Better Not Look Down

My dad had introduced me to, uh, Mr. King's music as a child

We were sitting on the couch watching Sanford and Son

And there was an episode where Mr. King made a cameo, uh, which happens to be

Something that I've kept with me, uh, this whole journey of mine

I even got a chance to meet him, uh, when I was in seventh grade

He's always been an inspiration and influence on what I do, and

And I'm very happy to be a part of this project for sure. Thank you

And my name is Bobby Rush

Salute to my friend B.B. King

The late B.B. King, that is

A man that I looked up to all my life, an old man myself

Salute to B.B. King

Ha-ha, my father of the blues

I'm remembering you, B, you know that

I can't do it like you, but I can try

Ain't nothing wrong with that

I first met B.B. King on May 24th, 1990

Little did I know, meeting my idol on that day would change my life

His generosity with his stage, his music, and his advice

Is something I will never forget

God bless B.B. King

Look out, now

Here I come

You better not look down

If you wanna keep on fighting

Put the hammer down

Keep it full speed ahead

Boy, you better not look back

Or you might just wind up crying

You can keep on moving

If you don't look down

I first became aware of B.B. King's music when I was really young

I had not yet started playing guitar, but I had started singing

But I heard B.B. King, and I heard that voice before I became infatuated with guitar

His voice just really hit me hard

And then I guess the first time I saw him, I was about, 18 or 19

I went to a little club called PB Scott's in Blowing Rock, North Carolina

And we got to meet him, and he gave me a guitar pick

And it said "B.B. King" on it, and I carried it in my pocket for years

B.B. King's been a part of my soundtrack of my entire life

As far back as I can remember

The first B.B. King album that I had to get my hands on was Alive at the Regal Theater

So, the first time I met B.B., I was 15 years old

We had the opening slot, so it was us and then, Bo Diddley, and then B.B. was the headliner

And so, the last show was my sixteenth birthday

I mean, they said, "Mr. King would like to come, would like for you to come talk to him?"

And so I walked in, and he was changing clothes

He had, like, no shirt on, he was, like, dropping his pants

And I was like, "Oh, I'm sorry, they told me you wanted me to come in here"

He was like, "No, come on in, son, have a seat

You're one of the guys now, you're one of the men"

The first time I got a chance to meet B.B.

I was actually going out on tour with him, and he was just incredibly kind

He was very gracious with, with his time, and giving me really good advice

And I remember me one day asking him to marry me

And he just smiled, and he blushed, and he never gave me an answer

And then later on, he told everybody that he asked me to marry him

And I said he was too old, too ugly, and didn't have enough money

None of that was true, I'm still laughing about that

You better not look down

If you wanna keep on fighting

Put the hammer down

Keep it full speed ahead

Boy, you better not look back

Or you might just wind up crying

You can keep on moving

If you don't look down

Well, let me see

I met B.B. King in probably 1972 or three

While out on the road with Papa John Creach

Did a show with B.B. King and the Average White Band

That's when I met him, but I've been listening to B.B. King my whole life

Hey there, man, this is Eric Gales

Recalling the moment that I was turned on to B.B. King for the first time

I never will forget, man, my brother playing stuff around the house

It probably was "The Thrill Is Gone" or something to that magnitude

And I just remember my jaw hitting the floor and saying, "Wow, who is that?

That tone and that vibrato, man"

And the sound of his voice was just so full of soul and, and, and heart

And I never will forget it, man

He is definitely one that still is a part of who I am today

And, uh, I'm so glad that I was turned on to B.B. King

Interestingly enough, the first B.B. King song I ever heard was "Three O'Clock Blues"

And I was stunned by the vocal

It was both foreign and familiar

So I considered it a great honor to be asked to sing this song

Man, this is Larry McCray, and I remember the first time I heard B.B. King and really connected

Was when I was a little bitty boy

I fell in love with the song, "Why I Sing the Blues" and "Nobody Loved Me But My Mother"

I must have been about five or six years old, and it left such an impression on me

That I never lost the heart and the soul and the spirit of B.B. King

I've carried it with me my whole life

You better not look down

If you wanna keep on fighting

Put the hammer down

Keep it full speed ahead

Better not look back

Or you might just wind up crying

You can keep on moving

If you don't look down

I saw B.B. King only one time, but it was so impactful

And it stuck with me and has for my entire life

I saw him at the Peace Center in my hometown of Greenville, South Carolina

And I remember we were in the last row of the mezzanine

And I could lean my head against the back wall, but there was not a bad seat in the house

And this was towards the end of B.B.'s career and towards the end of his life

And he played and performed for us with the energy of a young man

And I was so appreciative of that show and so appreciative of that man in every regard, and I'm so thankful

I went to go see B.B. King and Albert King at the Parmesan Winery

And uh, it was fantastic. B.B. King was, was incredible

Both of them were great, and uh, my pilot that took me to the gig

He was a photographer, so he knew B.B. and stuff

So he went back there and mentioned that I was coming, and he made a big deal out of it

So B.B. introduced me during the middle of the set

I think he said, "There's a, there's a young man here, and I, I'm thinking it's Carlos Santana or something," and it was me

The first time I heard B.B. King

Childhood friend of mine, Alan Wentz, he was putting together a band

And he knew a lot about the blues

He was a little older than me and he played me the album "To Know You Is To Love You"

And it really knocked me out, like being hit by a falling tree

Now I say, you better not look down

If you want to keep on fighting

Put the hammer down, keep it full speed ahead

Boy, you better not look back

Or you might just wind up crying

You can keep on moving if you don't look down

Hey, better not look down

If you want to keep on fighting

Put the hammer down (don't you dare look back)

Keep it full speed ahead (don't look back)

You better not look back (ooh, ooh, ooh)

Or you might just wind up crying

You can keep on moving if you don't look down (oh, yeah)

Better not look down (don't look back)

If you want to keep on fighting (don't look back)

Put the hammer down (keep your eyes on the prize)

Keep it full speed ahead (keep your eyes forward)

You better not look back (oh)

Or you might just wind up crying