Happy Anniversary to Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Arts & the Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival!
Cat Head opened its doors on the Festival weekend 18 years ago, and has been a beloved home to Delta blues and beacon to everyone who's wanted to Visit Clarksdale ever since.
While the festival couldn't happen in person this year, we celebrated with Derek Kemp's presentation of the legendary drummer award to Quicksand and a performance Live From Clarksdale by Sean "Bad" Apple, "Lady Trucker" Peggy Sue Hemphill & Artemas.
Lady Trucker says it's always been her dream to play in front of Cat Head, which speaks to how much this place now means to the community, including and especially musicians. Congratulations and much love to Roger Stolle, the Sunflower team, and everyone who keeps the blues alive and kickin' here.
Dreams really do come true.
The #MSBluesTrail marker beside the Delta Blues Museum stage reads, "The Sunflower Blues & Gospel Festival, a preeminent showcase for homegrown Mississippi talent, began in 1988 as a promotion to draw area shoppers to downtown Clarksdale. The festival's dedication to presenting authentic blues soon made it a renowned attraction for blues enthusiasts from around the world, as local favorites began sharing the stage with an international cast of guest stars."
To catch the replay: performance & party as always is archived at Live From Clarksdale... and we've included the video below!