Blues legend B.B. King dies at 89
Guitarist B.B. King, who took the blues from rural juke joints to the mainstream has died. PHOTO: REUTERS
B.B. King's fans and followers showed their grief on social media.
An attorney for King, who will always be linked with the Gibson guitars he named Lucille, said he died in Las Vegas, reported USA Today.
King was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in the 1980s. He was hospitalized in April for a few days after suffering from dehydration related to the disease. In May he said in a Facebook post that he was in hospice care at his home.
King had a deep, resonant singing voice and, despite having what he called "stupid fingers," an immediately recognizable guitar sound.
His unique style of trilling the strings with a fluttering left-hand vibrato, which he called it "the butterfly," helped shape early rock. He delivered stinging single-note licks that brimmed with emotion and were copied by white rock guitarists including Jeff Beck and Bonnie Raitt.