Mississippi Blues Trail - Part 10

 Following a good night sleep we awoke ready to tackle another day of grabbing Mississippi Blues Trail (MBT) markers.  We were in Clarksdale, MS which is pretty much the epicenter for MBT markers and our plan was to take a walk around town and grab everything we could find.  It was pleasant to dress in street clothes and shoes instead of our riding gear and boots.  The weather was warm but not yet steamy so we set out with tourist map in hand.  Our first order of business was to locate Our Grandma's House of Pancakes for breakfast.  But as we headed in that direction we found our first MBT marker, Ike Turner.   Here is a link to his first hit, Rocket 88, often regarded as the "first Rock and Roll" record.

Clarksdale abounds with art.  Murals are everywhere as well as sculptures and monuments.  We captured a few for you to enjoy.

Walking up the street we finally spied Our Grandma's House of Pancakes!  Yippee!  I'm hungry 😁

Our Grandma's House of Blues is next door.  The two establishments separated by a curtain inside.

If you want fine dining and upscale ambiance, this is not the place for you.  If you want good, home cookin' then this is where you want to be.  Everything you touched was either greasy or sticky or both.  But then this was set at our table. 😋  OMG!  So freakin' delish!!!!!  If you need morning after soakage this is THE place!  

With our appetites sated and our bellies full it was now time to take a serious walk-a-bout!  We came upon this Mississippi Historical Marker for W. C. Handy.  He referred to himself as the "Father of the Blues".   Here is appears on the Ed Sullivan show playing his song St. Louis Blues.

Just down the street we found a MBT marker for Wade Walton.  Rooster Blues is a nice, catchy instrumental by Wade Walton.

Some local art.

The New Roxy theater.  I do believe this is still a valid venue on occasion.

Our next MBT find was Sam Cooke.  So many song choices!  I picked A Change Gon' Come.  I could listen to Sam Cooke all day long.  Enjoy!

As we walked toward the railroad tracks we found the Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival MBT marker.  Here is a link to a slice of the Festival featuring several artists and giving a good overview of the vibe.

Of course the Sunflower River Blues Festival MBT marker was located at the outdoor stage venue which is next to the Delta Blues Museum.

A paver stone set into the sidewalk near the stage.

Our next MBT marker was for the Delta Blues Museum.  

Another plaque set in the sidewalk at the Delta Blues Museum.

One of the local Juke Joints near the Museum.

A view down an ally in Clarksdale.

We stumbled upon this Mississippi Freedom Tail marker for Aaron Henry, a Civil Rights Movement activist.  Bonus!

Wow!  We were finding all kinds of interesting things here in Clarksdale besides the MBT markers.  Seems like a surprise was around every corner and down every ally.  Our walk continued, sometimes in circles, lol.  Then we found The New World MBT marker.

During our walk-a-bout we found this gem!  Heck, I didn't know there was a Walk of Fame with Markers.  Maybe our next visit to Clarksdale will include these.

Such is Clarksdale 😉  This is the site of Big Jack Johnson marker.

Big Jack Johnson MBT marker.   A great blues tune Black Dog.

Whew!  We'd been walking all over town, around and around finding markers and back-tracking because we missed an ally or a turn.  The day was starting to warm up and so were we 😓!  But, one of the most significant markers was still a bit of a hike.  We were headed for the Riverside Hotel.  A little Bessie Smith, Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out. 

The Riverside Hotel was a bit of a hike as it was on the other side of the railroad tracks.  You could only get to the other side via two roads, neither of which were a direct line, lol.  So a bit of a trudge through a seamy neighborhood where all eyes were on us.  No matter, we just gave a wave, said "Good Morning" and marched along to our destination.

The building is quite run down with a lot of garbage and debris.  Rather sad 😢  It is significant to note that Black artists stayed here, away from downtown, because of segregation.

View along the side of the hotel.  As one pointed out, it's uncanny how the air conditioner units are all sloping or canted the same.

And one final view of the Riverside Hotel. 

Slogging back the way we had come we crossed the railroad tracks in search of our final MBT marker in Clarksdale.  We passed this great mural on our trek.

And found this interesting mural as well.

And then we finally found our last MBT marker, WROX Radio.    WROX suspended broadcasting in 2020 because of the Covid pandemic and the issues it presented.  Effin' Covid!  Hopefully they will be back on the air soon.

An art car!

By now my dogs were barking but we had one more location to find.  Not a MBT marker but the famous Ground Zero Blues Club owned in part by Morgan Freeman.  By now, we had walked every block in downtown Clarksdale and then some.  The map showed Ground Zero on a corner but we were at the corner and no club.  Hmmmm..... well, we just went around the block and BOOM, there it was.  Now, you can laugh at our expense because it was just off the square from the Blues Museum which we had visited an hour earlier, hahahahaha!  Oh well, at least we finally found it 😉

That pretty much concluded our Clarksdale walk-a-bout.  With screaming feet, we limped back to the hotel for a much deserved rest.  But, our day wasn't over just yet!  However, you will have to come back for the next blog installment to find out what happened!

Needless to say, Clarksdale was a font of MBT markers along with other pleasant surprises.  We had a fantastic (albeit greasy and sticky) breakfast, a great walk and learned a ton of history.  During our walk we grabbed nine MBT markers and several other significant historical markers.  It was a fruitful morning!

Many thanks for following us on this little adventure.  Please come back for the conclusion!

Cheers,

Cletha & Eric