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JUNE 2021
CAT HEAD UPDATE NEWSLETTER
"All the blues that's fit to print."
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Vaccines available. Live blues every day. More festivals on the way. Clarksdale, Mississippi.
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WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES.
Vaccines in arms... car keys in ignitions... festival-goers in flight... and tourists in motion. That's June 2021 at the blues crossroads of Clarksdale, Mississippi.
A majority of the out-of-state tourists we're meeting are fully vaxxed up, and they're ready to make the most of it. (Masks and social distancing are still requested in some circumstances, of course, but the daily music and lifelong memories are more than worth it.)
CLARKSDALE IS BACK TO 7 DAYS OF BLUES!
We entered the pandemic last year with live blues every single night in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and we have been back to it for over two months, now. Plus, the Bad Apple Blues Club (next to New Roxy) started offering live blues 6 days a week last week — that's 3pm every day but Sunday. Sweet!
PLAN YOUR BLUES PILGRIMAGE TODAY
Trip preview at https://youtu.be/I50ZeRBLS7U.
Music Calendar (including festivals) - cathead.biz/music-calendar.
Live Streams - livefromclarksdale.org.
Visit Clarksdale (lodging, new app and more) - visitclarksdale.com.
SHOP CAT HEAD IN-PERSON OR ONLINE!
Shop www.cathead.biz today for new T-shirts, hats, vinyl LPs, CDs, DVDs, books, artwork, glasses, mugs and much more. Or mask up and visit in-person 7 days a week: Mon-Fri 11am-4pm; Sat till 5pm; Sun 11-3. Thanks.
Hope to see y'all soon...
Roger Stolle (and the blues pug, Ayler).
Pic: Yours truly with Cat Head sign by Laura Carbone.
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SOUNDS AROUND TOWN music calendar features 'live' in-person blues... EVERY SINGLE DAY, y'all!
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Welcome to CLARKSDALE, MISSISSIPPI's 7-days-a-week music calendar — both PUBLIC (in-person) and VIRTUAL (LiveFromClarksdale.org) shows. Please mask up & social distance till we all get our shots... thanks! Plan a blues road-trip now at VisitClarksdale.com.
NEW THIS MONTH: Bad Apple Blues Club has 'live' blues every day but Sunday at 3pm.
Saturday, 6/12
- 3pm-6pm - PUBLIC - Bill "Howl-N-Madd" & Shy Perry at Bad Apple Blues Club (349 Issaquena Ave.).
- 7pm - PUBLIC - Terry "Harmonica" Bean at Red's Lounge (395 Sunflower Ave.).
- 8pm - PUBLIC/VIRTUAL - Mark "Mule Man" Massey at Ground Zero Blues Club (0 Blues Alley) and via LiveFromClarksdale.org.
Sunday, 6/13
- 10am - PUBLIC/VIRTUAL - Blues Breakfast w/Robin Hathaway in Bluesberry Cafe Back Alley Bar (weather permitting, or inside) and Bluesberry FB page / LiveFromClarksdale.org; distancing/masks required.
- 1pm - VIRTUAL - Mississippi Marshall live-streams blues on Marshall's FB page.
- 1pm - VIRTUAL - Clarksdale Stuck in the House Party w/Gary Vincent & guest (on Gary's business FB page).
- 4pm-8pm - PUBLIC - Live music TBA (as well as a DJ) in the courtyard at Hooker Grocer (John Lee Hooker Lane).
- 7pm - PUBLIC - Mark "Mule Man" Massey at Red's Lounge (395 Sunflower Ave.).
Monday, 6/14
- 3pm-6pm - PUBLIC - Sean "Bad" Apple & Friends at Bad Apple Blues Club (349 Issaquena Ave.).
- 5pm-6:30pm - PUBLIC - Downtown Clarksdale Farmers Market w/bluesman Mississippi Marshall Hopper, local produce and more in Collective Seed & Supply courtyard.
- 7pm - PUBLIC/VIRTUAL - Blues Dinner w/Ice Man & The Two Dam Blues Band in Bluesberry Cafe Back Alley Bar (weather permitting, or inside) and Bluesberry FB page; distancing/masks required.
Tuesday, 6/15
- 3pm-6pm - PUBLIC - Sean "Bad" Apple & Friends at Bad Apple Blues Club (349 Issaquena).
- 7pm - PUBLIC/VIRTUAL - John Ford at Hambone Gallery (111 E. 2nd St.).
All Clarksdale times are Central.
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CAT HEAD BLUES STORE: Mask up & shop Mon-Fri 11-4, Sat till 5 and Sun 11-3. WEB STORE at www.cathead.biz.
COMING SOON: 6/19 - BAM Fest (Birthplace of American Music Festival), bamfestms.com.
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BAM FEST (a.k.a. Birthplace of American Music Festival) returning to Clarksdale, Mississippi...
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Saturday, 6/19
- 12 noon "till" - 2021 BAM FEST (Birthplace of American Music Fest)! Multiple venues; tickets and info at www.bamfestms.com or 662-621-2221. FESTIVAL SCHEDULE (subject to change; consult official website above):
Noon-1:15pm - Bad Apple Blues Club w/Sean 'Bad' Apple.
1:15-2:45pm - Delta Byrd Cage - Lucious Spiller Band.
2:45-4pm - Hooker Grocery w/Terry 'Harmonica' Bean.
4-5:15pm - Red's Lounge w/Frank "Guitar" Rimmer.
5:15-6:30pm - Delta Blues Alley Cafe - (front bar stage) - Earnest 'Guitar' Roy.
6:30-7:45pm - Delta Blues Alley Cafe (back stage) - Jordan Sledge & Night Cast.
7:45-9pm - Delta Amusement Alley w/Queen Iretta & Johnie B Sanders.
9-10:15pm - Bluesberry Cafe w/Big A & the Allstars.
10:15-11:15pm - Crossroads Cultural Arts Center w/Big T & The Family.
11:15 till - Delta Blues Alley Cafe (back stage) w/JR Blu (11:15) & The Southern Soul Band (12:15 till).
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Wait. What? You haven't listened to the BLUES TRAIL REVISITED PODCAST series yet?!
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Filmmaker Ted Reed launched his fascinating new podcast with coverage of Juke Joint Festival, Mississippi blues and Clarksdale revitalization efforts. It's FREE, courtesy of Visit Clarksdale.
Go to the BLUES TRAIL REVISITED Podcast HOME PAGE at https://bluestrailrevisited.podbean.com/ to listen to the episodes below.
Episode 1 - Bubba O'Keefe (Visit Clarksdale), Roger Stolle (Cat Head/JJF), Christone "Kingfish" Ingram.
Episode 2 - Terry "Harmonica" Bean, Libby Rae Watson, 94-yr-old Cadillac John, festival BBQ vendor.
Episode 3 - Hal Reed, Grace Askew, Robert Kimbrough Sr., Monkeys Riding Dogs (literally, y'all!).
Episode 4 - Jesse Cotton Stone, Shy & Bill "Howl-N-Madd" Perry, Reverend Peyton.
Episode 5 - Ghalia Volt, Meraki Coffee, Johnny Rawls.
Episode 6 - Hambone, Ground Zero Blues Club and Red’s Lounge.
Episode 7 - Steve Azar, Mississippi's Official Cultural & Music Ambassador, plus music report w/Tameal Edwards.
Episode 8 - Blues Music Awards preview w/Blues Foundation president Patty Aden.
Or, go to Amazon Music podcasts, and search for "Blues Trail." And watch for additional future episodes... coming soon.
Love the free podcasts, but want even more? ALSO, RENT TED REED'S "THE BLUES TRAIL REVISITED" full-length film at Bit.Ly/bluestrail
PS - I'm a loyal podcast listener, and I told Ted if he'd send me a rubber stamp, then I'd promote his podcast on every CAT HEAD bag. So he did. And I am... as you can see!
 
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"SHARED EXPERIENCES" is back with exciting, entertaining and educational offerings in the Delta.
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Hey y'all! You may know Colleen Buyers as the horsepower behind the highly-successful LiveFromClarksdale.org blues live-streams and the much-acclaimed VisitClarksdale.com Audio Walking Tour App... but she also has another exciting dimension to her work — SHARED EXPERIENCES. SE has been mostly on hiatus during the pandemic, but Colleen is cranking the Experiences back up with some classic and some brand-new offerings, including those below.
FULL DETAILS at https://www.sharedexperiencesusa.com/experiences.
Experience Black History: walk along MLK — A journey from past to present in downtown Clarksdale, Mississippi.
Through A Lens: the downtown photo-tour — Explore town, and new ways to see it, in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
Experience Helena: Distillery Tours — Behind-the-scenes tours+stories at Delta Dirt in nearby Helena, AR.
Deak Harp sings the blues... and builds harmonicas... and tells stories about living the blues life.
Deak plays the Harp, and so can you — Harmonica lessons from Deak Harp, from beginning to advanced.
Volunteer Experience: Delta Diaper Bank — Experience change in action at one of the Delta's awesomest nonprofits.
PS - Please note the SE health & safety protocols on the website. Thanks.
 
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New items, some restocks and all the classics — both in-person and in our CAT HEAD WEB STORE!
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Visit the world-famous CAT HEAD — Mississippi's blues store in Clarksdale since 2002 — or shop us online at www.cathead.biz. "So what exactly does CAT HEAD have to offer?" Glad you asked. We've got blues, Mississippi, Cat Head and Clarksdale stuff — from T-shirts and hats to vinyl LPs and books, plus everything in-between. Check out our online or in-store assortments today. CAT HEAD is open 7 days a week at 11am, just a block down from Ground Zero Blues Club and the Delta Blues Museum. Below is just a sampling of the cool CAT HEAD stuff we offer...
     
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BB KING MUSEUM celebrates expansion with all-star celebration in Indianola, Mississippi...
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The spectacular BB KING MUSEUM in nearby Indianola, Mississippi, just got... spectacular-er! And the museum celebrated last weekend... big time.
The museum opened its new addition and exhibits celebrating the last decade of B.B.’s life and unveiled the completed Memorial Garden and life-sized bronze of the King of the Blues. And held a heckuva concert!
THE EVENT (from official website): https://bbkingmuseum.org/expansion-celebration/.
THE HIGHLIGHTS (per Guitar World magazine): https://www.guitarworld.com/news/bb-king-museum-celebration.
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LATEST BLUES, MISSISSIPPI AND RELATED NEWS stories and info. Check out the links below...
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The Blues Foundation's 2021 BLUES MUSIC AWARDS (BMAs) are a wrap, y'all...
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2021 BLUES MUSIC AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED BY THE BLUES FOUNDATION — including Clarksdale, Mississippi's Christone “Kingfish” Ingram! The virtual show featured performances by ”Kingfish” along with past BMA winners Bobby Rush, Watermelon Slim, Southern Avenue, Don Bryant, Shaun Murphy and John Németh & the Blue Dreamers. FULL DETAILS at https://blues.org/2021-blues-music-award-winners-announced-by-the-blues-foundation/.
2021 Blues Music Awards Winners
B.B. King Entertainer
Shemekia Copeland
Band of the Year
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats
Best Emerging Artist Album
Harlem
King Solomon Hicks
Blues Rock Album
Mike Zito and Friends – Rock ‘n’ Roll: A Tribute to Chuck Berry
Mike Zito
Soul Blues Album
That’s What I Heard
Robert Cray Band
Traditional Blues Album
100 Years of Blues
Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite
Contemporary Blues Female Artist
Shemekia Copeland
Soul Blues Female Artist
Bettye LaVette
Traditional Blues Female Artist
Rory Block
Instrumentalist – Bass
Danielle Nicole
Instrumentalist – Guitar
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Instrumentalist – Horn
Jimmy Carpenter
Album of the Year
100 Years of Blues
Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite
Song of the Year
“All Out of Tears”
written by Walter Trout, Marie Trout,
and Teeny Tucker
Acoustic Blues Album
Rawer Than Raw
Bobby Rush
Contemporary Blues Album
Uncivil War
Shemekia Copeland
Acoustic Blues Artist
Keb’ Mo’
Blues Rock Artist
Mike Zito
Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Soul Blues Male Artist
Curtis Salgado
Traditional Blues Male Artist
John Primer
Instrumentalist – Drums
Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith
Instrumentalist – Harmonica
Kim Wilson
Instrumentalist – Piano
Anthony Geraci
Instrumentalist – Vocals
Ruthie Foster
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BENTONIA BLUES FESTIVAL coming up this week, celebrating Jimmy "Duck" Holmes and the Blues Front Cafe...
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From http://visityazoo.org/bentonia-blues-festival/...
"The 2021 Bentonia Blues Festival will take place all day Saturday, June 19, at the historic Blue Front Cafe in Bentonia, Mississippi off Highway 49 North. The event will feature food and merchandise vendors, RV, and tent camping (fees apply), live music, and more. The Bentonia Blues Festival is a unique down-home style festival that runs on juke joint time just like the historic and authentic oldest juke joint in daily operation, the Blue Front Cafe… In other words, times and order of performances are bound to change a bit. Relax and have a great time with us as we help to keep the Bentonia blues alive!"
UPDATES at https://www.facebook.com/BentoniaBluesFestival/.
 
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NORTH MISSISSIPPI HILL COUNTRY PICNIC returns June 25-26! The Local Voice reports...
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MISSISSIPPI BOOK FESTIVAL returns to Jackson on Sat., August 21st. Highly recommended event...
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The amazing MISSISSIPPI BOOK FESTIVAL returns to Jackson, MS, on Sat., 8/21 (free and open to public with panels/signings/sellers). I cannot recommend this very special event enough. I've been fortunate enough to participate in some of the panel discussions at past editions, and the only complaint I have is that the fabulous day goes by too fast! Truly a fun, educational and well-organized event. Details at https://msbookfestival.com.
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The Mississippi Garden of Rhythm & Blues immersive art exhibition (presented by the Little Yellow Building) comes to Brookhaven, Mississippi. Details at https://www.thelittleyellowbuilding.com/msg-rb.html.
"Experience what happens when Mississippi Visual Artists are under the influence of Mississippi’s Rhythm & Blues heritage. Bring your headphones and a smart device to discover the world behind the art. Narrated by Claire Ishi Ayetoro. Sponsored by the Brookhaven Tourism Council."
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New BLUES FESTIVAL GUIDE magazine published, highlighting some of the countries best events...
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The name of our Tourism Office says it all, y'all... VISIT CLARKSDALE! We're ready when you are...
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Plan your next pilgrimage to what Alan Lomax termed "The Land Where Blues Began"... the location of the iconic Crossroads marker... the home of the Delta Blues Museum... and the town where "the music never died" during the pandemic (uh, it just went online for a bit!)... CLARKSDALE, MISSISSIPPI.
LODGING & NEW APP - VisitClarksdale.com.
MUSIC CALENDAR (including festivals) - www.cathead.biz/music-calendar.
WEEKLY LIVE-STREAMS - LiveFromClarksdale.org.
DELTA BLUES MUSEUM - DeltaBluesMuseum.org.
MISSISSIPPI BLUES TRAIL - msbluestrail.org.
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Clarksdale's CAT HEAD STORE open at 11am every day... plus online in our expanded WEB STORE 24/7!
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First, a serious note of THANKS to all y'all who helped keep CAT HEAD in business during the pandemic. Early on during the initial "shutdown," our future was uncertain. So, don't think I don't appreciate every single online purchase... because I really do. Thank you.
Secondly, what the heck?! Treat yourself to something fun, something musical, something Mississippi. Shop now at www.cathead.biz. You (we all) deserve it. Shop in-person when you can, and online till then. All the best... stay well, Roger Stolle — at the steady helm of the CAT HEAD.
PS - Oh, hey... we'll celebrate 19 years in July. Happy anniversary to us!
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