Blues Legend B.B. Kings Dies At 89

B.B. King died in his sleep  last night in his Las Vegas home. Born Riley B. King, he was known as "Blues Boy" King and his unique picking style brought blues to the mainstream. He was 89.

Born in Mississippi, he was also known as the "King of Blues", and had a career that spanned over 6 decades. He has been nominated for 30 Grammy's and won his first in 1970 for Best R&B Vocal Performance for one of his biggest songs, "The Thrill Is Gone.

In the mid-1950s, B.B. King named his guitar Lucille. The story behind naming the guitar Lucille is that he was performing at a dance in Twist, Arkansas, when some fans got out of control and started a fire. B.B. ran out leaving his guitar and risked his life going back in to get it. Later he found out that confusion all started because two men were fighting over a woman named Lucille. She knocked over a kerosene heater that caused the fire to start. So he named the guitar Lucille to remind him to never do anything that foolish.