jonsparrow
2428 posts
Feb 26, 2010
7:54 PM
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besides the show at night, whats every one whos gonna be there doing during the day? i wanna see some place do some things/girls. check out some thing in the delta so i can say i was there. im sure theres gonna be lots a blues oriented attractions around the state. i dont think theres going to be time do travel during the weekend so we should plan something for friday if any one is interested. if not, ill just go, an if im not at the ranch then you know im probobly dead.
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LeonStagg
147 posts
Feb 26, 2010
7:58 PM
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I'll be there by Friday afternoon, I'll get you my contact info. later.
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jonsparrow
2430 posts
Feb 26, 2010
8:15 PM
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adam if you see this can you recommend some things?
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nacoran
1260 posts
Feb 26, 2010
9:05 PM
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Usually, I love being poor, but sometimes it stinks.
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Tuckster
406 posts
Feb 26, 2010
9:21 PM
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If you're flying into Memphis,just skip Memphis and head straight down to Clarksdale. Lots of Delta blues history there.
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jonsparrow
2437 posts
Feb 26, 2010
9:23 PM
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do you know of anything specific to see?
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Tuckster
407 posts
Feb 26, 2010
9:26 PM
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There's a blus history museum,a cool blues music,poster and all things blues related store-Catfish Blues-,I think. and GroundZero for southern cooking and atmosphere. That's all I had time for,but I'm sure there's more.
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OzarkRich
120 posts
Feb 26, 2010
9:38 PM
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I might be there by Friday morning depending on who is riding with me.
The Delta Blues Museum has Muddy Water's childhood Cabin. Just outside of town is the Stovall Plantation where the cabin originally was. Also the "tourist crossroads", lots supposed crossroads, grave sights, W C Handy's home etc. Just over the border in Helena is the "King Biscuit" museum and Sonny Boy II stuff.
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Ozark Rich
YouTube: OzarkRich
Facebook: php?ref=profile&id=100000279894342
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Fredrider51
123 posts
Feb 26, 2010
10:33 PM
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hey tuck you going to this e mail me
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Fred
HARP (Harmonica Assn 'Round Philly)
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toddlgreene
921 posts
Feb 27, 2010
7:00 AM
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We'll be driving up Friday morning, and should be in the area around lunchtime or shortly thereafter. I'll talk it over with the guy driving and whomever may ride with us to see what they want, but I can almost guarantee we'll be hitting Clarksdale on the way up.
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Todd L Greene. V.P.
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pharpo
183 posts
Feb 27, 2010
7:46 AM
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I'll be there ....Friday I'm hoping to go to Clarkdsale - Blues Museum - Red's - Ground Zero - back to Oxford in time for Roosters. I'll be happy to take anyone with me...or meet...It would probably be more fun going with someone.
pmarcons@gmail.com
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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jonsparrow
2444 posts
Feb 27, 2010
8:59 AM
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clarksdale sounds like the thing to do.
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toddlgreene
925 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:11 AM
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We can probably coordinate a meet-up there, maybe for lunch, and hit some of the attractions in a convoy.
Then again, that many harp players at once might scare the hell out of those folks and make them close the doors on us when they see us coming...
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Todd L Greene. V.P.
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pharpo
184 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:15 AM
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Great idea Todd - I'm in....as the time get's nearer let's coordinate for rides / meet times. Gettin psyched
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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Delta Dirt
124 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:23 AM
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Your in the Delta. Just dont piss the locals off or run out of gas or look too Yankeefied.You should be o.k.
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toddlgreene
926 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:29 AM
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Haha, We'll have to have a cultural briefing for the Yankees like I used to get when i'd travel abroad in the military...
Just kidding, of course. Sort of.
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Todd L Greene. V.P.
Last Edited by on Feb 27, 2010 9:30 AM
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Delta Dirt
126 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:33 AM
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No your right. Make the geeks follow in the rear. You know this is just like a scaled down Rampart trip. Try to make them not stand out too much Todd.
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Delta Dirt
127 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:42 AM
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Im kiddding. Clarksdale has some pretty cool joints.Things to see. You should be able to get some maps up their of some good historical places close to drive to. Oxford is an absolutely beautiful town. Its got the most beautiful women on planet Earth. It has a town square. Check out some of the local stores. Square One Books is a must to check out.
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kudzurunner
1133 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:45 AM
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I'll surely be running around on Friday, but if I were coming to HCH on Friday, I'd probably agree to meet at Ground Zero in Clarksdale. Depending on when people are arriving and by what means, 1 or 2 PM might work. (If I was flying in, I'd try to get an early flight that got me into Memphis pretty early. I've taken a 6:30 flight from LaGuardia that gets in at 8:30 AM; you save an hour thanks to the time-zone change.) Clarksdale is about 90 miles from the Memphis airport, I believe. It's a straight shot.
Cat Head would be a good place to visit first, as a way of orienting yourself. The Delta Blues Museum, too. Buy Steve Cheseborough's BLUES TRAVELING and use it as a guidebook. You should probably then just drive around the Delta a little. Parchman Farm, Tutwiler, maybe Sonny Boy's grave. The best thing is just to stop in the small towns.
If you want to drive south from Clarksdale, you can drive down to Greenville, then east through Leland, Indianola (the BB King museum), Greenwood (there are two Robert Johnson museums, I think), and out to I-55 North, which then takes you north to Batesville. Oxford is 20 miles east of Batesville on Rt 6 East.
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jonsparrow
2447 posts
Feb 27, 2010
9:49 AM
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where is "the crossroads"? is that the one were meeting at? or is it some where else? or is it unknown?
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pharpo
185 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:27 AM
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Todd and DD...you guys are a riot....I am not going to bring my NY Yankee hat - LOL ..Actually I travel pretty well.....I'll put a tin of SKOAL in my back pocket -
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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OzarkRich
121 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:37 AM
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The "official" crossroads is in downtown Clarkesdale but is based on the hwy numbers, not actual location. I think the actual crossroads no longer exists because they moved the highways.
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Ozark Rich
YouTube: OzarkRich
Facebook: php?ref=profile&id=100000279894342
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jonsparrow
2448 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:38 AM
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oh ok.
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pharpo
186 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:44 AM
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Jon...here is a link to a picture of the crossroads in Clarksdale.
http://www.travelblog.org/Photos/2992106
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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jonsparrow
2451 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:48 AM
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i wonder if that will fit in my carry on.
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pharpo
187 posts
Feb 27, 2010
10:55 AM
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Ha ! I'll take your picture under it !
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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kudzurunner
1134 posts
Feb 27, 2010
11:33 AM
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The Crossroads is at the intersection of Rt 314 and County Road 105 in Lafayette County, Mississippi. Our meetup spot is a parking area right next to that crossroads. It's pinpointed on the MBH forum members map. I just signed into Google Earth and it's right there.
The map is right here. Just zoom in on Mississppi. You'll find that there are two locations in Oxford. My house is one; "the crossroads" is the other.
http://www.itriser.com/harmonica/mbh_how-to.htm
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6SN7
33 posts
Feb 27, 2010
11:57 AM
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I use to work in Greeneville. I use to like just driving around. But here's two things I would do. there are some great places to get a piece of pie.
Buddha Barnes had a juke joint in Greenville when I went there on Nelson. It can be a scary place but once folks know you are there to hear music and hang, it is cool.
you can go to memphis anytime, down into the delta and just cruise around. You never know who you will meet. I remeber going to west helena into a record store and met a guy who said he would show me around. He took me to his ride, a cop car! and toured me around for a few hours, showed me where the king bisquit flour hour was done. great people to meet.
Also, Doe's eat place, amazing steaks. There is a good restaurant in Greenwood, forgot the name and there is sherman's in greenville too.I liked the blues museum in Clarksdale. When I went , it was was on the 3rd floor of the libraray, at the time, a warehouse full of stuff, I spent an afternoon cruising thru it.
Last Edited by on Feb 27, 2010 11:58 AM
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OzarkRich
122 posts
Feb 27, 2010
1:13 PM
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To elaborate on my earlier post, written hastily on my phone while driving, there appears to be three different crossroads worth mentioning:
1. The official/tourist crossroads at the intersection(tee) of hwys 61 & 49 in Clarksdale. The original intersection no longer exists.
2. Adam's crossroads from his post above (our meetup).
3. The crossroads where Robert Johnson supposedly sold his soul to the devil (most likely unknown).
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Ozark Rich
YouTube: OzarkRich
Facebook: php?ref=profile&id=100000279894342
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eharp
526 posts
Feb 27, 2010
1:54 PM
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adam- will you take us to the spot where the officer of the law rousted you?
that's still my favorite of your videos.
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nacoran
1272 posts
Feb 27, 2010
1:57 PM
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How about the crossroads from 'Oh Brother Where Art Thou?' I wonder if it's on some Hollywood set.
Wikipedia-
Legend and Interpretation
The lyrics plainly have the narrator attempting to hitch a ride from an intersection as darkness falls. But in close association with the mythic legend of Johnson's short life and death, it has come to represent the tale of a blues man going to a metaphorical crossroads to meet the devil to sell his soul in exchange for becoming a famous blues player. While the idea of Robert Johnson selling his soul to the devil may be fascinating and evocative, the song itself plainly describes the very real, harrowing situation feared by Johnson and other African Americans in the Deep South in the early 20th century. Historian Leon Litwack has suggested that the song refers to the common fear felt by blacks who were discovered out alone after dark. As late as 1960s in parts of the South, the well-known expression, "Nigger, don't let the sun go down on you here," was, according to Litwack, "understood and vigorously enforced." In an era when lynchings were still common, Johnson was likely singing about the desperation of finding his way home from an unfamiliar place as quickly as possible because, as the song says, "the sun goin' down, boy/ dark gon' catch me here." This interpretation also makes sense of the closing line "You can run/ tell my friend-boy Willie Brown/ that I'm standing at the crossroads" as Johnson's appeal for help from a real-life fellow musician."[3] Furthermore, it is said that Johnson requested that Willie Brown be informed in the event of his death.
The legend of Johnson selling his soul to learn to play guitar is said to have taken place in Rosedale, Mississippi, at the intersection of Highway 8 and Highway 1 (33°50?44?N 91°1?39?W). Another, less common, belief is that the crossroad is at the intersection of Highway 49 and Highway 61 in Clarksdale, Mississippi.[4]
Many believe the song is about the original songwriter, Robert Johnson, going to the crossroads to sell his soul to the devil in exchange for being able to play the blues and gain fame. Another Delta bluesman, Tommy Johnson, who was unrelated to Robert, claimed that he actually did that. This is consistent with African religious beliefs about Papa Legba.
Some historians believe the song is actually about an African-American worried about being lynched for being out after dark in an unfamiliar place of the Deep South in the early 20th century. (See Chapter Eight of Leon F. Litwack, Trouble in Mind: Black Southerners in the Age of Jim Crow (New York: Vintage Books, 1998), especially pages 410 and 411.)
A fictionalized version of this legend was the basis for the film Crossroads (1986). It was also the basis of an episode of the television series Supernatural, which introduces the Crossroads Demon, which appears in later episodes. In the film Oh Brother, Where Art Thou (2000), the legend is also referenced when Everett, Pete and Delmar pick up a hitch hiking guitarist at a Mississippi crossroads named Tommy Johnson. When asked why he was at a crossroad in the middle of nowhere, Tommy reveals that he sold his soul to the devil in exchange for the ability to play the guitar.
And also-
Another interpretation of the crossroad hinted at by some blues songs is that point at which a particular road is taken in life. Originally the blues "Crossroads" was a literal right-angle crossing of two railroads - "where the Southern cross the Dog" - in Moorhead, Mississippi. The "Southern" was a line of the Southern Railway, sold to the Columbus and Greenville Railway in 1920, and the "Dog" was the "Yellow Dog", officially the Yazoo and Delta Railroad, part of the Illinois Central Railroad system after 1897. This place is mentioned in a number of blues, including the recorded works of W. C. Handy and Bessie Smith. There songs were influenced by The king of the Delta Slide Guitar Robert Johnson who tells a story in his song "Cross Road Blues" about going down to the Crossroads and selling his soul to the devil to learn how to play guitar.
[edit]Spirituality
In the folk magic of many cultures, the crossroads is a location "between the worlds" and, as such, a site where supernatural spirits can be contacted and paranormal events can take place. Symbolically, it can mean a locality where two realms touch and therefore represents liminality, a place literally "neither here nor there", "betwixt and between".
This is particularly pronounced in conjure, rootwork, and hoodoo, a form of African American magical spirituality. In conjure practice, it is said that in order to acquire facility at various manual and body skills, such as playing a musical instrument, throwing dice, or dancing, one may attend upon a crossroads a certain number of times, either at midnight or just before dawn, and one will meet a "black man," whom some call the Devil, who will bestow upon one the desired skills. Evidence of this practice can be found in 20th century blues songs, such as Sold It to the Devil by Black Spider Dumpling (John D. Twitty). Although many modern listeners believe that the premier song about soul-selling at a crossroads is Crossroads Blues by Robert Johnson, the song may be a description of standing at a cross roads and trying to "flag a ride" or hitch-hike; the sense of foreboding coming from the singer's apprehension of finding himself, a young black man in the 1920s deep south, alone after dark and at the mercy of passing motorists.[1] Others believe Robert Johnson sang this song in regards to the deal that was made with Legba in which Johnson exchanged his soul for his extraordinary guitar skills that seemed to appear suddenly. It should be noted, however that the idea of selling your soul for instrumental skills pre-dates the American South as several virtuoso classical musicians such as Paganini had stories told about selling their soul for music prowess (and that story may reference back to medieval troubadour doing something similar). The selling your soul for guitar power story has become a staple in both rock and metal guitarists.
In the Vodou tradition, Papa Legba is the lwa of crossroads.
Crossroads are very important both in Brazilian mythology (related to the headless mule, the devil, the Besta Fera and the Brazilian version of the werewolf) and religions (as the favourite place for the manifestation of "left-hand" entities such as Exus and where to place offerings to the Orishas). Eshu and Legba are the same gods, just a name change with different tribes and languages of West Africa.
There is also the now illegal tradition within England of burying criminals (particularly suicides) at crossroads. This may have been due to the crossroads marking the boundaries of the settlement coupled with a desire to bury those outside of the law outside the settlement, or that the many roads would confuse the dead. [1] (See also Burial)
Symbolically, the crossroads can be used as a metaphor for the afterlife.
Mandala and medicine wheels as the Christian cross for example are metonymic of crossroads and share in their lore.
In some Asian cultures further interpretations and traditions about what crossroads are diverge from the explanations given above.
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Delta Dirt
128 posts
Feb 27, 2010
2:46 PM
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Damn, Im scared now and im 7th generation deltan!
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kudzurunner
1135 posts
Feb 27, 2010
2:57 PM
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The crossroads where the cop stopped me is the same crossroads where Jason and I did our "last lesson," the same crossroads where I just did a video with my truck and my son, and THAT is the crossroads where the meetup is happening at 11 AM on May 22nd, 2010.
Robert Johnson never claimed that he sold his soul to the devil at a crossroads. There is absolutely no evidence of any sort that he ever made this specific claim. I just spent a year on sabbatical researching the devil and the blues, and I read all the relevant literature, including books by Pearson and McCullough, Wald, Wardlow, and Gioia. Articles, too. TOMMY Johnson made this claim, according to his brother, and the story he told his brother is published in David Evans's book TOMMY JOHNSON, published in 1971. Niles Newbell Puckett's book, FOLK BELIEFS OF THE SOUTHERN NEGRO, has a number of accounts, by southern whites and blacks, about people making transactions with the devil at the crossroads, often in exchange for prowess on an instrument--guitar, but also other instruments.
So no: the Robert Johnson story is a myth. The town fathers of Clarksdale came along in the late 1990s and decided that it would help the blues tourism business if they erected a sign at the intersection of Hwy 49 and 61, calling it "the crossroads," but absolutely nobody locally believe that crap. Those two highways, storied as they are, didn't intersect there in RJ's time. Steve Cheseborough's BLUES TRAVELING lists four possible "the crossroads"'s, I believe. One of them is near Beulah, where the movie CROSSROADS was filmed in the mid-1980s.
The one FACT that is indisputable about the crossroads and Robert Johnson is that "the crossroads where Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil," even if it doesn't exist and hasn't ever existed as an historical fact, is now an indelible part of contemporary blues mythology.
Last Edited by on Feb 27, 2010 2:58 PM
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pharpo
188 posts
Feb 27, 2010
3:16 PM
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Just booked my flight.....raring to go !!
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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jonsparrow
2455 posts
Feb 27, 2010
4:16 PM
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"It was also the basis of an episode of the television series Supernatural, which introduces the Crossroads Demon, which appears in later episodes"
i love that show. on of my favorite shows. in the show you can sell your sell at any crossroads with a hoodoo ritual.
also adams just sayin that so no one sells there soul so they can be better then him. ;)
but what about johnsons other songs like hellhounds on my trail? hellhounds are big black dogs from hell that come to collect some ones soul. an that other song me and the devil.
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Johnster
23 posts
Feb 27, 2010
7:22 PM
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Hell hounds could just as easy be hunting dogs!
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jonsparrow
2459 posts
Feb 27, 2010
7:31 PM
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or they could be what they are. not every thing has to be in code. in the same song he mentioned hot foot powder which is hoodoo. i think the song would be about hell hounds an hoodoo, not about hoodoo and hunting dogs.
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pharpo
191 posts
Feb 28, 2010
7:53 AM
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Oh Lawd....don't show me no hoodoo
oh Lawd....don't want no voodoo
If I gotta have sumthin
Give me some bar-b que
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Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. - Charlie Parker
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Fredrider51
126 posts
Feb 28, 2010
12:10 PM
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anyone driving from philly or that area if so e mail me Fredrider51@aol.com write harmonica in the subject so i know not junk
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Fred
HARP (Harmonica Assn 'Round Philly)
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