Uncle Tony’s String Band. Jimmy Davis (guitar,vocals),   Tommy Burroughs (mandolin, guitar, vocals), Eric Lewis, (guitar, vocals), Harry Peel, (drums) and Tony Sneed (bass). All but Eric are original River Bluff Clan members. For the uninitiated, River Bluff Clan, is an amazing americana band that came together in Memphis after Jimmy left the pop, MTV days of the late 80′s. From time to time, they still get together and do what they do……

So I sit at a table in the bar and the boys launch into the first song. All I remember thinking was, holy s..t! I’m going to have to play the second set with these monsters! They fired up into a bluegrass heavy set peppered with just plain ridiculous pickin from Eric on guitar and Tommy on mandolin and/or guitar, not to mention the singing. Now, I’d only played with Eric on Steel before, but flat pickin guitar is where he lives, and Tommy only played mando and guitar. He’s known as a fiddle player! I can’t say enough about it. It was fantastic. But, since it’s really all about me , when they took a break, I had to go outside and give myself a talking to cause I knew I’d have to get up there and give them my “A” game.

I was generously welcomed onstage for the whole second set and many transcendent musical moments followed. The audience knows and loves these guys and couldn’t have made me feel more at home. Have I mentioned that I’m starting to love this town? They like music, that’s for sure.

After playing with the Mystiqueros for 5 years, I can be pretty picky about bands, but I just found out why Jimmy fits in so well when he comes to Texas…..  He plays with a bunch of badasses! I wish you coulda been there or that I could express my pure joy and listening to and sharing the stage i=with these incredible musicians. We get to do it again Sunday with Walt Wilkins joining in. Walt gets to town today and we’re playing a show with Jimmy tonight. More music, more fun, more Memphis comin right up.

I tried to take some video with my phone last night but I drained my battery and it sounds terrible….  sorry, I’ll try again.

I was really excited to spend some time in Memphis with Jimmy. Get some of the real stuff. So after a stop at Jimmy’s house, which was wild because he’s like a real person and not just a traveling gypsy sleeping outside and playing shows with no shoes on, we headed out into town. WW suggested a stop at Sun Studios. Yes! A must see. But first, BBQ.

JD took us to Central BBQ. We might have hit the Rendezvous, but it was Sunday and they’re closed, and Central BBQ was no slouch. Love the signage in the front window. Now here’s where I usually take a picture of my food, but I was so hungry and my plate of slow roasted pork with slaw and green beens went so fast that I couldn’t get the camera out in time. You’ll just have to picture it for yourself. Nothing fancy here. A paper lined plastic basket full of pulled and chopped pork that was cooked seemingly forever and topped with a vinegar based spicy ass BBQ sauce. A cup of cole slaw and another of green beans side by side. Fantastic!

Ok, now I’m really full and can’t get enough iced tea in   me as we make our way through the fairly oppressive heat and swampiness to Sun Studios. We took the tour and were treated to a fun time by our tour guide Cora. It was just cool to stand in that space. The cutting room itself hasn’t been changed in 60 years. To think that I was standing in the room where Howlin Wolf and Muddy Waters both began their careers. Not to mention Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee and oh yeah….. Elvis. Too freaking cool! After t-shirts and chachkies were purchased we headed to our next stop.

Off to see a band that Jimmy knows and sings with sometimes, The Hookers. I can’t remember the name of the bar right now, but it was, well…. a bar. Dark and cool on a sweltering afternoon. The one thing that really stood out, besides the musicianship of the band which was terrific, was the guy cooking on stage. Yes, “Chef” was cooking up some venison quesadillas for the crown right there in front of the bass rig! Only in Memphis. I was too full to sample the fine cuisine. Maybe next time. The Hookers were solid and Jimmy sat in on a mind blowing version of “Helter Skelter” and off we went to our show.

Murphy’s Bar. I can’t say I walked in to the place and thought, “Wow what a great place to play a show”. It’s a bar, plain and simple. A dive really, but I like dive bars in general and I liked the feel of this one. Jimmy’s old band, The River Bluff Clan, played many a Sunday here and he assured us that people would show and a good time had. He was right. G had flown home for his first Father’s Day so we did a WW, JD, BS song swap with Ray on the drums and Eric Lewis on Steel. Jimmy brought Eric in and WOW, great player. He really made the night. So indeed a good time was had. From WW’s first song to our closing rave up rendition of JD’s “Sanctuary”, the crowd was hoopin, hollering, clapping and happy. I don’t know how they did it since I was having trouble just breathing the heavy air, as was WW, but I guess they’re used to it. It was a blast. As I sat behind the wheel of the van and headed us towards Little rock and then home, I felt like I finally got some real Memphis on me and I’m ready for more.