Last weekend, I took a musical journey. I started out going to FAME studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Then I caught a CAKE concert in Southaven, Mississippi. Finally, I went to the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
In case you didn’t know, Clarksdale is known as the birthplace of the blues. That’s where people like Son House, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and many other great bluesmen used to play. There’s a lot of music history in the region.
The museum was a great experience. I spent a couple of hours reading up on some blues history. I got to see some of the greats’ guitars. And it felt a little like I’d gone back in time. And it wasn’t just the music.
Clarksdale, Mississippi feels like it’s been forgotten in some ways. Sure, it’s remembered as the birthplace of the blues. They have regular blues festivals there. But the town itself feels like it’s been left behind. It’s literally falling apart in many places. The poverty level is high. The streets were mostly empty.
But there’s still a unique vibe to the place that has an unmatched character to anywhere else I’ve ever been.
I will likely make another trip to Clarksdale in the future, maybe to check out one of the blues festivals. If you love music and you’d like to learn about the history of the blues, I’d highly recommend a visit.
Oh, but I don’t believe that the intersection of Highway 61 and Highway 49 is the true crossroads. I don’t think anybody really knows where Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil. In fact, that’s probably all just a myth. But it’s a fun story. – dse
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