The 10 Best B.B. King Songs of All-Time

There are certain professional musicians that become absolute legends and B.B. King is definitely someone that fits in that category. In fact, he was one of the most prolific blues singers in the industry. He was also a gifted guitarist and songwriter. Eventually, he tried his hand at producing records. Most people agree that he had a dramatic influence on the sound of blues music for future generations. During the time that he was actively performing, he recorded countless numbers of songs. Below are 10 of his best, ranked from number 10 to number one. If you’re interested in giving some of them a listen, all you have to do is click on the YouTube link attached to each song.

10. Let the Good Times Roll (1978)

 

Here is a song about realizing that time is limited in one’s life. The lyrics talked about the need to seize the moment while you can. They also talked about having fun and making the most of each day because you don’t know how many days you will be given. It’s a really good song for putting things in perspective when you start to take life too seriously. It’s also a good reminder whenever you start letting things bring you down that ultimately, you are in control of your life and if it’s not what you want it to be, then it’s time to make some changes before it’s too late.

9. When Love Comes To Town (1988)

 

Like a lot of love songs, this one talks about feeling lost. It even associates the feeling with being adrift at sea and not having any idea where you’re going. The person in the song then falls in love and that feeling of being lost and not knowing what is happening melts away. It might sound cliche, but the song is very much about allowing love to light your way throughout your life. The lyrics also talked about how finding the right love can make all the difference in the world when it comes to your view on virtually everything in life.

8. My Lucille (1967)

 

If you think that this is a song about a woman, think again. It’s actually a song about King’s guitar, which he named Lucille. In much the same way that another person might name a car or an airplane, he named his guitar because he spent countless numbers of hours with it. As far as he was concerned, it had a personality of its own and this is the song that he wrote about that bond that is ultimately created between a truly talented musician and the instrument that they play.

7. 3 O’Clock Blues (1946)

 

If you’ve ever been in love and the relationship went sour, you probably already know what the song is about. Just as you probably suspected, it’s about someone who loses a relationship and then lies in bed wide awake at three in the morning wondering what happened, what could have been done differently and how things might have turned out if only one little detail had been different.

6. Downhearted Aka How Blue Can You Get? (1963)

 

This is probably one of the more melancholy songs that King ever recorded. Perhaps that’s because it really hits home with a lot of people. At its core, it’s about falling in love with someone and doing your level best to try and please that person, yet nothing you do is ever quite good enough. There’s even a point in the lyrics where he talks about buying this person a brand-new Ford, but they’re not happy because they wanted a fancier car. Unfortunately, many people have been in relationships just like this and as such, can identify with the feelings that are reflected in these lyrics.

5. Blues Boys Tune (1998)

 

Here you have a song that is largely instrumental, but there are some lyrics. For the most part, those lyrics talk about having to work for whatever you want in life because nothing is going to be handed to you. Of course, some people see this as a song about relationships and others see it as being about something completely different. The good thing is that it’s one of those songs that fits well for a lot of different situations so you can tune the meaning of the lyrics to fit whatever you need them to fit at the time. That makes the song itself truly timeless.

4. Sweet Little Angel (1957)

 

This is a sweet love song about finding somebody that you are not only in love with, but that you truly resonate with on virtually every level. It’s one of those songs that talks about those rare instances where you find someone that is not only a love interest, but a genuine soulmate as well.

3. Why I Sing the Blues (1983)

 

This is a truly heartbreaking song and it also has more than its fair share of verses. It talks about being brought over on a ship, being owned and beaten, only to be thrown in the projects where everyone essentially forgets about you. It also talks about not being able to get an education because of your color and worrying about whether or not future generations will experience the same type of hardships.

2. Rock Me Baby (1964)

 

The song is told from the perspective of someone who’s in love, but it also uses the metaphors associated with writing a rock song in order to tell the story. It’s one that genuinely resonated with fans and has remained immensely popular ever since it was released.

1. The Thrill Is Gone (1969)

 

Here you have a song that uses specific lyrics to talk about the passion going out of a person’s life. Some understand it to be about a relationship while others have a much broader view of the meaning associated with these lyrics. In short, it fits well when describing how it feels when you are no longer passionate about whatever you are involved with.