2003
Directed By Robert Mugge
SYNOPSIS
The history and current state of the few remaining blues juke joints in Mississippi are discussed in this documentary.
MY THOUGHTS
I've long been a fan of the blues and as a history nut, I'm delighted that these two fields collided in this documentary. Though little that I didn't already know history-wise is revealed, I didn't care with the excellent live blues songs and a few stories that filled most of the run time of the film.
The stories from noted blues man Bobby Rush and actor Morgan Freeman helped flesh out the appeal of such places, which were noted for being very rough and tough places to enjoy a beer and live music in the past.
A few such juke joints are highlighted, most well-known being the Subway Lounge... which faced demolition because of its location in a decaying building.
Thefilm details the community's rally to save the club. It was located in the basement of a historic hotel that gave shelter to many African-American musicians who couldn't stay elsewhere due to segregation back in the 40's-60's.
It was however not to be, the building wound up getting demolished less that 2 years after this documentary was shot. It was great however to see the club still alive and thriving before its untimely demise. The club was reopened elsewhere.
Any fan of the blues will love this love letter to its sadly dying past.
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