The student news site of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois.

The Daily Eastern News

The student news site of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois.

The Daily Eastern News

The student news site of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois.

The Daily Eastern News

    ‘Daughter of the Blues’ Shirley King to play in Mattoon

    Shirley King, daughter of legendary blues guitarist B.B. King, is in the market for a new sound.

    King is attempting to fuse R&B and blues music. With the release of her new album, King is attempting to move blues to a new direction. King uses a rotation of musicians to perform her songs and has found that people are surprised when they come up to meet her.

    “I try to be very approachable. My dad is famous and he is very approachable. So when people come up and say I’m nice to them, I tell them I should be,” King said. “I’m trying to get the older crowd who loves the blues and the younger crowd that enjoys R&B to come and enjoy the music together.”

    King doesn’t have official members of her band, but she is open to the possibility.

    “I’ve noticed that some musicians come in with an idea of how my music should sound. I want a group of musicians that we can grow to be a family,” she said. “I tell them (musicians), ‘Don’t worry about stealing the limelight, just stay in the limelight.'”

    King is playing with musician Devin Miller and the band Sippy and the Night Owls at 9 p.m. Friday at JeLeniz Martini Bar in Mattoon.

    “We are really big fans of her father’s music and we wanted to see if she was interested in coming down to Mattoon to perform,” said JeLeniz owner Jeff Eaton. “We were able to set up the performance through both our MySpace pages.”

    Sippy and the Night Owls is a rockabilly-style band that is comprised of Mike “Sippy” Harmison (guitar/vocals), Bruce “The Professor” Goble (harmonica/keyboards/accordion/vocals), Jason Koonce (bass guitar/vocals) and Pierre Brierre (drums/vocals).

    “We are very pleased to be able to perform with her. I think that people will really be surprised when they hear her sing,” Koonce said.

    King met the Night Owls at a fundraiser for The Boys & Girls Club in Champaign last year. Their relationship grew and the Night Owls asked if she would like to come down to Mattoon and play a show with them. King quickly said yes.

    “I remember that they came over and helped us out when they didn’t have to, it was out of the goodness of their hearts that came to help with the fundraiser. Those things don’t go unnoticed,” King said.

    King was born and raised in Memphis, and was brought up on gospel and blues music. She began her professional musical career singing R&B and it wasn’t until she moved to Chicago that she began to sing the blues. King’s debut album, “Jump Through My Keyhole,” came out in 1991 to mixed reviews. King worried then that doing that type of music would put her to close to the sound of her father.

    “I realize I am walking in the footsteps of a giant, but just as my dad’s blues are different from Robert Johnson’s blues, my sound will be different as well,” King said.

    King added that her first album was “magical” and it was produced by Frank Wright.

    King has been influenced by the music of her father (B.B. King), Sam Cooke, and Jackie Wilson. She developed these influences through the constant touring that her father did. King even had a special moment with Steve Ray Vaughn.

    “I remember standing on the side of one my dad’s performance and there was this short guy with a cowboy hat standing next to me. He was talking to me about how good he thought my dad could play and I looked over and it looked like he had a tear in his eye,” King said. “Later I found out that man was Stevie Ray Vaughn standing next to me, the headliner for that evening’s show. When Stevie took the stage we were all blown away.”

    King acknowledged that a lot of people come to the shows expecting to hear covers of her father’s songs, which she complies with to a certain extent. King is weary of playing her father’s music because of reviews of her “Daughter of the Blues” album. However, King does perform certain covers such as “Wang Dang Doodle” and “Sweet Home Chicago.”

    King finished by saying the best advice her father ever gave her is similar to the way he introduced her on stage.

    “He always introduced me on stage as ‘The one child that was crazy enough to be like him.’ I don’t know why he said it, but it certainly stuck with me,” King said.

    WANNA GO?

    • What: Shirley King, daughter of blues legend, B.B. King

    • When: 9 p.m. today

    • Where: JeLeniz Martini Bar, 1414 Broadway Ave. in Mattoon

    • How much: $35 for a table of four near the front or $5 cover elsewhere.

      ‘Daughter of the Blues’ Shirley King to play in Mattoon

      Daughter of the Blues Shirley King to play in Mattoon

      Blues performer Shirley King will perform at 9 p.m. today at JeLeniz Martini Bar in Mattoon. (Photo courtesy of Shirley King)

      (more…)

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