Last night, a group of rock and blues luminaries assembled at the White House for the latest concert thrown by First Lady Michelle Obama, who has taken a personal interest in celebrating the American songbook.
Among the performers on hand were B.B. King, Jeff Beck, Buddy Guy, Mick Jagger, Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, Susan Tedeschi and Gary Clark Jr.
“This music speaks to something universal,” said President Obama before introducing blues great B.B. King. “No one goes through life without both joy and pain, triumph and sorrow. The blues gets all of that.”
Toward the end of the night, Buddy Guy -- who had obviously heard Obama sing a few lines of Al Green recently -- invited the President on stage to finish off the night with a rendition of Robert Johnson's "Sweet Home Chicago." After a bit of prodding, Obama obliged and, well, you can check out the results below.
For the full story, head to the Washington Post.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month**
Join now for unlimited access
US pricing $3.99 per month or $39.00 per year
UK pricing £2.99 per month or £29.00 per year
Europe pricing €3.49 per month or €34.00 per year
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Josh Hart is a former web producer and staff writer for Guitar World and Guitar Aficionado magazines (2010–2012). He has since pursued writing fiction under various pseudonyms while exploring the technical underpinnings of journalism, now serving as a senior software engineer for The Seattle Times.
“I remember my dad saying, ‘There’s no ambience, Brian. I don’t feel like I’m in the room with you playing next to me’”: Why Brian May and Queen were unhappy with their debut album – and how the newly revamped version fixes the “very dry” guitar parts
“He wasn’t very nice to anybody. I could hear my mom saying, ‘Are you really going to spend the next 15 years of your life with this man?’” Stevie Nicks pinpoints the moment she knew Lindsey Buckingham had to be axed from Fleetwood Mac