April Roadtrip, Day 14...Life Begins on Thursday

Day 14

April, 14, 2023

     Sunrise from the Delta Inn...

      I didn't have far to go today, just a thirty minute ride to Clarksdale, Mississippi.  This was my third time attending their annual Juke Joint Festival.  Most places book pretty quickly, or jack up the room price for the festival.  I was actually fine with my cheap room and thirty minute drive.  

   Great sky as I pulled out for the day...

     The big day of the festival is Saturday.  But, bands start being scheduled Thursday.  I learned the first time you've got to stay through Sunday, too.  Seen around Clarksdale...

     

     But, I wasn't here for the murals and flowers.  I came for the music.  There would be a lot more stages set up around the twelve blocks of the festival on Saturday.  The first place I walked by goes by the name Cathead.  It's a store that sells blues albums, t-shirts, posters and all kinds of things blues related.  Out front Randy "19th Street Red" Cohen was doing his thing.   

      The festival publishes an official listing of artists and venues in a booklet.  My guidebook said Lala Craig was playing at the Ground Zero Blues Club at noon.  I saw Lala play the last time and was looking forward to seeing her again.  I would eventually.  More on her when that happens.  

     Anyway, I ducked into a surprisingly quiet club.  At night this place will be absolutely packed.  But for now, I had plenty of seats at the bar to choose from.  Anna was working the bar and we had a brief chat since it was so quiet.  The club is partially owned by Morgan Freeman and there are quite a few photos behind the bar.  After a beer and a sandwich, I ventured back outside.

      Seen on the end of the bar...

     Walking back up the street there was a guy sitting on a chair just playing the blues.  That's DJ Hustleman.  From what I found on line, the music genre he usually works under is hip hop.  

     I flopped into a park bench, closed my eyes and just listened to his guitar.  And as it happens in Clarksdale, a random guy walks up, pulls out a harmonica and joins in. 

    Earlier in the day, I passed this food truck just setting up.

     So, I went back later in the afternoon.  It's just as advertised, rolled ice cream.

       Four year ago, I saw a guy by the name of Rip Lee Pryor.  It was just him and his guitar.  Straight forward and stripped down.  I liked what I heard and bought two of his CDs.  He was one of the folks I was most interested in seeing.  

      He wasn't playing guitar this time, but it was still that voice and feel.  You can watch a show of his from 2014 here:

     

      With all the artists playing, the day is strictly formatted.  You get forty-five minutes only, so the next person can start on time.  

      There's always a stage set up next to Deak Harp's Harmonica Store.  I had heard about the guy setting up out front.  

 

     That's Jesse Cotton Stone.  You can hear his song "Bleed" here:  I can see why people have been talking up this guy.

     
     One of the other artists I was looking forward to seeing again was Ghalia Volt.

     I saw her four years ago with her band.  She's just got a voice perfectly suited for the blues.  She another artists who's CD I bought the last time.   She was doing her first set of the festival back at Cathead.  These days she's touring as a one woman band.

     

     I bought her new album which she gladly signed.  I told her I really liked her song from two years ago, "Meet You Down the Road."  She asked if I was going to see her play that night, too.  She had a longer set and I said yes.  But, just the 6P show.  

      There are a few more venues on the outskirts of town.  One is a place called the Hopson Plantation.   It began as a cotton farm in 1852.  In the 1940's they were looking for ways to cut costs and agreed to make the plantation a testing place for International Harvester and their newest machinery.  These days it's a music venue and bar.  No one was playing yet, so I just passed through.  

      

      Next door is another interesting place called the Shack Up Inn.  It's another music venue with renovated sharecropper shacks out back.  This video is from ten years ago, but gives you an idea what they're like.  

      Ghalia was set to go on at 6P.  I grabbed a beer, settled into a corner table conveniently next to an outlet.(nothing like your phone being down to 40%) To give you an idea of how quirky this place is...  

        She played about twenty minutes and asked if the guy she met earlier was there.  I waved, she smiled and played "Meet You Down the Road."  When she took a break, I went out back for sunset.  Yeah, definitely an interesting place.

    There's a balcony over the back entrance to the club.  Two women were up there hanging out. I asked if I could join them and they said sure.  That's where I met Pam and Pam from Florida.  They were staying in the room directly attached to the club.  

 

      We had a great chat while Ghalia played her second set below. We talked about retirement life and some of the crazy things going on in our world.   I asked how the room was.  They loved it, even if it meant they couldn't go to bed until the last band finished.

        Carlos Elliot was due to go on downstairs and I considered sticking around.  But, I did have that drive back to West Helena.  So, I called it a day.  Besides, there was a lot more blues in my future.