Bentonia and Blue Front Cafe Next Stop on Mississippi Blues Trail
Jeff Konkel
COMMISSION
Home of Skip James, Jack Owens, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes added to Blues Trail
Bentonia, Mississippi and the Blue Front Cafe will soon join an elite list of historic sites on the
Mississippi Blues Trail. The trail, a project of the Mississippi Blues Commission, will eventually
include more than 100 historical markers and interpretive sites throughout the site.
The Bentonia marker will be dedicated in front of the Blue Front Cafe, Mississippi’s oldest
active juke joint, at 10 a.m. Tuesday, August 21. Participating in the ceremony will be Broke &
Hungry Records recording artist Jimmy “Duck” Holmes. Holmes is both the owner of the Blue
Front and a highly regarded country blues guitarist whose two recent CDs have garnered
praise around the globe.
The Mississippi Blues Trail has already dedicated historic markers at such legendary locations
as the gravesite of Charley Patton in Holly Ridge, the original site of Muddy Waters’ cabin
outside of Clarksdale and Elmore James’ old stomping grounds in Canton.
The placement of a historical marker in Bentonia was only a matter of time.
Despite its tiny size, the town of Bentonia looms large in the consciousness of blues fans. It
was here that a strange and powerful branch of Delta blues was born. Known worldwide as
the Bentonia Blues, this mournful blues style is notable for its unusual open-D minor tuning
and haunting lyrical content.
The style’s best-known exponent was the late Skip James who waxed 18 mesmerizing songs
for Paramount Records in 1931. Many of the songs recorded at these sessions have gone on
to become standards in the blues world, most notably “Devil Got My Woman,” “Hard Time
Killin’ Floor Blues” and “Cherry Ball Blues.” James’ song “I’m So Glad,” was eventually covered
by the legendary rock band Cream.
During the 1960s blues revival, James was rediscovered and went on to record a series of
highly coveted records. And around the time of his death in 1969, blues scholars began to
realize that James’ distinctive style might be more than a mere anomaly, but rather part of a
hidden school of blues originating in his hometown of Bentonia. Eventually several other
Bentonia bluesmen were discovered and recorded, including Jacob Stuckey, Cornelius Bright,
Tommy West, Bud Spires and – most notably – Jack Owens. Like James, Owens played guitar
using the unusual Bentonia tuning, and he, too, sang in a high-pitched, near-falsetto voice.
But where James’ vocals were almost ghostly, Owens’ were hard and piercing.
Researchers eventually learned that both James and Owens had been mentored at an early
age by Henry Stuckey, an older bluesman who was said to have learned the unusual guitar
tuning from a group of Bahamian soldiers while serving in the U.S. Army during World War I.
Stuckey died before researchers could record him.
Today, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes is the sole surviving Bentonia blues guitarist to perform in the
style that made his hometown famous. Both of his recent CDs on Broke & Hungry Records –
Back to Bentonia (2006) and Done Got Tired of Tryin’ (2007) – were recorded at the Blue Front
Cafe. The rustic juke was first opened in 1948 by Holmes’ parents Carey and Mary Holmes.
Jimmy “Duck” Holmes took over day-to-day operation of the Blue Front when his father died
in 1970.
The juke has been featured in documentaries from around the world. This fall it will be
featured in a film for BBC Television in Great Britain.
For more information on Jimmy “Duck” Holmes and the Blue Front Cafe, call Jeff Konkel,
owner of Broke & Hungry Records at je...@brokeandhungryrecords.com or by phone at 314/
304.8928.
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