Daniel De Vise Boeken

"King of the Blues presents the vibrant life and times of a trailblazing musical giant. Riley 'Blues Boy' King (1925-2015) was born into deep poverty in Jim Crow Mississippi and music became his emancipation from exhausting toil in the fields as a sharecroppyer. Inspired by the records of Blind Lemon Jefferson and T-Bone Walker, B.B. taught his guitar to sing in the unique solo style that, along with his relentless work ethic and humanity, became his trademark. Over the course of his career, B.B. performed incessantly -- more than fifteen thousand concerts in ninety countries over sixty years -- and several of his concerts, including his landmark gig at Chicago's Cook County Jail, endure in legend to this day. Daniel de Visé interviewed almost every surviving member of B.B. King's inner circle and their voices and memories enrich the life of this Mississippi blues titan whom generations of artists claimed as inspiration, from Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton to Carlos Santana and the Edge." -- From back cover

The first authoritative cradle-to-grave biography of a worldwide musical and cultural legend.

The story of the epic friendship between John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, the golden era of improv, and the making of a comedic film classic that helped shape our popular culture

The Blues Brothers hit theatres on June 20, 1980. Their scripted mission was to save a local Chicago orphanage; but Aykroyd, who conceived and wrote much of the film, had a greater mission: to honour the then-seemingly forgotten tradition of rhythm and blues, some of whose greatest artists - Aretha Franklin, James Brown, John Lee Hooker, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles - made the film as unforgettable as its wild car chases. Much delayed and vastly over budget, beset by mercurial and oft drugged-out stars, The Blues Brothers opened to outraged reviews. However, in the 44 years since it has been acknowledged a classic: inducted into the National Film Registry for its cultural significance, even declared a 'Catholic classic' by the Church itself, and re-aired thousands of times on television to huge worldwide audiences. It is, undeniably, one of the most significant films of the 20th century.The saga behind The Blues Brothers, as Daniel de Vise reveals, is epic, encompassing the colourful childhoods of Belushi and Aykroyd; the comedic revolution sparked by Harvard's Lampoon and Chicago's Second City; the birth and anecdote-rich, drug-filled early years of Saturday Night Live, where the Blues Brothers were born as an act amidst turmoil and rivalry; and, of course, the indelible behind-the-scenes narrative of how the film was made, scene by memorable scene. Based on original research and dozens of interviews probing the memories of principals from director John Landis and producer Bob Weiss to Aykroyd himself, The Blues Brothers illuminates an American masterpiece while vividly portraying the creative geniuses behind modern comedy.