I have to say that it hit me hard when I learned of Willy DeVille’s passing. It would be an exaggeration to call him a personal friend, but I did feel close to him.

At first, I saw no real connection between the book and our radio program; after all, how can you discuss photographs for an hour on a medium that isn’t visual? The book itself neatly answered this question.

When blues enthusiasts mention the ‘three Kings of the blues,” they are usually referring to Albert, Freddie, and B.B. King. For our purposes, though, we need to realign that way of thinking. Considering his longevity and the seismic impact of his presence, B.B. stands alone above all other blues guitarists; he is a king of Kings, so to speak...