| The purpose of this trip was a book signing tour to promote the publication of “Railroadin’ Some : Railroads in the Early Blues” by Max Haymes. Max, his brother Rex and I arranged the trip in two parts, five days in and around Memphis, Tennessee and five days in and around Cleveland, Mississippi. The trip was planned for September 2006 staying in Memphis with Max’s long term friend and host Dr. David Evans (renowned blues historian and author) and in Cleveland organised by host Liza Schnabel (Director of the Martin & Sue King Railroad Museum, Cleveland and leading Southern historian).
The first stage of the tour included Downtown Memphis TN, Millington TN, Oxford MS, Jackson TN, Helena AK and Lula MS. The second stage of the tour included Cleveland, Clarksdale, Merigold, Mound Bayou, Drew, Ruleville, Greenville, Greenwood, Itta Bena, Belzoni, Indianola, Port Gibson and Edwards. Particular highlights of the trip included: – Visits to iconic venues and events in Memphis arranged by Dr. David Evans. – Formal ‘‘Mississippi Delta – Past, Present & Future’ presentations and ‘Dockery’ ceremony with members of the Dockery family, in the guise of the newly evolving ‘Dockery Farms Foundation’, arranged by Liza Schnabel. – Guided cultural tour of the Delta hosted by Dr Luther Brown (Director of the Delta Center for Culture & Learning, Delta State University, Cleveland). – Visit to the Rabbit Foot Exhibition “The Blues in Claiborne County: From Rabbit Foot Minstrels to Blues and Cruise” at the Mississippi Cultural Crossroads Arts Agency in Port Gibson arranged and hosted by Liza Schnabel. Full details and a photo galley of the tour are published on my www.earlyblues.org website which you can see here: |
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Alan, Max and Rex |
