Jimmy 'Duck' Holmes Talks Back
OffBeat Magazine|December 2019
Mississippi’s Jimmy “Duck” Holmes is the keeper of the Bentonia blues tradition flame. He follows such earlier practitioners of the country-blues style as Skip James,
John Wirt
Jimmy 'Duck' Holmes Talks Back

Jack Owens and brothers Henry and Dodd Stuckey. The uniqueness of Bentonia blues derives in part from open-tuned guitars and unpredictable performances.

Holmes’ fans include Dan Auerbach, the rock star who’s one-half of the Black Keys. In March, Auerbach produced and recorded Holmes’ ninth album, Cypress Grove, at his Easy Eye Sound Studio in Nashville. “I like to work with people who inspire me,” Auerbach said. “Jimmy inspires me. His music is rough and tumble, and it can shatter a lot of preconceptions purists have about Delta blues.”

In the wake of Cypress Grove’s October release, Holmes opened for the Black Keys in Washington, D.C., and for Jason Isbell at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Through it all, his manager said, the 72-year-old musician stayed unaffected.

In addition to being an award-winning bluesman known throughout the world, Holmes has operated the Blue Front Café in Bentonia, Mississippi, since 1970. His parents, Carey and Mary Holmes, opened the business in 1948, a year after Holmes’ birth. Today, a Mississippi Blues Trail marker stands tall in front of the café’s baby-blue façade. Believed to be the oldest juke joint in the United States, the café’s main room is a 20-by-30 feet space featuring cinderblock walls, a concrete floor, the simplest of tables and chairs and a few ceiling fans. There’s also a soft-drink vending machine, snacks hanging behind the small service counter, Blue Front Café T-shirts hanging on the wall and an old jukebox in the left corner. “That’s about it,” Holmes said. “It’s 71 years old. I’m 72, so it’s just as authentic as I am.”

This story is from the December 2019 edition of OffBeat Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the December 2019 edition of OffBeat Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM OFFBEAT MAGAZINEView All
Celebrate While We Incinerate
OffBeat Magazine

Celebrate While We Incinerate

Malevitus has never sounded weirder or more beautiful.

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph [talks back]
OffBeat Magazine

Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph [talks back]

As eclectic as the New Orleans music scene is, it’s still hard to imagine an artist having a more diverse career than Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, who, at the age of 31, sings in three bands that could hardly be more different.

time-read
8 mins  |
February 2020
Indie Rock's 10-Year Anniversary
OffBeat Magazine

Indie Rock's 10-Year Anniversary

New Orleans rock artists have always been a part of the city’s music scene.

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
THE ICEMEN COMETH
OffBeat Magazine

THE ICEMEN COMETH

THE ICEMAN SPECIAL MAKES MUSICAL MAGIC WITH A CROSS-GENERATIONAL COLLABORATION AND FAMILY TIES

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2020
Christone ‘‘Kingfish'' Ingram talks back
OffBeat Magazine

Christone ‘‘Kingfish'' Ingram talks back

A native of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram comes from the land of Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Skip James. Just turned 21, this young man with the blues respects his music’s past even as he shapes its future.

time-read
2 mins  |
March 2020
Mr. Z
OffBeat Magazine

Mr. Z

Matthew Zarba is Upbeat Academy’s unflappable rap principal.

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
A Walking Spirit
OffBeat Magazine

A Walking Spirit

Victor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, celebrates 55 years of beauty and culture.

time-read
6 mins  |
February 2020
Playing For His Life
OffBeat Magazine

Playing For His Life

Darius Lyndsley is on a mission to turn his art into something more.

time-read
3 mins  |
February 2020
The Supreme Green Fairy
OffBeat Magazine

The Supreme Green Fairy

Tank and the Bangas reign over krewe Bohème.

time-read
10+ mins  |
February 2020
Felipe's Mexican Taqueria
OffBeat Magazine

Felipe's Mexican Taqueria

Everyone has a handful of go-to restaurants they count on for consistently delicious dining experiences.

time-read
3 mins  |
February 2020