The Blue Front Café is a historic old juke joint made of cinder block in Bentonia, Mississippi on Highway 49, approximately 30 miles northwest of Jackson, which played an important role in the development of the blues in Mississippi.[1] The café has been given a marker[2][3] and officially placed on the Mississippi Blues Trail.[4] It is owned by blues musician Jimmy "Duck" Holmes.

Blue Front Café, 2006

Located in the southern portion of the Mississippi Delta in Yazoo County on Highway 49, the field hands from the surrounding cotton plantations gathered at the Blue Front Café for relaxation and entertainment. This is the birthplace of a blues style known as the "Bentonia blues."[5]

The venue is profiled in the 2015 documentary film I Am the Blues.[6]

The venue is featured prominently in The Black Keys music video for their cover of "Crawling King Snake".[7]

References edit

  1. ^ "Blue Front Cafe a sure stop along Mississippi Blues Trail - USATODAY.com". www.usatoday.com. 2006-07-03. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
  2. ^ "Blue Front Cafe". www.msbluestrail.org.
  3. ^ "Blue Front Cafe Map". www.msbluestrail.org.
  4. ^ "Mississippi Blues Commission - Blues Trail". www.msbluestrail.org. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
  5. ^ Cloues, Kacey. "Great Souther Getaways - Mississippi" (PDF). www.atlantamagazine.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  6. ^ "I Am the Blues Directed by Daniel Cross". Exclaim!, May 4, 2016.
  7. ^ "The Black Keys - Crawling Kingsnake [Official Music Video]". YouTube. April 16, 2021.

32°38′27″N 90°21′53″W / 32.640732°N 90.364758°W / 32.640732; -90.364758