The fifth annual Juke Joint Festival will take place on Saturday, April 19, 2008 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Saturday's events kick off early, at 7:00 am, with a 5K run sponsored by the Clarksdale Wal-Mart. For those who want to skip the 5K and run straight for breakfast, Sarah's Kitchen will be holding a "Blues, Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast" with music from The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band.
Music is the focus of the day, however, and whether on public stages or in the city's juke joints, there will be plenty of blues blasting all day on Saturday. Featured performers include Jimbo Mathus & Friends, Big Jack Johnson and Robert "Bilbo" Walker. Other blues musicians that will be appearing include the following:
- Super Chikan & the Fighting Cocks
- Loose Bruce
- Johnny Rawls
- Guitar Mikey
- Big T & the Family
- Lightnin' Malcom & Cedric Burnside
Blues Film Festival
At 4:00 pm on Saturday, the Delta Cinema will host the Juke Joint Blues Festival, which will screen four important blues documentaries. Deep Blues served to introduce music lovers to the talents of Mississippi Hill Country bluesmen R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. Down In The Woods is a biography of activist bluesman Willie King.
The documentary Last Of The Mississippi Jukes features Clarksdale's Ground Zero blues club as well as the Subway Lounge. Other films and film shorts include Juke (with bluesman T-Model Ford), Hard Times, and Delta Rising (with Super Chikan).
Other Weekend Events
If you arrive in Clarksdale early, there are plenty of events on Friday and Sunday to keep you busy. The first stop you should make is at the Delta Blues Museum, which will be unveiling a new exhibit, "The American Dream" by Brandy-Kaizakian Rowe, featuring a mixture of photographs and paintings.
The Rock 'N Roll & Blues Heritage Museum will also open a new exhibit titled "The Birth of the Detroit Sound." The exhibit will feature photographs from between 1940 and 1964 by music industry insider Marilyn Bond. Other art will be displayed at local galleries like The Brick Gallery and Gimme Gumbo Gallery.
There will also be plenty of live music on both days, including blues jams and performances by Watermelon Slim, Marshall Drew and Jeff Norwood. Mudpuppy Records will also be hosting a CD release party for bluesman T-Model Ford's new CD release, Jack Daniels Time.
Drop by the Juke Joint Festival website for more information on the event.
