B.B. King: The Life of Riley

See and hear B.B. King in performance while musicians share the same response to the King of the Blues' artistry: they can recognize B.B. King is playing by hearing just one note of his guitar. This film excerpt includes commentary by Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, John Mayall, Bobby Bland, Bruce Willis, Joe Bonamassa, Robert Cray, Derek Trucks, Johnny Lang and Carlos Santana.

B.B. King tells the story of how a product jingle got him a gig at WDIA in Memphis, TN, the country's first radio station to program exclusively for African-Americans. King approached the white station owners for an audition, and they asked him for a tune for Peptikon, which King provided on the spot. Peptikon, a so-called medicinal tonic, became the product sponsor for King's own regular show.

In this web extra footage from the director of "B.B. King: The Life of Riley," see B.B. King's funeral procession, which traveled from Memphis, Tennessee, to his final resting place in Indianola, Mississippi. The procession included marching bands on Beale Street in Memphis, an escorted motorcade across state lines, and a public viewing at the B.B. King Museum, where he is buried on the grounds.

Jon Brewer, the director/producer of B.B. King: The Life of Riley, describes how the first documentary on the blues legend came to be, his experience of filming B.B., and how his own background in the music business helps his film work.