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Blues Legend B.B. King Turns 80 By OSCAR WELLS GABRIEL II, Associated Press Writer Fri Sep 16, 8:56 PM ET WASHINGTON - They came to see B.B. King. But before the night was over, the hundreds who lined up at a bookstore in Washington D.C. could be forgiven for thinking the blues legend had really come to see them. As the line snaked toward a table where he recently signed copies of his book, King held court, telling one fellow he wished he was still as young and handsome as he was. To a young woman he said, "There's nothing...

Turning 80 today, B.B. King continues to prove he hasn't lost a guitar lick or a vocal chop. A professional musician since his early 20s, when he abandoned sharecropping in Indianola, Miss., and headed north for Memphis, Tenn. to play the blues, Mr. King has recorded more than 70 albums. On his latest, "80," the bluesman has recorded 12 duets — with Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Elton John, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Roger Daltrey, Gloria Estefan, Sheryl Crow, Darryl Hall, Mark Knopfler, Glen Frey, Billy Gibbons and John Mayer. Each track is distinctive and features Mr. King's signature guitar work and...

BILOXI Ms. - Several hundred people gathered Friday evening in the Isle of Capri's Flamingo Ballroom to pay tribute to, and gently mock, blues legend B.B. King. King, who turns 80 on Sept. 16, was in South Mississippi to perform, and be the guest of honor, at Saturday night's benefit concert at the Coliseum. Both events raised funds for the proposed $10 million B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola, which will be dedicated to honoring King, preserving the Delta blues heritage and encouraging and inspiring young artists and musicians. Friday's event, billed as a "roast," was hosted...

Blues great B.B. King says he had never set foot in the Mississippi Capitol until Tuesday. Once he arrived, he got a grand welcome. The state House and Senate declared Tuesday to be B.B. King Day. During a standing-room-only ceremony in the Senate chamber, lawmakers and Gov. Haley Barbour honored the 79-year-old Delta native whose hits include "The Thrill is Gone.'' King pulled a white handkerchief from his pocket and wiped away tears. "I never learned to talk very well without Lucille,'' King said, speaking of his black Gibson guitar. "But today, I'm trying to say only God knows how...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Sam Phillips, who discovered Elvis Presley and helped usher in the rock 'n' roll revolution, died Wednesday. He was 80. Phillips died at St. Francis Hospital, spokeswoman Gwendolyn McClain said. No details were immediately available about the cause of death or how long he had been hospitalized. Phillips founded Sun Records in Memphis in 1952 and helped launch the career of Presley, then a young singer who had moved from Tupelo, Miss. He produced Presley's first record, the 1954 single that featured ``That's All Right, Mama'' and ``Blue Moon of Kentucky.'' ``God only knows that we didn't...

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss collapsed and was rushed to a hospital after apparently tearing a neck muscle while attending a fund-raising dinner Tuesday night. Buss, 69, was in stable condition at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and was expected to be released within a few hours. Hospital spokesman Johnny Hagerman declined to release any other details on Buss' condition. "He turned his head really quickly and either tore or partially tore a muscle in his neck," team spokesman John Black said. Black added that the pain was so severe that Buss put his head down between...