My fascination with the life of Bartlett bluesman Lum Guffin is well-known, all the more so as I walked past his house for years with no awareness of him during my high-school years, and even went to Bartlett High School with one of his grandsons. I had discovered his old house in 2017, standing amongst a wood in the middle of an otherwise-suburban subdivision on the road that bears his name. I had heard that the land, which still belongs to the Guffin family, was occasionally used for special events.
But on October 26, I was hot and tired, having played with Duwayne Burnside at the Pink Palace Arts and Crafts Festival in Audubon Park, and my original intent was to go home. But I saw on Facebook that a homeboy of mine named Randy Mickens was at a car show somewhere near Bartlett, so I messaged him and he told me it was on Guffin Road. So I changed my mind and headed out there.
By the time I arrived, the weather had cooled off considerably, and there were a lot of people out there, as well as many beautiful custom cars and motorcycles. There was a bounce house for the kids to play, a DJ playing music and a food truck. But as it was late in the day, the awards were being given out, and cars were beginning to leave. The kids were standing near the entrance beside Lum’s old house, trying to get the drivers to “peel out” once they turned onto Guffin Road. Most of them did; one got a little too enthusiastic and hit the curb!
I had thought I might run into a lot of people I knew. Actually, I only ran into Randy, but it was good to catch back up with him, and it was a fun and pleasant ending to a beautiful day, not to mention the vague but real feeling of inspiration from standing on Lum’s sacred ground.
