Music is limitless in its interpretation: every person is individual in what he or she thinks, feels or believes about the music they hear and perform - that's why music is one of the purest forms of self-expression. The music we listen to helps define who we are; it marks the stages of our lives and helps us with decisions along the way. Music can be aggressive, relaxing, fast, slow, quiet or loud. It can reflect a mood, tone, or emotion you're feeling at any particular time. I suppose that's why, as a 15-year-old high school sophomore, the music I'm listening to right now is the blues.
I don't know what makes me so fascinated by it. It may be its simplicity, the storytelling or the true heart and soul that the musicians put into it. All of these factors mirror the soul-searching I'm doing as I try to plan the rest of my life.
As a guitar player, the one person who seems to symbolize everything that is the blues is B.B. King. There is something so powerful about the way he sings and plays his guitar. The man makes people cry. If you watch him perform, you can see that he is putting every ounce of himself into the music, making his guitar speak. Sometimes his guitar yells, other times it whispers, but he is always amazing.
King was born in the Mississippi Delta, home to other blues legends like Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Howlin' Wolf (isn't it strange that so many bluesmen are from the same place?).
However, King would soon leave Mississippi and find his way to Memphis to begin recording. It was his early records like "Sweet Little Angel" and "Everyday I Have the Blues" that began to get the attention of radio DJs. In 1969, King released the most important song of his career, "The Thrill Is Gone," which went on to win a Grammy Award for best Rhythm and Blues Male Vocal Performance. His career spans three decades and, even at 84 years old, King is still ripping it up night after night. He is the King of Blues and, even when we lose the man, his music will never die.
Another great blues legend and favorite of mine is Buddy Guy. If King is the king of blues, Guy is the prime minister.
A native of Louisiana, Guy has had the blues from the beginning. He began to teach himself to play guitar with a two string diddley bow that he made himself. In 1957, Guy moved to Chicago and became a session musician for Chess Records, playing with artists such as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson.
I love Guy's guitar playing. It says so much about the possibilities of your instrument. From his monstrous bends, to his smallest vibrato, Guy has a sound that cannot be touched. I listen to him when I'm having a bad day - when there are pressures and expectations weighing me down - and he knows exactly how I feel. I begin to feel better because he knows.
Both King and Guy are blues legends. They capture the true spirit of the blues with their charisma and love of the music. Their emotions resonate through their instruments and they communicate with their listeners in a way that other musical styles can't. No matter how my life changes and even as I find new music to play and listen to, I will always return to the blues.
