Robert Kimbrough Brings His Soul Blues to Oxford’s Rooster’s Blues House
Robert Kimbrough Sr. is one of three musician sons of the legendary bluesman Junior Kimbrough, and in recent years he has been the most prolific …
Dance
“They Got To Sew, Sew, Sew”: Mardi Gras Indians Uptown and Downtown
The traditional Mardi Gras parades can be fun, but my favorite part of carnival is in the ‘hoods and backstreets, where the gangs of Mardi …
The Zulus and Rex Uptown on Mardi Gras Morning
I was exhausted enough that I didn’t wake up early on Mardi Gras morning, and I barely stirred when my friend’s wife got the kids …
TBC Brass Band Back at The Hi-Ho Lounge
My love affair with New Orleans brass bands actually began with a disappointment during the Cutting Edge Music Business Conference back in 2010. Hearing of …
Robert Kimbrough and Lady’s Night at The Hut
Authentic blues in an authentic environment is hard to come by these days, and when the Memphis juke joint Wild Bill’s closed in December, it …
Celebrating Women in the Blues at Rust College
Amy Verdon, the New York-based owner of the online magazine Fancy! and its record-label offshoot Go Ape Records has been quite a contributor to the …
Fife and Drum Returns to West Tennessee at the Sleepy John Estes Blues Jam
Although fife and drum bands once were common in West Tennessee, the phenomenon had largely died out by 1980. The Tennessee State Archives created a …
Soulful Sounds of Bird Williams and The Lyric Band at Mr. P’s Hot Wings in Southwind
The nightlife space at 4202 Hacks Cross Road in the Southwind area of Memphis has been through many incarnations, from its opening as The Daq …
Akeem Kemp: The Future of the Blues
Sometime before New Year’s Eve, a lady friend had shared a link with me on social media about a young musician named Akeem Kemp who …
Willy and the Planks Performing at Memphis’ Center for Southern Folklore
Willy and the Planks is a Nashville-based blues band with strong Hill Country influence, led by Bill Gibbs, whom I met through his friendship with …