Australia Jones “Honeybee” Neal: A Powerful New Female Voice in the Mississippi Blues
I am not sure how my friend Sherena Boyce became aware of Australia Jones “Honeybee” Neal, but at some point a couple of years ago, …
juke joints
A Sunday Night in the Hill Country
Mattie B’s is an old ballfield and juke joint in far western Marshall County, where for the last month or so, they’ve been having live …
Great Blues and Barbecue in Coldwater, Mississippi
Memphis is known for great barbecue, but strangely, barbecue is rarer in Mississippi, so when a new place appeared in the town of Coldwater, in …
North Mississippi Blues Legends at Mattie B’s
As a state, Mississippi has largely chosen to avoid the stricter lockdown measures that other states have imposed during the pandemic; although many blues events …
Duwayne Burnside Live at Mattie B’s in Marshall County
One of the worst things of 2020 was the cancellation of nearly all live music events, gigs, festivals and parties. It was understandable, in the …
Quarantine Images
The sudden closure of everything in mid-March due to Covid-19 had a devastating effect on all live music, including the blues. Nearly everything was closed …
A Delta Journey: Lake Chicot and Old Juke Joints in Eudora
Across the Mississippi River Bridge from Greenville, Mississippi, a traveler immediately gets a view of a beautiful blue lake to the northwest. This long lake, …
A Delta Journey: Dawn in Rena Lara and Breakfast in Greenville
I had agreed to drop off a co-worker at work on my way out of town, so I ended up getting on the road at …
A Fall Celebration on Mason’s Lower End
Every October, the town of Mason in Tipton County, Tennessee sponsors a Unity Fall Festival on the square, in front of what is left of …
Commemorating a Holy Site of the Bentonia Blues
2019 was the 71st anniversary of a community institution in the town of Bentonia, one of the last Mississippi juke joints. Jimmy “Duck” Holmes’ family …