Freddie King

Nicknamed "The Texas Cannonball", Freddie King was one of the great early electric blues guitarists and a key influence on the likes of Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Peter Green. Taught to play as a six-year-old by his uncle, King worked in a steel mill before gaining gigs in Chicago as sideman to the likes of Earl Payton, Willie Dixon, Memphis Slim and Eddie Taylor. His reputation grew when instrumental single Hide Away became a surprise R&B hit in 1961 and evolved into a blues standard covered by a number of great guitar players. The Stumble, San-Ho-Zay and I'm Tore Down all followed in a similar vein, and, alongside B.B. King and Albert King, Freddie became known as one of "The Three Kings" of the blues. His albums Freddie King Is A Blues Master (1969), Getting Ready (1971) and Burglar (1974) cemented his standing as one of the leading guitarists of the era and his thumb picking style and screaming solos are considered by some as the birth of hard rock. Sadly he died in 1976 aged 42 after constant touring and a poor diet led to acute pancreatitis, but his contribution was recognised in 2012 when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.