Featured Bluesman:

B.B. King

If you’re a fan of B.B. King, one 70-mile stretch along Highway 82 in Mississippi can take you on a path that encompasses some of his defining moments. Beginning in the west, visit the B.B. King Museum in Indianola to experience his entire life story captured in beautiful films and exhibits. More than likely that will pique your interest to see the places that left a lasting impact on the music legend. While you’re in Indianola, stop by Club Ebony to see where B.B. has played on numerous occasions as well as the corner of 2nd and Church streets where he played for tips decades ago.

Approximately 20 miles to the east and a few miles south of Highway 82, you’ll find a Blues Trail marker close to where B.B. was born. It was rural then, and it’s still that way–a gravel road surrounded by fields near the banks of Bear Creek. Take the scenic drive through Berclair along Blue Lake to Itta Bena and continue back on 82 toward Greenwood to the former WGRM Radio Studio where B.B. was first heard on the radio.

Heading east again, you’ll find yourself leaving the Delta and getting into the hills on the way to Kilmichael. It was this small town where young Riley (before he was known as B.B.) lived with his mother and grandmother until they died and later with a white family who helped take care of him. He attended school there and says it’s the place that created some of his fondest memories.

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