Index

Hello ~

Welcome to the photographic history of my blues wandering. There are blues tunes on most of the pages, so you might like to have your audio operating. There is a music menu at the bottom of this page.

Roaming the Mississippi Delta with a cartridge full of blues CDs (or BB King's Bluesville on XM) ranks high on my list of enjoyable pasttimes. Preserving in photographs what I see there is satisfying on many levels. Now that I have realized how quickly the old Delta is disappearing, I wish I had started thirty-five years ago.

You can roam the Delta, too, by clicking on the links in the navigation bar to the left or clicking on the links on the map below to the left of the music menu. If you know of any points of interest in the delta, blues associated or not, that I might include on this site, please take the time to inform me of them by using the email link on the bottom of the navigation bar at left or email me at:

roaddawgblues@yahoo.com

Any comments, criticisms or suggestions are welcomed as well.

Thanks for stopping by.

~ Road Dawg

The two gentlemen below, Riley B. King and John Lee Hooker, have been special to me for more years than I can recall. They are two of Mississippi's greatest sons. Unfortunately, we lost John Lee Hooker a few years ago, but BB is in his 80s, still going strong and making love to Lucille on a regular and frequent basis. I am proud that he is serving as Mississippi's Diplomat of the Blues.

Other than the images in which I appear, images of book and DVD covers and the one of Sam Myers on the Jackson page, the above image is the only one on the site that I did not photograph. The word "HEROES" is my addition. If, by including it in this site, I am infringing on a copyright I will immediately remove it upon notification from the copyright holder.

~ RD roaddawgblues@yahoo.com

MUSIC MENU

Home page ~ R.L. Burnside, Death Bell Blues

Avalon page ~ Mississippi John Hurt, Avalon My Home Town

Clarksdale page ~ Muddy Waters, Rock Me

Crawford Page ~ Big Joe Williams, Baby Please Don't Go

Crystal Springs page ~ Tommy Johnson, Big Road Blues

Greenwood page ~ Robert Johnson, Crossroad Blues (alternate take)

Helena, Ark. page ~ Rice "Sonnyboy Williamson II" Miller, Don't Start Me to Talkin'

Hollandale page ~ The Mississippi Sheiks, Sitting on top of the World

Holly Ridge page ~ Charlie Patton, The Devil Sent the Rain Blues

Indianola page ~ B.B. King, The Thrill Is Gone

Jackson page ~ The Mississippi Sheiks, Sweet Maggie

Leland page ~ Jimmy Reed, Bright Lights, Big City

Murphy page ~ Ry Cooder, See You In Hell, Blind Boy

Robinsonville page ~ Robert Johnson, Stop Breaking Down Blues

Tupelo page ~ Elvis Presley, That's All Right

Tutwiler page ~ Rice "Sonnyboy Williamson II" Miller, Bring It On Home

Walls page ~ Kansas Joe & Memphis Minnie, When the Levee Breaks

On The Road page ~ John Lee Hooker, Hobo Blues

Artwork page ~ John Lee Hooker, Tupelo

Quotes page ~ Elmore James, The Sky Is Crying

Video page ~ Skip James, Devil Got My Woman

Reading Page ~ John Lee Hooker & Carlos Santana, The Healer

RIP Hubert Sumlin

November 16, 1931 – December 4, 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hubert Sumlin, best known as the guitarist for Howlin' Wolf (1953-1976), was reported dead of heart failure in a Wayne, N.J. hospital at age 80.

Born in Greenwood, Mississippi, Sumlin migrated to West Memphis where he played with James Cotton (who later played with Muddy Waters) until hired by Wolf and moving to Chicago.

Sumlin's unique guitar work can be heard in many of the Howlin' Wolf blues tunes such as "Ain't Superstitious," "Smokestack Lightning" and "Spoonful." He is ranked forty-third on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the one hundred greatest guitarists of all time. He was an inspiration to hundreds of guitarists, from Stevie Ray Vaughan to Jimi Hendrix.

Hubert Sumlin had a successful solo career after Howlin' Wolf's death in 1976. He was a kind, gentleman and very supportive of young, beginning guitarists. Beloved by the musician community and blues musicians in particular, he will be missed by many.