The legendary Muddy Waters, born in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, on April 4, 1915, appeared on an episode of Soundstage from the show’s very first season as a syndicated show in 1974. Filmed in the studios of WTTW in Chicago, Muddy Waters was joined by Pinetop Perkins, Johnny Winter, Mike Bloomfield, Junior Wells, Dr. John, Koko Taylor, Willie Dixon, Nick Gravenites and Buddy Miles. Watch it below.
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One of the masters of the blues – B.B. King – was born on September 16th, 1925, on a plantation in Itta Bena, Mississippi, near Indianola. Hitchhiking to Memphis in 1947, King connected with Sonny Boy Williamson II, another Mississippian, where King began to play B.B.’s first big break came in 1948 when he performed on Sonny Boy’s radio program on KWEM out of West Memphis. Prior to being on KWEM, Williamson (Rice Miller) and Robert Lockwood, Jr. did the now legendary King Biscuit Time radio show on KFFA in Arkansas. The show reached an audience in the Mississippi Delta and influenced King as well as other Mississippi blues musicians including James Cotton, Ike Turner and others. It was on KWEM though where King came to initial prominence with his own segment on the station called “King’s Spot.” While B.B. King was influenced by his Mississippi roots, he was also inspired by Texas blues musicians including T-Bone Walker and Blind Lemon Jefferson. King’s now classic story of how he saved his acoustic guitar in a fire and then naming it “Lucille” is just one part of King’s incredible legacy. Below, watch a few videos of King through the years, including a full hour long concert performance he did with James Brown.
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The North Mississippi All-Stars have been keeping the Delta Blues alive since the band’s 2000 debut Shake Hands With Shorty. Featuring brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson and Chris Chew, the trio’s music has deep roots in the Mississippi hill country blues, influenced by R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. Burnside’s grandson, Cedric is one of the Mississippi Blues Projects’ featured artists. Cedric and Big George Brock will be performing at the Philadelphia Folk Festival on Sunday, August 19th. Below, watch the North Mississippi Allstars perform the traditional “Rollin’ n Tumblin.”
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One of the Mississippi Blues Project’s featured artists is Big George Brock, who is performing on Sunday, August 19th at the Philadelphia Folk Festival with the Cedric Burnside Project. Brock’s gritty and raw blues has its roots in the Delta where he grew up in Grenda, Mississippi. Below, listen to Brock’s cover of the Howlin’ Wolf classic, “Smokestack Lightning,” and watch a video of Howlin’ Wolf performing it live.
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The Mississippi Blues Project has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.
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