Google Doodle celebrates B.B. King’s 94th birth anniversary

The Google page today opened to the song, “The thrill is gone away, the thrill is gone away baby.”

The doodle shows the “King of the Blues” B.B. King performing on his guitar. The animated doodle, created by guest artist Steve Spencer and guest animator Nayeli Lavanderos, depicts the life and times of America's iconic singer, guitarist and songwriter.

Born in 1925 Mississippi as Riley B. King, he was a sharecropper’s son who grew up singing gospels in churches. The doodle shows how King performed on street corners, hitchhiked to Memphis, Tennessee, and got a job at the radio station WDIA. It also shows him performing at the famous Beale Street, which gave him the name “Beale Street Blues Boy,” later shortened to “B.B.”

King won 15 Grammy Awards including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987. He also received honorary Doctorates of Music from various universities, and in 1980 was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. On February 21, 2012, he performed at the White House.

King was known as the travelling blue-man having travelled across the country with his guitars that he named Lucille.

In October 2012, a feature documentary on the life of King titled was released. Titled “B.B. King: The Life of Riley” , it was narrated by Morgan Freeman and directed by Jon Brewer.

King died in his sleep on May 14, 2015.

The Google’s doodle page contains notes from the B.B. King Family Trust and an interview with the doodle’s creators. It also carries the early sketches and drafts of the doodle.

Google is also celebrating today the 70th birth anniversary of Indonesian pop singer and songwriter Chrismansyah Rahadi, known by his stage name of Chrisye. This doodle will be visible in Indonesia. Visible in Japan is another doodle celebrating Japan’s Respect for the Aged Day, locally known as Keiro no Hi.