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" Memphis musicians grace our stage. "
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Norm Shaw
Over a year ago, the Memphis Mojo web site was launched with the idea of representing the city's world-class musical culture to the world. It wasn't long after that the realization hit, hey, a big portion of Mojo's 3,000 hits a day come from people right here in Memphis looking for the best places and times to hear music. As part of Mojo's ongoing crusade to Preserve & Defend the local scene - and in an act of shameless self-promotion - we have teamed up with the Center for Southern Folklore to put on the kind of party Memphis has been waiting for. March 8, right in the middle of the basketball playoffs at the Pyramid, the Mojo Mound of Music will roll into the heart of Beale Street and give new meaning to the term "Home of the Blues." For a measly $5 cover charge Memphians, tourists, musicians, young and old alike can be part of this historic event featuring three legendary Memphis acts who don't normally play together. '68 Comeback, led by "trash rock" pioneer Jeff Evans, will start the evening off around 8 p.m. '68 Comeback has slagged along in Memphis for years, releasing singles for a virtual who's who of small, unheard-of labels. Their brand of dirty blues pays homage to the DIY punk aesthetic as much as the traditional blues of the Jelly Roll Kings, whose "Slop Bucket Blues" the band covers on its 1995 release In Your Face. Before Jon Spencer formed his Blues Explosion in 1994 he spent time touring with Evans. '68 Comeback will leave the stage in the capable hands of James Eddie Campbell's band. Campbell, who owned the heroic gift/junk shop Eddie's World on Southern until its demise, is a guitar guru who has done his best not to become popular. Most Saturday nights he can be seen at the Poplar Lounge playing with Nancy Apple. March 8 he will storm the Mound of Music stage with whatever blend of rockabilly, country, blues, rock and the Beatles he feels like. Though pop music is a true love, Campbell's blues-led rock 'n' roll guitar is a must-see. Finally, get ready for the Delta Queens, who give Cordell Jackson a run for her money as the quintessential "Guitar Granny." Dressing in gray wigs, horn-rimmed glasses, nightgowns and fuzzy slippers, these four white boys have a combined musical pedigree that produces soul-blistering blues rock. And their live show will leave you electrified. Lead singer Kurt Gunn's greatest claim to fame around here is his founding of the River City Shakespeare Theater. Gunn combines a hefty theatrical and writing background with some mean harp playing on stage. Guitarist John Wittimore played with Neighborhood Texture Jam for years and had a stint in the pop band Lime. He sometimes sits in on pedal steel with Professor Elixir's Southern Troubadours. You can also hear his pedal steel on Jolene's critically acclaimed Hell's Half Acre since the band's regular guy got sick while recording at Ardent Studios. Bassist Joe Boone was the original bass player for Big Ass Truck. The Center for Southern Folklore recently moved to 209 Beale, the building that once housed Club Handy, where Lionel Hampton, Dizzie Gillespie, Sonny Boy Williamson and B.B. King performed in the 1950s. The Center includes a performance space, gift shop, coffee and beer bar, folk art displays and exhibits on Memphis music history. It is the ideal location for a dazzling display of independent blues-inspired music. Expect plenty of surprises. Any good blues show worth seeing lasts until the wee hours. The Mound of Music won't stop until we're the only ones left or they kick us out the next morning, whichever comes first.
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