Griff's Great American South (2025) Season 1 Episode 4

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Transcript

00:00Many U.S. states call themselves the American South, some more justifiably than others perhaps,

00:25but I'm right on the edge of what has been called the southernmost place in the world.

00:34Welcome to Arkansas. It's the 29th largest state in the United States.

00:41It's got a population of about 3 million and, uh, oh, well, we've just passed back into Tennessee.

00:48And the reason for that is because I'm on a bridge and I'm crossing over one of the greatest border markers in the entire world, the mighty Mississippi.

01:08The Great American South.

01:17From the Atlantic to the Gulf and a few points in between in a runabout sort of way.

01:24Come with me, exploring its rich, its wondrous and, let's face it, its sometimes troubled history.

01:32Rejoicing in the spiritual.

01:34And the creative.

01:37Now I have faith in welding.

01:39Wrapping myself in legend and myth.

01:42It's like a sort of American Gothic novel.

01:44Stuffing myself with southern food.

01:47And what is your secret?

01:50Me.

01:51I want to explore America where the crawdads sing.

01:58By land, by air, by water.

02:02It promises to be uplifting, exciting and very beautiful.

02:07I'm going with Griff.

02:08Yes, ma'am.

02:09The Great American South.

02:10I've changed my mind.

02:11Ours for the taking.

02:12Safe travels.

02:14Look at that.

02:15Glistening in the sunshine.

02:16Memphis.

02:17And of course you can tell it's Memphis because it's got a great big pyramid.

02:24The town was created in honor of the ancient city on the Nile.

02:31And that's because this river was considered to be as important as the Nile.

02:38At this point on the river, three southern states converge.

02:41Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi.

02:45I'm going to be heading down the farther of waters pretty soon.

02:46But I'm going to stop to say hello to Frankie.

02:47And I get more than directions for my road ahead.

02:48And that's because this river was considered to be as important as the Nile.

02:53At this point on the river, three southern states converge.

02:58Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi.

03:04I'm going to be heading down the farther of waters pretty soon.

03:08But I'm going to stop to say hello to Frankie.

03:11to Frankie and I get more than directions for my road ahead I get some pretty

03:15sound advice yeah Griffin do not sell your soul to the devil oh I'll try to

03:25avoid that there'll be a lot of temptations along the way for me there's

03:28no doubt about that so don't sell my soul to the devil well that's quite a

03:36challenge because according to some songs old Nick hangs around in this place

03:41Memphis is the largest city bordering the Mississippi River it's sat on rising

03:49ground overlooking the Delta since 1819 but most of us know about it because of

03:56its sound Memphis Tennessee is mentioned in more than a thousand song lyrics and

04:02titles this is where Elvis found a voice many claim it's the birthplace of not

04:08only the blues but of gospel rock and roll and soul itself

04:15this is the site of Stax Records this was the powerhouse that got me actually onto

04:26the dance floor when I was 16 because the house band at Stax was Booker T and

04:33the MGs this was the place where Albert King recorded where Otis Redding

04:39recorded and where that quintessential New York theme the theme from Shaft was

04:48actually made between 1958 and 1965 this truly southern music conquered the

04:56world guitar sales for example went from 300,000 to 1.5 million a year blame it on

05:05Memphis Fender Gibson and National might have become musical household names but I've

05:11decided a more bespoke approach could help my blues education hello oh hey hey hold on Pete will get

05:22out let me grab him okay let me grab him here come in here okay look this is where generally people

05:30come and relax and uh uh so now Jonathan um yes you come here because okay and I've been told to bring

05:39with me a plank of wood because I believe that you make guitars starting with planks of wood is that

05:46right if you look if you love this piece of wood we can turn it into a guitar for you yes and is that

05:52is that what you've done for other people yeah I mean basically like the guitars in this room

05:59they're not really shaped like anyone else's guitars you make them by hand every individual

06:04guitar you never reproduced the same guitar no no they're never exactly the same okay so if you

06:10were starting with my piece of wood yes um you can you show me the various stages of that I think we

06:16could take you through that okay let's do that yeah my lump of indeterminate Mississippi driftwood

06:24we're gonna have to cut this out is about to become a blues weapon well I'll do that I was just

06:32going to do this for the benefit of those who are wondering what it is yeah you see

06:41and that's basically that's basically the guitar do you have a particular name for this guitar that

06:51you've made with the with the sort of salvaged wood and the deco I I mean these are called crossroads

06:59after Robert Johnson of course Robert Johnson is the Delta blues legend from the 1930s who famously sold

07:08his soul to the devil to play intricate blues guitar he was the first person to really do three parts

07:16by himself he'd be doing the bass the rhythm and the lead with his hands wow I can only aspire to

07:22Robert Johnson's playing style Jonathan tells me my new guitar will still take another week or so to

07:28fit out and string up I've got to ask you now let's quickly go and have a look at some that you made

07:34earlier yeah let's have a strong yeah it's an image of the south as being slow and sort of you know laid

07:42back but then you come here and you think of another side to the south and you go you have to be in awe of

07:49it because it produced some of the greatest music which has transformed the 20th century and transformed

07:54world music everywhere so what is it that makes that happen it's you really can't just say it's one I

08:01mean clearly the black field hands that's the blues doesn't exist without the black field hands the

08:09blues doesn't exist without in a sense it's a misery of the way they were worked because it was the rhythm

08:14of how they worked that kept them going and that rhythm became the blues I've got one final question for

08:24here though if I you know I thought it's my birthday quite soon what sort of level of investment would

08:36I be making generally between like two grand to 3,500 at this point okay but all right if you wanted

08:44let's say the guitar you were working no no I'm just saying that because that's not I don't have to sell

08:50my soul to the devil no to get to get one of your guitars no no the center of Memphis blues is in

09:10Beale Street that's going to be my spiritual home for a few days but before we get there there is a

09:17Memphis tradition that I want to explore I'm in the Peabody Hotel now which they call they call

09:27themselves the Ritz of Memphis and about a hundred years ago the managing director and a mate had been

09:36off duck hunting in Arkansas and they brought some of their live decoys their pet ducks back here and they

09:46thought it might be fun to release them in the center of the hotel so they did and they've sort

09:56of been here ever since here at the Peabody Keenan is the duck master and today I'm going to be his

10:06waddling assistant what I'm gonna do is in about about 20 minutes yeah I'm gonna have the red carpet out

10:13here all right when unroll the carpet but then I'm gonna kind of welcome everyone everybody up top on the

10:19mezzanine how we feeling this evening but then I'm gonna call your name and put your hands together for today's

10:26honorary duck master Griff Rhys Jones thank you all right then you and I we're gonna march these ducks up the red carpet all the way into the elevator and take them all back upstairs to the duck palace for the rest of the evening

10:40okay great I'll tell you what I'll just settle myself down and wait until the ceremony if you need me to do anything don't hesitate to poke me with your duck master stick

10:47well well there's a lot of people here what do they say about working with animals okay up up up up here come the ducks good job duckies watch your step on the way down yes they seem to know where to waddle

11:05all right now duckies I bet we've got some first timers over here by the red carpet let's see if we can get them to stop and strike a couple poses hey duckies everybody strike a good pose on the red carpet

11:20is that what they call a duck pout looking good y'all how you feeling my friend I'm feeling good yeah you're doing a perfect job I like the whole business of just coming along man I appreciate the duck space

11:35there's one there's two there's three four and five come on let's take them home

11:47there we go good job duckies now I wonder if these ducks have sold their souls for their penthouse suite

12:06fantastic job

12:08good job same to you

12:12as duck herding goes that was both a surprise and a delight but I think I'm on steadier ground back on Beale Street

12:26from the 1920s to the 1940s Louis Armstrong Muddy Waters B.B. King and other legends played right here

12:35alongside the jug band style known as Memphis blues

12:42well it's all kicked off now on Beale Street

12:47every door you pass has blues soul rhythm and blues coming out of it

12:58and what's odd is the way that it's it's all part of the same route and so some of it's even in the same key

13:10it was here that Elvis heard the music of sister Loretta Tharp she blended gospel music with electric guitars and is credited with inventing rock and roll

13:23he befriended B.B. King the king of the blues and was deeply influenced by the soul music he heard

13:30but it wasn't just Elvis's sound that developed here

13:38at Lansky's on Beale Street he found his signature style

13:46Elvis was working as an usher around the corner from the store and on Fridays he'd come in

13:52and maybe one Friday he'd come in and buy a cap 50 cents

13:55yeah

13:56next week he might come in and get some pants for $1.95

13:59and he kept coming and coming and coming in

14:01and then one day he came in and he said

14:03Mr. Lansky, Mr. Lansky

14:05I'm gonna be on national TV

14:07my dad said that's great Elvis

14:09he said what television show

14:11and he said the Ed Sullivan show

14:13my dad said whoa

14:14because back then Ed Sullivan show was like the voice

14:17yeah, yeah, yeah

14:18it was where the Beatles broke America

14:20yeah, so he said

14:22I'm gonna need some clothes Mr. Lansky

14:24so my dad was showing them around

14:26and he was putting the coats with the pants and the jackets

14:29and what do you think about this?

14:31and Elvis looked up and he said Mr. Lansky

14:33I got a problem

14:34what's your problem Elvis?

14:36he said Mr. Lansky, I don't have any money

14:39he said Elvis you do have a problem

14:41I tell you what I'm gonna do

14:43I'm gonna give you some credit

14:45my dad showed this young kid a little kindness and respect

14:51they became lifelong friends for three decades

14:5550s, 60s and 70s

14:58Elvis did need to make deals with the devil

15:01he found Lansky

15:04as for me in this shirt

15:06I just look just a little bit like my mother's curtains

15:10so not the really bright one

15:12but it's beautiful but not for me

15:15the southern states can be competitive about quite a few things

15:17music, college football, cars

15:19but when it comes to barbecue they're mad for it

15:36it's normal behaviour around here to just arrive in a field and start a broiling competition

15:43Mark?

15:44how are you sir?

15:45I'm good, I'm very pleased to see you

15:48so now first of all you've got to tell me

15:51what is happening here

15:53what have I arrived at?

15:54it's a local barbecue competition

15:56however it's a sanctioned barbecue competition

15:59meaning it has standardised rules and regulations

16:03of how you're supposed to turn your product into the judges

16:06so that it's judged fairly

16:08okay let's walk and you can explain in a little bit what's going on as we have a look at some of the stores

16:15where do all these barbecues come from?

16:19well it's a culture, it's not just a culture really I should say in this area it's a lifestyle

16:24so people barbecue here it's just part of who they are and what they do

16:28you're a bit of a barbecue man yourself

16:30yes I have a barbecue background

16:32I've been competing since 1996

16:35oh my goodness

16:37so we have seven world championships

16:39in different parts of the country

16:41really?

16:42have you taken your barbecue recipe right

16:44still alike across the south?

16:45absolutely

16:46but what makes a Memphis barbecue?

16:49Memphis style is usually pork

16:51yeah

16:52and it usually has some sort of sweet and tangy sauce

16:55and a savoury blend of spices

16:57some type of hickory or pecan smoke

17:00the distinct Memphis mix stems from its history

17:04as a major Mississippi port

17:06spices and molasses

17:08flowed in on the river

17:11god that looks good

17:13I'm dying to get eating

17:15everyone who turns up here gets to pass judgement

17:19in the important people's choice award

17:23this guy needs some nickels for people's choice

17:26thank you very much

17:28but can I ask this

17:29I only get one nickel for my person's choice

17:32yes

17:33so you know what I have to go and try everything

17:35as many as you want

17:36as many as I want to

17:37or I like the look of

17:38yeah

17:39and then I throw it in

17:40and that

17:41go down the one you like the best

17:44extra spicy sausages

17:46mmm

17:47molasses smeared ribs

17:50they're very sticky

17:51finger licking goo

17:53just being greedy now

17:54see how it's true

17:55this stuff

17:58looks like it could be dessert

18:00this your chicken lollipop

18:02this is

18:03grab one in boats

18:04so what's the ingredient in the sauce

18:06well

18:07secret

18:08it starts with apple jelly

18:10does it?

18:11oh okay

18:12it starts with apple jelly

18:13alright let me just have a taste of this

18:14yep see what you think about

18:15so the judges are gonna taste this in a little while

18:17really good

18:24you like it?

18:25I like it a lot

18:26yeah

18:27it's good

18:28and just like that

18:29my decision is made

18:32there it is

18:33right there

18:34there it is

18:35alright

18:36thank you brother

18:37thank you

18:38thank you

18:39can I back a winner?

18:41thank y'all for coming out

18:42to the Bahia BBQ Fest

18:44alright everyone that participated

18:46in

18:47People's Choice

18:49alright

18:50the winner is

18:52Chris Blankenship

18:53yes I think so

18:58my southern taste buds have clearly developed on this trip

19:01I got the lollipop

19:03good job Dave

19:04good job Dave

19:05good job Dave

19:06everybody

19:07listen to me

19:08what

19:09tell you about a car you got to see

19:11the other day I was down to just brace

19:13so the bright red Cadillac's down at my face

19:16I want that Cadillac

19:18the bright red Cadillac

19:20I've come here to Elvis Presley Plaza

19:23to meet with someone who's gonna take me on a tour of Memphis

19:27to see another side

19:29I don't know that car

19:34Carolyn?

19:35yes

19:36hi

19:37thank you for picking me up

19:38absolutely

19:39welcome

19:43so when I say Memphis what do you think of?

19:45barbecue

19:46Elvis

19:47you know

19:48music

19:49Beale Street

19:50yeah I'm guilty

19:51I'm guilty

19:52all of it

19:53but that's how

19:54Carolyn has a different Memphis history to tell

19:59just as valid as music and barbecue

20:01perhaps more so

20:03and when I started learning about

20:05the role that African Americans played

20:07in the development of this city

20:09I just knew that there was a deeper richness

20:12out of some real horrific incidents

20:15June 6, 1862 to kind of set the stage

20:20that's when the Union soldiers won what was known as the Battle of Memphis

20:25once they won that battle

20:27that's when the demographics of this city changed dramatically

20:31because African Americans who were living in the rural areas

20:35started flooding into the city looking for employment

20:39mm-hmm

20:40looking for education

20:42Memphis became a city where former enslaved people could freely prosper

20:47but they did so well so quickly

20:50that some of the white population began to fear a perceived rising power

20:56and that's why the whole voting rights issue

20:58I mean all of that came about

21:00basically they said let's control the way that voting is done

21:05there was a whole sequence of laws that made it impossible for black people to prosper

21:12and they still did it in spite of the fear

21:15from the 1870s the so-called Jim Crow laws prohibited black people

21:21from sharing spaces such as schools and water fountains with white people

21:26they enshrined segregation

21:29Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was part of a movement for change

21:36in 1968 he came to Memphis and an event that took place

21:40altered the course of history

21:43Dr. King was staying here at the Lorraine

21:48it was a union concern that he was supporting here wasn't he?

21:52yeah

21:53it was it was really it was dangerous for him to come

21:57as you can imagine anywhere Dr. King went was dangerous

22:00but he came to support men who really probably wouldn't have a voice any other way

22:04and as he steps out that night to go to dinner and prepare to go to the rally

22:10he's right at the balcony edge and he looks down

22:14and he sees one of Memphis's favorite saxophonist

22:17and his name was Ben Branch

22:19and he said Ben when we get to that rally tonight

22:23I want you to play my favorite piece

22:25I want you to play it as sweet as sweet as you've ever played it

22:31and moments after he makes that request

22:33that's when the shot rings out

22:35and that's when Dr. King was shot where he stood

22:38right there in the balcony

22:40and he was pronounced dead an hour later at the hospital

22:43it's difficult to digest sometimes

22:56but also just being here

22:58I mean you're walking in his footsteps

23:00Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s work and sacrifice were monumental

23:06but change could also occur in humble unexpected places

23:11like a cafe

23:17tell me now about Four Way

23:20thank you

23:21you're welcome

23:22this started as a great soul food restaurant

23:25was one of the best

23:27still is one of the best

23:28but what made this significant

23:30is the owner Mr. Cleaves

23:32was the chauffeur of Mayor Crump

23:35here in Memphis

23:36the fact that Mayor Crump ate here

23:38he encouraged many of his friends to eat

23:40here

23:41so when you think about blacks and whites eating in the same place in the 40s in Memphis

23:46you shake your head

23:47but that's what this place was

23:49and then it became the place where everyday people came

23:53and some very well known people came

23:56so I always say that this is where they served kings and queens

23:59Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

24:02BB King

24:03Elvis the king of rock and roll

24:06they all came here

24:07Don King the fighting promoter

24:09Aretha Franklin the queen of soul

24:11wow

24:12yeah so you're sitting steeped in history

24:14and now I'm

24:17up down and I'm having my first southern sweet tea

24:20first

24:21well

24:22I don't usually drink sweet things

24:24but

24:25this is

24:26how can I describe it

24:28sweet

24:29yes

24:30yes

24:31yes

24:32it'll make things tingle

24:34that may not all normally tingle

24:36that may not all normally tingle

24:48it's time to face down temptation again because

24:51I want to get on the river and I need some equipment to do it

24:54and

24:55and this little boat

24:56will only set me back

24:57seventy one thousand dollars

25:00but if I want to buy it

25:02I have to

25:03I have to enter

25:05the great pyramid

25:11when this place was originally opened in 1991

25:13it was a

25:14it was an arena

25:15and it's been turned subsequently into a giant emporium

25:20where they sell

25:21absolutely everything

25:22for people who want to get to grips

25:25with the muddy outdoors

25:31I'm not sure if the alligators are for sale

25:34or just decoration

25:39is there a march of the alligators here in the pyramid?

25:43from the top of the pyramid here you get the most incredible view

25:54of

25:56what made Memphis

25:58such a successful city

26:00the Mississippi

26:01and I'm longing

26:03to go down it

26:04this is an emotional moment for me

26:15it's a really important point

26:17in this great journey across the southern states

26:20with I'm about to get afloat

26:23on the Mississippi

26:25Danny

26:27hello

26:28hello

26:29hi

26:30there's plenty of opportunity to get afloat

26:31the river is 2,340 miles long

26:34nice to meet you

26:35it acts as a drainage ditch

26:37for one eighth of the entire country

26:40over a million square miles

26:42alright

26:43let's go have a good time

26:44Danny is a local fisherman

26:46who knows this water like a 70 pound catfish

26:50and he's following in some serious footsteps

26:53if you want a reliable guide

26:57to the Mississippi

26:58the best one is still someone who was writing

27:00about 200 years ago

27:02and that's Mark Twain

27:05it wasn't really called Mark Twain

27:07Mark Twain means

27:08two fathoms deep

27:10it's the thing

27:11that somebody on a river steamboat

27:13used to shout out

27:15when the boat was just about

27:18able still to float

27:20he'd throw a lead out

27:22and go

27:23Mark Twain

27:24and that was

27:25that was the name

27:26that Mark Twain borrowed

27:28because he had been

27:30a riverboat pilot

27:33his real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens

27:37and his characters Tom Sawyer

27:39and Huckleberry Finn

27:40put the Mississippi

27:42on the world's literary map

27:44I'm gonna stand back a bit

27:49and watch

27:51with

27:52with

27:53with bated breath

27:54I just want to say

28:06Danny that was fantastic

28:08that was balletic

28:15got him

28:16the

28:25oh

28:26oh my goodness

28:27if I'd known fishing was this easy

28:29I'd have done it myself

28:31so what fish have we got here?

28:34silver carp

28:35a silver carp

28:36alright

28:37Hey, I just want to point out that this is really important.

28:42This was not a set-up.

28:44This is not a tame carp that we sort of kept there.

28:48And this actually happened in front of us.

28:50Well done. Congratulations.

28:52The river is still full of fish.

28:55It is.

28:55In fact, 260 species of fish,

28:59a quarter of the species in North America,

29:02live in the Mississippi.

29:04But despite these numbers, I fail to catch a single one.

29:11Yeah.

29:12I need to keep going south into the state of Mississippi anyway.

29:15Danny has taken me as far as he can,

29:17so I've hitched a ride on with Robert.

29:20And we're heading down to Cleveland.

29:22The Mississippi River runs through ten states,

29:26from Minnesota to Louisiana.

29:28This is a working river.

29:30Originally for Native Americans and then massively expanded by European settlement.

29:36It's the original American liquid freeway.

29:42This is still, in the 21st century,

29:46a major artery for the United States of America.

29:51Absolutely.

29:51Absolutely. Well, it's the most economical, most efficient,

29:55the most green method of transportation still.

30:00Because one of these barges can hold as many as 65 to 70 truckloads, you know.

30:06So you're taking that many trucks off the road,

30:08and then when you put them on the Mississippi,

30:10you're pushing around 45 barges.

30:12And so you multiply that out, that's a lot of trucks you're taking off the road.

30:17Billions of dollars' worth of commodities, grain, oil and gas, move along it.

30:23But the commerce passes through the Mississippi, and the wealth doesn't stay here.

30:28Workers are transient.

30:30They don't spend money in these towns.

30:32And as a result, the towns died.

30:36When I was younger, like I said, I spent a lot of time on the river, around the river,

30:40and we hunt nearby.

30:42And I remember then, there were still commercial fishermen

30:47that actually lived on houseboats on the river year-round,

30:50and they fished, and their families lived there, and they grew up.

30:54That's pretty much gone away now.

30:56You don't ever see that anymore, so, unfortunately.

31:00Just me and the open road

31:03We're about 100 miles south of Memphis now,

31:08and all around me is what's known as the Mississippi Delta.

31:12But it's not actually a delta at all.

31:15This is actually an alluvial, flood plain.

31:20But when it comes to the blues,

31:23the alluvial, flood plain blues are not as good as the Delta blues.

31:28Just me and the open road

31:30Got it going on

31:32Yeah

31:33Going on

31:36Going on

31:39All right?

31:43Okay.

31:44Yeah.

31:44This flat land is made of deep mud.

31:55Deposited in over millions of years,

31:57it was discovered to be the most fertile cotton-growing soil in the U.S.

32:01And it resulted in a bad history of the worst exploitation of enslaved people in the U.S. too.

32:08Keith is taking me into the Delta.

32:10One of the reasons I came to Mississippi to begin with is because, as you know, we're on Highway 61,

32:16and I'm a big fan of blues music.

32:18So the first time I came to Mississippi was really just to kind of come and investigate where these guys were born,

32:24where did they grow up, what was it like here,

32:25and hopefully find some authentic details left over from those days.

32:29Keith has been documenting the demise of towns in Mississippi.

32:34And as so often in human history, from hardship comes creativity.

32:39So what's the name of this place we've come to, Keith?

32:42This is a little community called Hushpuckana, Mississippi.

32:46It's a Choctaw word that supposedly means place of plentiful sunflowers.

32:51And how did you discover this place?

32:57I found it by accident, looking on Google.

32:59Yeah.

33:00Came here to find it, hoping it was still standing,

33:02because a lot of times those things are missing, as happened with abandoned buildings.

33:05And when I got here, I found this treasure, which I think is really fascinating.

33:10I took a lot of photographs, not knowing really what anything was.

33:13And it looked like a store, but I really wasn't sure.

33:15So I went home, did my research, learned that this is in fact a store.

33:19That was also a store.

33:20This was a house with a post office attached.

33:22So I wrote this up in a blog, published a video about it, put my photos out there.

33:27And almost immediately, I began hearing from people who knew about this place.

33:31Believe it or not, who could imagine?

33:34This is actually a place that people are familiar with across the country.

33:41The buildings have so much story.

33:43It's just a question of, can you find out what the story is?

33:47There's a record here being made of a change in the whole community.

33:58Yes.

33:59Absolutely.

34:00The passing of time and things going bad.

34:05A town like Hushpukkina, which right now is still standing, this will not be here forever.

34:10In fact, I was kind of hoping it was still here when we came tonight.

34:13And luckily it was.

34:14But it won't be long until these buildings are gone.

34:16And when they're gone, all we'll have is the photographs we made.

34:23Small town, Southern America, is still fading into black and white.

34:29People left to escape their own devils.

34:33New farming practices, better regulation, better mechanization, more efficient transport spelt their end.

34:40And as the blues reminds us, the devil is never very far away.

34:46I'm crossing the state now through Mississippi.

34:53And I'm heading to Tupelo.

34:56And I wanted to come out this way because this is where Elvis Presley was born.

35:02He came from a very poor background.

35:08And in Tupelo, I hope we'll be able to see some of the way that, even for the king, the story is about roots.

35:23It's about poverty.

35:26It's about being in demanding circumstances.

35:32And this modest shotgun house, set now in a well-tended park, is where he was born.

35:42So a shotgun house was so called because, legend has it, you could fire a shotgun through the front door and it would go straight through the house.

35:57It was just one room after another.

36:00This area was known as the other side of the tracks.

36:08The whole of Mississippi was dominated by a sort of class system with rich, aristocratic farmers and then poor whites and poor blacks.

36:24And seeing this house and understanding this was the place where Elvis Presley was born, brought up in, gives you some idea of how important that mix of poor people, people without much singing and making music was vital to the growth of the blues and rock and roll.

36:50Well, I do believe that this area was the cradle of rock and roll.

36:55But why was it so strong in this state?

37:02Was it that people needed to make their own music as much as anything else?

37:05Oh, that was a lot of it.

37:06I mean, music and church life was the main forms of entertainment.

37:13I've often said that church, and especially your middle class to lower class.

37:22It was the gathering point where they would share meals together, have singings together.

37:29He learned white Pentecostal gospel, which is a very distinct sound.

37:35Well, one guy had a radio, and in those days you hooked a car battery up to the radio, and he'd put it on his front porch on Saturday night, and all the neighbors would gather around.

37:44Well, that exposed him to bluegrass and country.

37:48So you could say that the music was a form of escape from extreme poverty around here.

37:53It was a way of fantasizing.

37:55It was a way of letting yourself go, which was legally allowed when you were sort of restricted from what you could do.

38:02But did you know this park was a gift from Elvis?

38:05We were not welcome on the other side of town.

38:07And he knew that because he hadn't been welcome, and he wanted to do something about it.

38:11I'm satisfied I've seen the cradle of rock and roll.

38:17But rock and roll would not have existed without the blues.

38:21Further along the Mississippi, I finally get to a small town called Cleveland.

38:26This is Bolivar County Courthouse, Cleveland, Mississippi.

38:33And this place was the site of quite a momentous happening in popular music.

38:41In 1905, W.C. Handy, the father of the blues, brought his band here to play.

38:49And he had a very conventional band.

38:52And they asked him if he could play some proper southern music.

38:56And he thought, oh, they want one of those sentimental ballads.

38:59So he played that.

39:00And they said, no, no, not like that.

39:01Do you mind if our guys play some music just for the crowd?

39:04And he said, no, fine.

39:06And three guys got up.

39:07One of them had a guitar.

39:08One of them had a mandolin.

39:10And one of them had an old beat-up bass.

39:13He said they started a sort of monotonous, foot-tapping, repetitive beat.

39:23A riff.

39:25And the crowd went wild.

39:30What he saw was beautiful, primitive music.

39:36It was the blues.

39:37So, where was this incredible sound coming from?

39:42I'm told I can get a feel for its origins here.

39:46Dockery Farms.

39:47This was a cotton plantation that was founded late in 1895.

39:51And its owner earned a reputation for his fair treatment

40:02of the thousands who worked here.

40:07The newspaper of the African-American community

40:11reported on the Dockery Farm in 1938.

40:15When asked how he was treated by Mr Dockery,

40:20he yelled in a great clear voice,

40:23a slot machine couldn't pay off any better than Mr Joe Dockery

40:28unless you would tear the door off and turn it upside down.

40:33He's the best white man on earth.

40:38This was rare in this area,

40:40but it made for an extraordinary community.

40:44This was an entirely self-contained community.

40:52People lived and worked here.

40:55And as well as all this machinery,

40:57there was a shop, a commissary,

41:00to provide goods,

41:01and there was a place of entertainment.

41:06It was called the Frolic House,

41:08and people started to make a particular kind of music.

41:17The days were searingly hot.

41:19The labour was hard.

41:21The African-American community

41:22found expression through the blues.

41:26Bill, who helped restore this place,

41:28is an expert on those legendary early masters.

41:32B.B. King says,

41:34it's the birthplace of the blues,

41:35and that's because Son House played here.

41:38Robert Johnson played here.

41:39Yeah, Robert Johnson played here.

41:40Right, played here.

41:41They all came here to play

41:42because they could make all the money here at Dockery.

41:45Charlie Patton was the only black man

41:47that wore white man Sunday school clothes

41:49and drove a brand new car.

41:51And so if Charlie Patton played here at Dockery

41:53and played at the Frolicing House,

41:54he might pocket $250

41:56when most people were making 50 cents a day.

41:59And so he made a lot of money.

42:01But these are the ones

42:02that all the bluesmen turned to

42:04because they're all metal.

42:06The great thing about playing

42:08from the very earliest times,

42:10your problem as an acoustic guitar player

42:14was that you went to the Frolic House

42:16and presumably with 4,000 people working here,

42:19you had a big audience.

42:20A big audience.

42:21A thousand or more.

42:22And you're thinking,

42:22how can I...

42:23How can I be heard?

42:25How can I get my...

42:26There was no electricity, remember?

42:28Sure.

42:29Couldn't plug them up.

42:30I'm just going to...

42:31I just want to hear a little bit.

42:32Yeah, hear it.

42:33I want to hear it.

42:33Let's hear this.

42:42Just think how long it's been

42:43since that music came from here.

42:46Over a hundred years ago,

42:47that sound would have been here

42:49any afternoon on Saturday afternoon

42:50or Sunday afternoon

42:51that you're making right there.

42:53Been exactly like that.

42:55And made from the same guitar, probably.

42:56Yeah, how clean it is

43:07and how clear it sounds.

43:09That's amazing.

43:11That's that guitar in those fingers.

43:13That's fantastic.

43:14Yeah.

43:14But why haven't you learned to play the guitar

43:16after all these years

43:17sitting in the home of the blues?

43:18Look, look, look, look.

43:19I've been to the Crossroads

43:20several times at night.

43:22My hair's not black

43:23and I can't play the guitar.

43:25But anyway,

43:25it worked out for Robert Johnson, didn't it?

43:28Tell me the Crossroads story.

43:29Well, Robert Johnson was playing

43:31with Willie Brown and Charlie Patton.

43:33Well, they'd been playing for 15 years.

43:35So they knew what they were doing.

43:37Robert couldn't handle it.

43:38So they ran him off.

43:39That happened right over there

43:40at the commissary.

43:41They ran him off.

43:42He went to the train station,

43:43stayed there all night.

43:44The next morning,

43:45got on the train,

43:45rode to Chicago.

43:47But before he went to Chicago,

43:48they say he went down to the Crossroads,

43:50which was right down there

43:50and sold his soul to the devil

43:52and he could play everything perfect

43:53in three minutes

43:54when he got back from that.

43:55But it took him a year

43:56in Hazlehurst to actually do that.

43:58That was a long meeting with the devil.

44:00It was a long meeting with the devil,

44:01but the Crossroads were right down there.

44:03But thank you.

44:04That was a really great story

44:06and a really great pilgrimage for me.

44:08My Mississippi journey

44:17has brought me

44:18to the very apex

44:20of the blues mythology.

44:23Robert Johnson came here

44:26to get help.

44:30So this is

44:31the very Crossroads,

44:34by repute,

44:34where Robert Johnson

44:36stood and sold his soul

44:38to the devil.

44:40The Crossroads,

44:41in fact,

44:42where he sang about

44:42trying desperately

44:43to get a ride.

44:45Nobody seemed to know me.

44:47Everybody passed me by.

44:52I'm like him.

44:53I'm actually not that keen

44:54to get a lift out of here

44:56because I've been fascinated

44:58by the Delta

45:00and everything to do with it.

45:02It's got

45:03an extraordinary history,

45:05but it also

45:05has an amazing

45:07world-beating

45:09legacy.

45:11On my trip,

45:11I didn't get much chance

45:13to sell my soul.

45:14Nobody dragged me under.

45:15I didn't have to say no.

45:17But this guy

45:18isn't passing me by.

45:20OK, well,

45:22this appears to be a lift.

45:30Of course,

45:30I've no idea

45:31who's sitting in that cab,

45:33but

45:33it may be

45:35the devil.

45:41But,

45:42let's face it,

45:43I don't think

45:44even he

45:44can improve

45:45my guitar playing.

45:52Next stop,

45:53New Orleans.

45:55The Big Easy.

46:00Most bizarre thing

46:02I've ever done.

46:15You

46:35have been

46:36to

46:37Hey,

46:38now

46:38you

46:39have been

46:40will

46:40have been

46:41that

46:41so

46:42you

46:42have been

46:42experiencing

46:43not

46:43at

46:43you

46:43have been

46:44even

46:44when

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