B.B. KING
(1925 – 2015) For more than half a century, Riley B. King – better known as B.B. King – defined the blues for a worldwide audience. An American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, B.B. King introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimmering vibrato and staccato picking that influenced many later blues electric guitar players. King was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and is one of the most influential blues musicians of all time, earning the nickname “The King of the Blues.”
Performed at The Grand – October 2003, October 2005, June 2007 and November 2013
SARAH VAUGHAN
(1924 – 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed “Sassy” and “The Divine One”, she won four Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. She was given an NEA Jazz Masters Award in 1989. Critic Scott Yanow wrote that she had “one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century”.
Performed at The Grand – November 1983
