A performance in St. Louis by music legend B.B. King has many wondering if the "King" of the blues still has enough gas in the tank to keep up with his touring lifestyle. The guitarist took the stage Friday night at Peabody's Opera House and gave a show that was heavy on uncomfortable stage banter and many performances that were cut short by the headliner.
A trip to a King show comes with a healthy amount of the performer chatting up the crowd. This is something we've come to expect, and as the guitar legend is 88 years old, we're more than happy to give his fingers a breather. King was especially distracted on Friday however, as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that "it was 45 minutes into the show before King played anything resembling a song."
His popular live track "You Are My Sunshine" got the crowd singing along, but the track was interjected with many instances of King talking to and waving at members of the crowd. The track stretched for 15 minutes, and hecklers began requesting that the bluesman play certain songs, or any song for that matter. Some even walked out of the performance.
The Post-Dispatch aimed critique at the light operators at the Peabody, suggesting that the house lights being on for "nearly half the show" allowed King to become distracted. The paper also slammed King's backing band for coming to a halt whenever King lost his place, instead of jamming until he got comfortable. Still, the fact that King struggled so to finish this show suggests that retirement might be the best option for the octogenarian.
King has ridden the road hard for nearly 70 years, and according to our sources at The Cincinnatian hotel, is one of the best tippers in the business. He deserves to relax.
