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Blues Travel: B.B. King Museum Opens in Indianola, Mississippi

Blues fans from across the country found themselves deep in the Mississippi Delta this weekend to celebrate the opening of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center. The humble guitar legend was on hand to christen the $15 million facility dedicated to preserving not only King's legacy, but the story of the Delta Blues itself. King turns 83 on Tuesday, and was moved to see his name on the front of the museum. As he told the Clarion-Ledger:

"I didn't go to school long enough to be able to tell you how I feel. But I have heard that heaven is beautiful. If heaven is more beautiful than the way I feel today, I'm ready to go tomorrow."

B.B. King is one of the good ones in our book (listen to this NPR interview and tell me you don't agree), and though 83 is a ripe old age, here's hoping he and Lucille (his guitar) hang around a few years longer. Sure, he's enjoyed tremendous success, but anybody who has picked and chopped as much cotton as this man did as a youth deserves some measure of comfort and joy in his golden years.

[Photo: B.B. King Museum]

Related Stories:
· B.B. King Museum [Official Site]
· Blues' King Likes Castle [Clarion-Ledger]
· Music Travel Coverage [Jaunted]