![B.B. King Keeps Busy Nearing 80th Birthday]( "B.B. King Keeps Busy Nearing 80th Birthday")
B.B. King Keeps Busy Nearing 80th Birthday
Sat Sep 17
WASHINGTON - They came to see B.B. King. But before the night was over, the hundreds who lined up at a bookstore in Washington D.C. could be forgiven for thinking the blues legend had really come to see them.
As the line snaked toward a table where he recently signed copies of his book, King held court, telling one fellow he wished he was still as young and handsome as he was. To a young woman he said, "There's nothing prettier than a woman with dimples." Others got a handshake or a smile as they thanked him for a song or performance that meant a lot to them.
And each got an autograph on their newly minted copy of "The B.B. King Treasures" (Bullfinch Press).
Around his neck hung his latest honor: a medallion from the Library of Congress proclaiming him a "Living Legend." Though deserving of the title, King seems more resigned that proud.
"At 80," he says, "I'm not really ashamed to hear people say it."
King turned 80 on Friday. He still performs, has a CD in the works, and a museum dedicated to his life is to open next year in his native Mississippi.
For a man who has met four sitting presidents (both Bushes, Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton) and one Pope (John Paul II), King says it was his home state that gave him the biggest thrill of his career so far.
On February 15, the Mississippi Senate and Gov. Haley Barbour honored him with B.B. King Day.
"I cried, because I never believed that yours truly or any black person like myself would ever be honored there as they honored me."
Despite the state's troubled racial past, King says Mississippi has gone through "quite a change," and these days he feels at home there.
His close ties to the Gulf Coast region has King worried these days, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. But unlike some celebrities like the rapper Kanye West, King doesn't believe the slow response reflects a lack of sensitivity for the mostly poor and mostly black victims.
Administration officials "are doing the best they know how to do," he said. At the same time, he allows that if he were among those affected, he might feel differently.
As for those who say New Orleans shouldn't be rebuilt, King takes a page out of history for his response: "Galveston (Texas) was devastated just like New Orleans is today ... it was built back and better."
"New Orleans will be built again, and better."
Though he remains popular and is widely viewed as the man who epitomizes the blues, King is not without his critics. Some detractors say he performs a derivative form of the blues; others say his brand lacks the depth it should have.
King has heard them all, and isn't fazed. He says all the naysayers do is make him feel "like I've been black twice."
While he has a ready answer for critics, King draws a blank when asked why so few African-Americans appreciate the blues. He shakes his head slowly and chuckles: "When you find out, you let me know and we'll talk about it."
At 80, one thing King does talk about is his mortality. He has diabetes and other health problems, and his walk is a slow shuffle. Asked what he'd like people to think of when they hear his name, he sees the question for what it is, an attempt to coax a comment that can be used, if needed, for his obituary.
And he obliges.
"When I pass on I would like people to think of me as a guy who loved people and wanted to be loved by them. I'd like for people to think of me as a next door neighbor, one that they could trust."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050918/ap_en_mu/music_bb_king;_ylt=Av2XFfvc45aVjGPTeWa.gxi...
