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Willie Mitchell Historical Marker at Royal Studios

On March 1, 2012, a historical marker was unveiled outside Royal Studios at 1320 Willie Mitchell Blvd in South Memphis in honor of the studios, Hi Records and Willie Mitchell. A number of Memphis music figures and personalities were there, including Preston Lauterbach, the author of The Chitlin Circuit and the Road to Rock and Roll, Boo Mitchell and many other members of the Mitchell family, Steve Burrage and the Novareses of the Poplar Tunes record stores, Otis Clay, Bobby “Blue” Bland, Earl Randle, Darryl Carter, Teenie Hodges, Charles Hodges, Howard Grimes, Scott Bomar of the Bo-Keys, Wes Phillips and DJ Bay of Select-O-Hits Music Distribution, Elizabeth Montgomery of Ardent, Cameron Mann and Pat Mitchell of the Memphis Music Foundation, local music supporter and businessman Kris Kourdevelis, George Klein, Jack Hale of the Memphis Horns, Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell and US Representative Steve Cohen of the 9th Congressional District. It was a beautiful day, and one of the kind of events that shows the good side of Memphis and what our city can and will be with a shared purpose and vision. 

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Charles “Packy” Axton Album Release Party at Stax

In some ways, Charles “Packy” Axton was the forgotten man in the Stax Records saga. The son of one of the partners, Estelle Axton, he was a saxophone player in the original Stax band, the Mar-Keys, along with Don Nix and others. Exiled from Stax by his uncle, Jim Stewart (by some accounts due to drugs and/or alcohol), he recorded only a handful of sides before dying tragically in 1974, only in his thirties. But the really hip Light in the Attic Records label out of Seattle has assembled all the material they could find into one cool CD called “Late Late Party”, and the album release party at the Stax Museum was something of an all-star gala, despite the odd time of 4 PM on a Tuesday afternoon. Scott Bomar of the Bo-Keys was there, as well as Andrea Lisle, local Memphis music writer, Robert Gordon, the author of It Came From Memphis, legendary bluesman/photographer Don Nix, who had been Packy’s bandmate in the Mar-Keys, and L. H. White, who was the “L.H.” in L. H. and the Memphis Sounds, who cut four sides under Packy’s direction that would ultimately come out on the Nashville-based Hollywood label. Altogether, it was a good time with good music, and the only sad thing being that Charles “Packy” Axton never saw such acclaim during his lifetime. 

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The Lower End, Front Street, Mason TN, Summer 1991

001 The Lower End002 The Lower End003 Chilling In Front of the Green Hut004 The Lower End005 Purple Rain Lounge006 The Black Hut007 The Black Hut008 Still The Real Deal009 Godfather Lounge, Brown Hut & Real Deal010 The Lower End

Mason, Tennessee, Front Street, The Lower End, Summer 1991. 

This was the summer that I was spending a lot of time in and around Mason and Gainesville, Tennessee. I had gotten some black and white film, and was having fun with my camera, and I was always fascinated by the “cafes” in Mason, as juke joints were called in those days. Of course, I had no idea back then that most of these buildings would be torn down and destroyed, so the pictures are maybe a little more important now than I had imagined.

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A Twilight for Lula

Lula, Mississippi is actually the nearest town to the riverfront casino in Coahoma County, but that fact has not helped it much. Boarded up buildings and gang graffiti tell the story, although I suppose if a town has gangs, it cannot be considered a ghost town.

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3/18/11: Third Day of SXSW

For me, the third day of South By Southwest started with a breakfast at The Tavern on Lamar Boulevard just at the north end of …

alternative Artists Arts band Bands Barbecue Bars Block Parties block party Blues brass band Brass Bands Breakfast brisket Brunch Burgers Coffee Coffee Bars coffee houses Desserts Diners entertainment Event events Festivals Food Hamburgers Hip Hop Hotels indie Indie rock jazz music Music Conferences musicians New Artists night club Night Clubs Parties Photography rap Record Stores records Reggae Restaurant Reviews Restaurants rock South By Southwest SXSW venuesLeave a comment

3/17/2011: Second Day of SXSW

Day 2 of South By Southwest 2011 was also St. Patrick’s Day, which made everything all the more crowded, as well as a sea of …

Artists band Bands Bars Block Parties block party Blues Breakfast Brunch Coffee Coffee Bars coffee houses Desserts Diners entertainment Event events Festivals Film Food Hip Hop Hotels indie Indie rock jazz music Music Conferences musicians night club Night Clubs Parties Photography R & B rap Reggae Restaurants rock South By Southwest Steaks SXSW venuesLeave a comment

3/16/11: First day of SXSW

My first day of South By Southwest each year tends to follow a pattern. I usually start the day with a visit to The Omelettry, …