The smokin' eight piece band just blazed its way through an uptempo blues shuffle, with each tuxedo-clad musician taking an extended solo. The rhythm section got soft and settled into a groovy vamp as one of the horn players stepped up to the mic and announced,"Ladies and gentlemen! The Undisputed King of the Blues, B.B. King!"

The crowd at the Music Center at Strathmore rose to its feet, and there was B.B. Sporting a tux of his own, but instead of the traditional black jacket, the still imposing 82 year-old legend wore brightly colored beaded paisley as he confidently strode to a chair at the front-center of the stage. A suited assistant came onto the stage and gave King a handful of guitar picks, which he promptly threw out to members of the audience. Having sat down, King picked up Lucille, his trusted guitar, and dove head first into his first song of the night as the band segued into, "Why I Sing the Blues".

Every element of the B.B. King sound came out immediately, the gruff and powerful voice, the warm guitar tone, the pitch bend, and that signature vibrato were all on display. While Father Time has taken away some of King's technique and forced him to perform seated, his soul is firmly intact and he still packs an emotional wallop every time he sings or plays a note. This is not a surprise, given that King made his first recording in 1949, has recorded over 500 songs, and has performed at an estimated 10,000 concert appearances in over 90 different countries.

Credit must also go to the group of stellar musicians with whom King surrounds himself. Though they are all likely in their 50s and 60s, King continuously referred to them as "young men." Anchored by music director and trumpeter James Boland, a 29-year veteran of the group, the band is skilled, super tight, and professional. Standouts include monster drummer Tony Coleman, rhythm guitarist Charlie Dennis, and Walter King, B.B.'s nephew, on baritone sax.

The band stuck to the traditional blues and played classics such as Memphis Slim's "Everyday I Have the Blues", surprised us with "You Are My Sunshine" and U2's "When Love Comes to Town", and grooved on King's own "The Thrill is Gone". While the music was traditional, the ensemble set themselves apart from many of the bands we see today. They were consummate showmen, but never pandered to the crowd. They weren't ignoring their craft in a vain attempt to "keep it real"; their polished playing still spoke the truth. They weren't trying to sport the latest trend in perfectly disheveled hair or ironic t-shirts, but were still stylish. These were men, and they carried themselves as such.

Oddly, the biggest surprise of the evening had nothing to do with any of the music. Over the course of the night, King proved to be a master storyteller who could stand toe-to-toe with Dr. Cosby himself. In between each song, as the band played a soft groove underneath, King regaled the rapt audience with lengthy stories about growing up in segregated Mississippi, (mis)adventures with the fairer sex, and tales that offered a bit of grandfatherly advice from a wise and experienced man. Even when he left the stage to great pomp and fanfare, these quiet moments remained because, after all, the blues is all about the story.

Photo from the B.B. King's website

B.B. King will be performing again this evening at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are sold out but Craigslist is always an option.