It's April, which means the snow is finally melting and the spring rains will be soon be falling and folks along the Mississippi begin to wonder if it's time to start stockpiling sandbags. Mississippi River floods can be as dramatic as they are destructive, which is probably why floods are the most common theme in
The US Geological Survey reported yesterday that Hurricane Isaac reversed the flow of the Missisissippi for 24 hours from the Gulf of Mexico up toward Baton Rouge. Seems like a good time for this apocalyptic, epic, rambling, and sometimes incomprehensible song from Tom Russell. Mississippi River Runnin' Backwards is from his 2009 CD called Blood and Candle
Chris Thomas King Earlier this week I posted my interview with Chris Thomas King, so it's only fair that the next Song of the Day be one of his. Flow Mississippi Flow is from Rise (2006), part of King's process of sorting through and making sense of the Hurricane Katrina disaster. Listen to more
Big Bill Broonzy (born Lee Conly Bradley, probably in 1903) was one of 17 children born to Frank Broonzy Bradley and Mittie Belcher, both of whom were former slaves. Broonzy grew up in Arkansas, learning the violin at an early age, moved to Chicago sometime in his 20s, married, and eventually gained fame for his
Bessie Smith is among the best blues singers of any generation. Period. Her catalog of recorded music includes several songs that reference the Mississippi River, like this one about the epic 1927 flood. Browse through other Song of the Day picks here.
Ray Bonneville is Canadian by birth but a wanderer at heart, living and working in places around the world; he is now based in Austin, Texas where he performs regularly. Mississippi (written by the late Mike Jordan, a St. Louis native and Chicago transplant) was included in last year's Bad Man's Blood. The live version is more
