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“Nobody loves me but my mother, and she might be jiving too,” sang BB King at a sold-out show, June 5, at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. Seated in a chair, he belted out classics, told stories and a few jokes, and demonstrated why he is known as the King of the Blues.
Playing a set ranging from blues standards to a cover of a U2 song, the 79-year-old King performed about 15 numbers, bringing the 900 people in the audience to their feet over and over again.
While singing the classic, “How Blue Can You Get?” King’s voice boomed across the convention center, making the microphone nearly redundant. Singing about a woman who has been mistreating him, King sang, “I gave you a 10-course meal/You said, ‘Thanks for the snack.’ I gave you seven children/Now you want to give ‘em back.” The audience erupted in laughs, applause and whistles as he sang the last line.
Following a song called “Ain’t it just like a woman?” King said he and the members of his eight-piece band feel a little guilty about being so hard on women. Then he launched into a bluesy version of “You are My Sunshine,” the audience sang along without being prompted.
“Lord, it was wonderful,” King said as he sat in his bus after the show. When asked what was wonderful about playing Rehoboth Beach, he said, “Beautiful ladies and handsome gentleman, and good food, too.”
“The concert was wonderful,” said Beebe Medical Center President Jeffrey Fried. “I liked how personable he was, and how he involved the audience.” King convinced the audience to sing along to three different songs.
After one song ended abruptly, King turned around to his band and said, “I think one of you was trying to rush the old man.” The band members all pleaded innocence, so King asked that the house lights be turned on so he could ask an audience member. He eventually asked a woman in the front row, but she declined to pick out the offending band member.
“It was absolutely phenomenal. BB King is the greatest guy you will ever meet in the world,” said Dennis Santangini, president of the Delaware Celebration of Jazz, the event’s organizer.
“He loved our city,” Santangini said. “He definitely wants to come back. He’s sorry we didn’t have two shows. We would have sold it out again. There is no question in my mind.”
Santangini said $10 from every ticket sold was donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, but no final figures were available at press time. The rest of the proceeds, after expenses, will go to help fund the Rehoboth Beach Jazz Festival scheduled in October.
“It was a huge success to do a blues festival on race weekend,” he said. “What was great was that we got a great response from our community to support the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.”
During the show, King talked about his struggles with diabetes. “I didn’t know I had it for a long time,” he said. “Maybe some of you have it and don’t even know it.” He said the advances in technology make it easier for him to monitor his blood sugar level, and watch his diet.
For future fundraising concerts, Santangini and the other officers of the Jazz Festival. “We are kicking around maybe a country and western act to coincide with the NASCAR race. Or we might do a jazz concert on the beach.”
For information on the Rehoboth Jazz Fesitval, go to www.rehobothjazz.com.
Future concert dates and touring schedule for BB King can be found at www.bbking.com.
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