Best National Blues Act

B.B. King

The king of the blues has always been a busy sovereign, and never more so than in the last few months. B.B. was chillin' with the pope in Vatican City in December, then kickin' it with hip-hop hit man Heavy D and others on Deuces Wild, which rode the top of the Billboard blues chart for three months. There have also been the usual globetrotting gigs, roles on-screen and in the soundtrack of the latest Blues Brothers flick, ambassadorship over clubs bearing his name in Memphis and LA, and CD reissues from throughout his spectacular career. So what is it about the 72-year-old Mississippi Blues Boy that has earned him the opportunity to play "Merry Christmas, Baby" with an 84-piece orchestra before the Holy Father? Maybe it's the Note: that singular, searing, B.B. King-bent guitar string that has sent shivers through blues fans for 50 years. It might be the Voice that hit the heavenly falsetto high on "Sweet Little Angel," growled out the house rules on "Paying the Cost to Be the Boss," and told everybody's broken love story on the timeless "The Thrill Is Gone." Long live the King.

-- Bill Kisliuk