Celebrating the 4th of July and the Legacy of Fife and Drum Music at the Hurt Family Picnic
The Frontline has discussed the legacy of Black fife and drum music at length in the past, but I continue to devote a considerable amount …
musicians
Celebrating Al Kapone’s Memphis Rap Legacy at Railgarten
Midtown Memphis’ massive Railgarten complex is one of several elaborate, trendy live music venues that have opened here recently, many of them that resemble something …
Celebrating West Tennessee’s Folk Music Roots in Stanton
Ted Maclin is a farmer, an anthropology professor, a folk musician, and the owner of the antebellum home Oak Hill at Keeling, between Mason and …
The Rising Star JuBallLee Takes Over Cherry Place At Waterford
Since the death of the legendary fife and drum musician Othar Turner, his granddaughter Sharde Thomas has done stellar work in preserving that musical tradition, …
A Reception for the Mentors and Apprentices of the Tennessee Folklife Arts Project
After the six months of mentoring under the Tennessee Folklife Arts Program, mentors and apprentices were invited to a reception at the Tennessee Arts Commission …
Simple, Inexpensive, Outstanding Food at Brownsville’s Mindfield Grill
I had been in Brownsville for the Fife Fest at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, which broke up at 8 PM, and I was …
Celebrating West Tennessee’s Lost Fife and Drum Tradition
Last summer, the Tennessee Arts Commission began a Folklife Apprenticeship program to preserve endangered folkways in the state, and one of the areas of interest …
The Taste of History at Williams’ Bar-B-Que in West Memphis
Tourists flock to Memphis for Beale Street, Graceland, the Stax Museum, the Rock-N-Soul Museum, and many other musical and artistic attractions, but oddly, they rarely …
Friday Night in Tipton County: Erwin’s Great Steaks and Grand Opening of The Blue Room in Mason
It was a wonderfully-sunny afternoon, and I knew that a new juke joint called The Blue Room was having their grand opening in Mason, so …
Second Annual Kimbrough Cotton Patch Blues Festival in Holly Springs
This is the second year of the Kimbrough Cotton Patch Blues Festival, which celebrates the legacy of Junior Kimbrough and his sons David, Robert and …