stuck into wanting to do something the way it was with the “jazz emblem” or logo chained around your neck, you play in a frozen moment in time and you keep fermenting the ‘fifties saying jazz should be this way or that. Well, if jazz to me means no category, then I’ve got the green light And if it sounds like.. sounds like.. sounds like, and keeps crossing over, it’s what I wanted to do in the first place. I like the way Stravinsky and those guys did things. They expressed something, if not themselves. In fact, some people talk about expression, but expression really doesn’t mean anything to me because there’s a lot of work which goes into building a drama and then it’s up to other people to offer “expression.” Expression is such a nebulous thing.