It would be a stretch to call this year's (#33) Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival a bust, but it was far from the best. Nevertheless, the performers were hot--physically, professionally, and passionately--after having been cooped up away from audiences for the past year.
The same could not be said for the audiences themselves, that were instead sparse, relatively reserved, and sadly beset by heat, rain, and continuing COVID-19 angst. It was hot and humid all day Friday, but cooled off at night for sterling sets by Heather Crosse, "Lightin" Malcolm, and James "Super Chikan" Johnson ("Somebody shoot that thang!"). Saturday was hot again, but the rain cooled things down, and somewhat dampened the the crowd's enthusiasm, in the evening for Jimbo Mathus and surprise guest harpist Charlie Musselwhite, Anthony "Big A" Sherrod, Sweet Angel, and Nathaniel Kimble.
It didn't help that most of the juke joints in town were shuddered, except for Ground Zero, but then who would want to attempt social distancing in their cramped quarters anyway, in the state with the lowest COVID vaccination rate in the country (under 40%)?
So with the iffy weather, COVID still running so rampant that Gov. Tate Reeves was begging for out-of-state medical assistance, and the absence of a well-known headliner (as one local diner complained in Ramon's on Saturday evening as the clouds opened up outside), a true Delta blues fan could not really expect a miracle. Not this year anyway.
The same could not be said for the audiences themselves, that were instead sparse, relatively reserved, and sadly beset by heat, rain, and continuing COVID-19 angst. It was hot and humid all day Friday, but cooled off at night for sterling sets by Heather Crosse, "Lightin" Malcolm, and James "Super Chikan" Johnson ("Somebody shoot that thang!"). Saturday was hot again, but the rain cooled things down, and somewhat dampened the the crowd's enthusiasm, in the evening for Jimbo Mathus and surprise guest harpist Charlie Musselwhite, Anthony "Big A" Sherrod, Sweet Angel, and Nathaniel Kimble.
It didn't help that most of the juke joints in town were shuddered, except for Ground Zero, but then who would want to attempt social distancing in their cramped quarters anyway, in the state with the lowest COVID vaccination rate in the country (under 40%)?
So with the iffy weather, COVID still running so rampant that Gov. Tate Reeves was begging for out-of-state medical assistance, and the absence of a well-known headliner (as one local diner complained in Ramon's on Saturday evening as the clouds opened up outside), a true Delta blues fan could not really expect a miracle. Not this year anyway.
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