The Thrill Is Gone…

The album cover art for B.B. King's 1969 album Completely Well

The Thrill is Gone is a legendary blues song, first released in 1951, before gaining widespread popularity in 1969. The song was originally written by blues musician Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell in 1951. Hawkins’ original version reached number six in the Billboard R&B Chart in 1951. It wasn’t until 1969, when legendary blues musician B.B. King recorded his own interpretation of the song for his album Completely Well, that the song received acclaim. B.B. King’s version of the song earned him a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1970, as well as a Grammy Hall of Fame award in 1988. The song was ranked one-hundred and eighty-third on Rolling Stone Magazine’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Why this song is important to me…

I recently got into blues music, when I was recommended a YouTube video of a live performance of B.B. King playing this song at the 2010 Crossroads Festival with Eric Clapton. The performance was… incredible, and it has led me on a journey of discovery where blues music is concerned. My exposure to blues is still very limited, but I’m thoroughly enjoying it so far.