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The following programme contains
disturbing scenes
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00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000
Downloaded from
YTS.MX
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00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:07,600
and explores the theme of racism.
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Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX
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# Well there's two trains runnin' #
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# Well there's two trains runnin' #
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# Well they ain't never... #
8
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# Going my way #
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# Well, now, one runs at midnight,
# and the other one... #
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00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:33,760
# Well, now, one runs at midnight,
# and the other one... #
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# Runs just 'fore day #
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# Oh, well, there's two... #
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# Oh, well, there's two... #
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# Trains runnin' #
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# And they're running this way #
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# And they're running this way #
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# Oh there's one
# leaves at midnight #
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# The other at the break of day #
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# The other at the break of day #
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# Yes, at the break of day #
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# Yes at the break... #
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The blues earliest days
are lost to time,
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The blues earliest days
are lost to time,
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and many of those
who made the first blues recordings
25
00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:18,600
disappeared soon after,
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leaving only their names
to future generations.
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00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:21,960
leaving only their names
to future generations.
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00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:23,520
Until, improbably,
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00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:27,280
a few young men decided to go off
in search of these legends.
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00:01:27,320 --> 00:01:28,000
Their quest brought them to
Mississippi in the summer of 1964,
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00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:31,520
Their quest brought them to
Mississippi in the summer of 1964,
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00:01:31,560 --> 00:01:34,840
just as another group,
drawn by the civil rights movement
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was also venturing south.
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00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:37,000
was also venturing south.
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00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:40,480
Both would awaken America
to the value of Black life,
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00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:42,240
but at a cost.
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00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:44,000
There were two trains
running that summer,
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00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:44,680
There were two trains
running that summer,
39
00:01:44,720 --> 00:01:48,520
and they would meet one fateful
Sunday, in June.
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00:01:52,800 --> 00:01:54,720
February 1st, 1960,
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00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,920
Negro students launched a movement
that electrified the nation:
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00:01:57,960 --> 00:01:59,320
the sit-in.
43
00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,600
It's not jazz around here anymore,
it's folk music.
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00:02:15,640 --> 00:02:16,000
Welcome to Hootenanny's!
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00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:17,600
Welcome to Hootenanny's!
46
00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:24,000
The National Guard troops
were moved into Oxford, Mississippi
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00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:24,560
The National Guard troops
were moved into Oxford, Mississippi
48
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to enforce the Supreme Court edict
that a negro must be registered
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00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:29,480
at the University of Mississippi.
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00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:32,000
And I say, segregation now,
51
00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:33,240
And I say, segregation now,
52
00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:35,000
segregation tomorrow,
53
00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:36,920
and segregation forever.
54
00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:44,120
By 1963,
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00:02:44,160 --> 00:02:47,440
Negro groups decided to
make voting a major goal.
56
00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:53,840
When you come down into
the flat-top country of the South,
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you hear a different kind of music.
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00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:06,880
A great change is at hand.
59
00:03:06,920 --> 00:03:11,520
Those who do nothing are inviting
shame as well as violence.
60
00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:15,400
June 12th, 1963,
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00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:18,240
a sniper's bullet
killed Medgar Evers.
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00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:28,000
August 28th,
more than 200 thousand people
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00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:28,240
August 28th,
more than 200 thousand people
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00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:32,000
marched on Washington
for jobs and freedom for Negros.
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00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:49,480
The filibuster on Civil Rights
is now in its ninth day.
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00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:51,880
Debate on the motion to take up
the Civil Rights Bill
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00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:52,000
is continuing as we talk here.
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00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:54,040
is continuing as we talk here.
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00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:04,640
This is, surprisingly enough,
Phil Spiro here at last.
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00:04:04,680 --> 00:04:07,880
This is Folkside,
and we're on WTBS in Cambridge.
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00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:21,920
You have some
unbridgeable gaps in the world.
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00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:24,000
Race, I think, is certainly
one of them, for some people.
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00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:25,640
Race, I think, is certainly
one of them, for some people.
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00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:31,040
The US, as a whole, was
a segregated society at that time.
75
00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:36,440
But, I was a prototypical
white college kid at MIT.
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00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:39,840
It didn't really seem to
impact me very much.
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00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:44,240
The Civil Rights
Movement was very much in the air.
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00:04:44,280 --> 00:04:46,560
Well, I was conscious of it.
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00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:48,000
My background was
northern kind of Yankee.
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00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:50,560
My background was
northern kind of Yankee.
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00:04:50,600 --> 00:04:56,000
The African American way of life was
very far removed from my world,
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00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:56,160
The African American way of life was
very far removed from my world,
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the world, I think, pretty much,
over the folk revival.
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00:05:02,400 --> 00:05:04,000
The blues really
was not a part of Cambridge.
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00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:05,240
The blues really
was not a part of Cambridge.
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00:05:05,280 --> 00:05:10,040
It was mostly that Irish/English
folk song tradition.
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00:05:10,080 --> 00:05:12,000
Very little Black music.
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00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:12,880
Very little Black music.
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00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:17,040
I was interested in
the old-timey stuff,
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00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:19,160
white and Black.
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00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:20,000
It moved me in ways that
I still can't really explain.
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00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:23,160
It moved me in ways that
I still can't really explain.
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00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:27,280
Before, I knew it,
my grades were going downhill.
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00:05:27,320 --> 00:05:28,000
Phil Spiro had won
a scholarship to MIT,
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Phil Spiro had won
a scholarship to MIT,
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00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:32,560
and planned a career in
Aeronautical Engineering.
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00:05:32,600 --> 00:05:34,680
But with his grades suffering,
he dropped out
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00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:36,000
and took an entry level job
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00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:36,520
and took an entry level job
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00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:38,880
programming the world's
earliest computers,
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leaving his nights free
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00:05:40,400 --> 00:05:42,440
to concentrate on
what mattered most to him.
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00:05:44,320 --> 00:05:48,560
And he found a roommate who had also
chosen music over college.
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00:05:48,600 --> 00:05:52,000
I knew Al Wilson
through the Club 47.
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00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:52,320
I knew Al Wilson
through the Club 47.
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00:05:52,360 --> 00:05:56,920
He had dropped out of the Music
Programme at Boston University.
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00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:00,000
The things they offered weren't
the things that Al wanted to learn.
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00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:01,040
The things they offered weren't
the things that Al wanted to learn.
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00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:03,440
# Frankie was a good girl #
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00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:05,240
# Everybody knows #
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00:06:05,280 --> 00:06:08,000
# She paid 100 dollars
# for Albert's suit of clothes... #
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00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:08,720
# She paid 100 dollars
# for Albert's suit of clothes... #
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00:06:08,760 --> 00:06:11,320
We couldn't afford
a telephone between us.
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00:06:11,360 --> 00:06:15,040
But, we had a lot of music there.
We had records.
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00:06:16,320 --> 00:06:19,400
Al had all sorts of music that
I knew nothing about.
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00:06:19,440 --> 00:06:22,520
# Got a brand new Shetland #
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00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:24,000
# Man, already trained #
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00:06:24,000 --> 00:06:26,200
# Man, already trained #
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00:06:26,240 --> 00:06:31,400
# Brand new Shetland, baby,
# already trained... #
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00:06:31,440 --> 00:06:32,000
People like Charley Patton,
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00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:32,960
People like Charley Patton,
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00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:35,440
Blind Willie Johnson,
Robert Johnson,
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00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:38,080
Son House, Skip James,
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00:06:38,120 --> 00:06:40,000
they were recorded in
the '20s and '30s,
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00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:40,400
they were recorded in
the '20s and '30s,
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00:06:40,440 --> 00:06:43,080
but these were electrifying cuts.
Alvin Y Hart
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# I got something to
# tell you baby #
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00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:48,000
# When I get the chance #
129
00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:49,800
# When I get the chance #
130
00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:53,960
# I got something to tell #
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00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:56,000
# Baby when I get a chance #
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00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:56,680
# Baby when I get a chance #
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00:07:01,560 --> 00:07:04,000
# Well, I don't wanna marry #
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00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:04,320
# Well, I don't wanna marry #
135
00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:06,280
# Baby won't... #
136
00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:09,000
This is music that we call
Delta blues or Country blues.
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00:07:09,040 --> 00:07:12,000
To the extent that any record
existed of that in the '60s,
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00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:12,200
To the extent that any record
existed of that in the '60s,
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00:07:12,240 --> 00:07:15,360
it was in old 78s, you know,
from the '30s.
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00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:19,160
Library of Congress anthologies
and so forth,
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00:07:19,200 --> 00:07:20,000
you know,
kind of frozen in amber.
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00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:20,960
you know,
kind of frozen in amber.
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00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:24,760
They were these very scratchy dubs
that you could barely hear,
144
00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:28,000
but they were so profound
and so unearthly.
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but they were so profound
and so unearthly.
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00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:30,160
And you thought, "Man...
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00:07:30,200 --> 00:07:33,880
"..that's just back in the day
when giants walked the Earth."
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NARRATOR:
Country blues was so obscure,
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NARRATOR:
Country blues was so obscure,
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00:07:36,840 --> 00:07:39,440
you might say it had
disappeared from America.
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00:07:39,480 --> 00:07:43,600
It had long since fallen out of
favour with African Americans.
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00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:44,000
In the 1960s,
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00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:45,120
In the 1960s,
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00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:48,080
Black audiences were even
turning away from electric blues
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00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:50,400
as soul became more popular.
156
00:07:50,440 --> 00:07:52,000
But, as the folk revival gained
momentum,
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00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:52,880
But, as the folk revival gained
momentum,
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00:07:52,920 --> 00:07:55,440
a handful of small labels
began reissuing
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00:07:55,480 --> 00:07:57,480
the records made during
the Depression.
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00:07:57,520 --> 00:07:59,440
And in college towns
like Cambridge,
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00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:00,000
a renewed interest
in the Country blues sprang up.
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00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:02,200
a renewed interest
in the Country blues sprang up.
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00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:04,600
It was like being in
a secret society.
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00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,000
You know, now Robert Johnson has
been put on a postage stamp.
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00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:08,160
You know, now Robert Johnson has
been put on a postage stamp.
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00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:12,120
But, at that time,
it was just, "Who?!"
167
00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:14,920
These guys were obsessed
with this sound.
168
00:08:16,560 --> 00:08:18,800
It's not easy music to master.
169
00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:22,360
It also spoke to them of
another way of life
170
00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:24,000
outside of the deadening
post-war suburban life
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00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:26,720
outside of the deadening
post-war suburban life
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00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:27,840
they were born into.
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00:08:27,880 --> 00:08:32,000
# I'm a motherless child,
# I'm a long way from my home #
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00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:32,200
# I'm a motherless child,
# I'm a long way from my home #
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00:08:32,240 --> 00:08:34,960
There was another life
that was more expressive,
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00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:36,600
that was more erotic,
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00:08:36,640 --> 00:08:38,400
that was more dangerous.
178
00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:40,000
And that was it, I mean, oh God.
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00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:41,880
And that was it, I mean, oh God.
180
00:08:41,920 --> 00:08:44,720
I didn't listen to
Rock and Roll for years.
181
00:08:47,640 --> 00:08:48,000
Anywhere this led me,
anywhere the blues led me,
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00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:49,880
Anywhere this led me,
anywhere the blues led me,
183
00:08:49,920 --> 00:08:52,680
I was ready to go.
And at the start,
184
00:08:52,720 --> 00:08:55,400
who could ever imagine that
we'd ever see any of these people.
185
00:08:56,360 --> 00:08:58,520
I think they really
loved that music,
186
00:08:58,560 --> 00:09:00,280
wanted to get closer to it.
187
00:09:01,280 --> 00:09:04,000
But the story of the blues is
riddled with inaccuracies
188
00:09:04,000 --> 00:09:04,200
But the story of the blues is
riddled with inaccuracies
189
00:09:04,240 --> 00:09:06,920
and you know,
all this kind of mythology.
190
00:09:06,960 --> 00:09:09,280
It was all a mystery.
191
00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:12,000
If there was
any chance of these people
192
00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:12,080
If there was
any chance of these people
193
00:09:12,120 --> 00:09:13,600
still being alive,
194
00:09:13,640 --> 00:09:16,520
it was worth whatever effort
we had to put in
195
00:09:16,560 --> 00:09:18,840
to get them in front of
a microphone again.
196
00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:22,480
They had the records,
they had the recordings,
197
00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:25,000
but there was still so much
we didn't know.
198
00:09:25,040 --> 00:09:27,480
If you were going on the information
that was available to you
199
00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:28,000
on 78 rpm records.
You know, it's not a lot.
200
00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:30,720
on 78 rpm records.
You know, it's not a lot.
201
00:09:35,240 --> 00:09:36,000
And then, amazingly,
202
00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:37,280
And then, amazingly,
203
00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:41,360
Mississippi John Hurt
was found by Tom Hoskins.
204
00:09:41,400 --> 00:09:44,000
Because, John Hurt
recorded a song in the '20s
205
00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:44,440
Because, John Hurt
recorded a song in the '20s
206
00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:46,120
called "Avalon Blues".
207
00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:49,680
# Avalon my hometown,
# always on my mind... #
208
00:09:49,720 --> 00:09:52,000
Now you're living here
in Avalon, Mississippi.
209
00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:52,040
Now you're living here
in Avalon, Mississippi.
210
00:09:52,080 --> 00:09:53,640
Yes, Avalon, Mississippi.
211
00:09:53,680 --> 00:09:55,240
Carroll county?
Carroll county.
212
00:09:55,280 --> 00:09:58,040
You're living with your wife Jessie.
That's right.
213
00:09:58,080 --> 00:10:00,000
And, are those two children yours?
Grandchildren.
214
00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:00,480
And, are those two children yours?
Grandchildren.
215
00:10:00,520 --> 00:10:02,200
Grandchildren.
Grandchildren.Yes sir.
216
00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:04,560
# Pretty Mama's in Avalon,
# Want me there all the time... #
217
00:10:04,600 --> 00:10:07,160
This was the first time
a major performer
218
00:10:07,200 --> 00:10:08,000
from the '20s or the '30s
had been found,
219
00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:09,960
from the '20s or the '30s
had been found,
220
00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:11,240
and we were thrilled.
221
00:10:11,280 --> 00:10:13,560
The re-emergence of
Mississippi John Hurt
222
00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:16,000
was a defining moment in
the folk revival.
223
00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:16,320
was a defining moment in
the folk revival.
224
00:10:16,360 --> 00:10:20,640
And as improbable as it was to find
a lost bluesman through song lyrics,
225
00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:24,000
the idea stuck with a brilliant
young guitarist in California,
226
00:10:24,000 --> 00:10:24,240
the idea stuck with a brilliant
young guitarist in California,
227
00:10:24,280 --> 00:10:26,480
John Fahey.
228
00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:40,000
This was a man
who knew more about the blues
229
00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:40,640
This was a man
who knew more about the blues
230
00:10:40,680 --> 00:10:42,280
than I ever learned.
231
00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:44,600
And no one could even play that
stuff on the guitar.
232
00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:47,920
Fahey spent years
trying to learn how to play
233
00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:48,000
the way that people played
on the records.
234
00:10:48,000 --> 00:10:50,360
the way that people played
on the records.
235
00:10:50,400 --> 00:10:53,520
In 1963,
after John Hurt was located,
236
00:10:53,560 --> 00:10:56,000
Fahey used a line in a song about
Aberdeen, Mississippi
237
00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:56,840
Fahey used a line in a song about
Aberdeen, Mississippi
238
00:10:56,880 --> 00:10:59,880
to track down
another Depression-era legend,
239
00:10:59,920 --> 00:11:01,320
Bukka White.
240
00:11:01,320 --> 00:11:04,000
# I was sittin' down in Aberdeen #
241
00:11:04,000 --> 00:11:05,080
# I was sittin' down in Aberdeen #
242
00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:08,960
# With New Orleans on my mind #
243
00:11:09,000 --> 00:11:11,280
By April, '64,
244
00:11:11,320 --> 00:11:12,000
Bukka was playing
the folk music circuit.
245
00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:13,920
Bukka was playing
the folk music circuit.
246
00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:25,880
Bukka White had some
concerts in Cambridge,
247
00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:28,000
and was staying with my friends
Alan Wilson and Phil Spiro.
248
00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:30,200
and was staying with my friends
Alan Wilson and Phil Spiro.
249
00:11:32,000 --> 00:11:35,160
Al and I were interviewing Booker.
250
00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:36,000
We more or less had
a list of blues artists
251
00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:38,040
We more or less had
a list of blues artists
252
00:11:38,080 --> 00:11:40,320
that we had heard
all the records of.
253
00:11:41,480 --> 00:11:43,520
We posed the name Son House,
254
00:11:43,560 --> 00:11:44,000
and he knew who Son House was.
255
00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:45,160
and he knew who Son House was.
256
00:11:47,600 --> 00:11:49,400
He said,
you know a friend of mine
257
00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:52,000
saw him coming out of a movie
theatre,
258
00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:52,120
saw him coming out of a movie
theatre,
259
00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:55,560
or told me that
she saw him, uh, in Memphis.
260
00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:57,920
This was
a remarkable thing to hear.
261
00:11:57,960 --> 00:12:00,000
Among adherents of
the Country blues,
262
00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:00,040
Among adherents of
the Country blues,
263
00:12:00,080 --> 00:12:02,760
Son House was most of
the most celebrated figures.
264
00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:06,280
Rumoured to have been a Preacher,
he sang with uncommon intensity,
265
00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:08,000
as if the blues was both the source
and cure of some unholy cosmic ill.
266
00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:11,640
as if the blues was both the source
and cure of some unholy cosmic ill.
267
00:12:11,680 --> 00:12:15,120
But his last recordings
dated to the years of World War 2,
268
00:12:15,160 --> 00:12:16,000
and it was unknown
what became of him since.
269
00:12:16,000 --> 00:12:18,360
and it was unknown
what became of him since.
270
00:12:18,400 --> 00:12:20,720
I got home and Al said,
271
00:12:20,760 --> 00:12:22,840
"The most amazing thing
has happened.
272
00:12:22,880 --> 00:12:24,000
"Booker says that
a friend of his in Memphis
273
00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:25,960
"Booker says that
a friend of his in Memphis
274
00:12:26,000 --> 00:12:30,360
"saw Son House coming out of
a theatre last year."
275
00:12:30,400 --> 00:12:32,000
We didn't even know
he was still alive.
276
00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:33,000
We didn't even know
he was still alive.
277
00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:37,920
He was last "spotted",
so to speak, in 1942,
278
00:12:37,960 --> 00:12:40,000
in Robinsonville, Mississippi.
279
00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:40,040
in Robinsonville, Mississippi.
280
00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:43,360
And no one,
in the folk circles anyway,
281
00:12:43,400 --> 00:12:46,000
had any knowledge of
whether he was still alive,
282
00:12:46,040 --> 00:12:48,000
whether he was in Robinsonville,
or had moved,
283
00:12:48,000 --> 00:12:48,200
whether he was in Robinsonville,
or had moved,
284
00:12:48,240 --> 00:12:51,840
or what had happened to him
in those 22 years.
285
00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:54,280
But, on the basis of that,
286
00:12:54,320 --> 00:12:56,000
a second-hand report of
a sighting of Son House
287
00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:58,640
a second-hand report of
a sighting of Son House
288
00:12:58,680 --> 00:13:00,440
coming out of a movie theatre,
289
00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:03,040
they wanted to
organize an expedition.
290
00:13:05,520 --> 00:13:08,360
I decided that
we had to go look for him.
291
00:13:08,400 --> 00:13:11,360
"We" being Evans,
and Al, and myself.
292
00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:12,000
I was a student,
so I couldn't go.
293
00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:13,800
I was a student,
so I couldn't go.
294
00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:17,240
Al had a gig coming up,
and couldn't do it.
295
00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:20,000
Phil, I think, needed somebody
with a tape recorder and some money.
296
00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:21,360
Phil, I think, needed somebody
with a tape recorder and some money.
297
00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:26,200
I call Tom Hoskins,
the guy who had found John Hurt.
298
00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:28,000
He was not interested.
He wouldn't say why,
299
00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:28,960
He was not interested.
He wouldn't say why,
300
00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:31,320
but he probably had
better sense than I did.
301
00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:34,520
I asked him if he knew anybody
who might be interested.
302
00:13:34,560 --> 00:13:36,000
And yes, he knew Nick Perls,
who was a record collector.
303
00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:39,360
And yes, he knew Nick Perls,
who was a record collector.
304
00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:42,800
And Perls had a tape recorder,
305
00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:44,000
and Perls had a car.
306
00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:44,360
and Perls had a car.
307
00:13:44,400 --> 00:13:46,520
I called him,
and yes he was interested.
308
00:13:47,560 --> 00:13:51,720
We needed a second driver,
since I never have driven.
309
00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:52,000
And that somebody was Dick Waterman.
310
00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:53,920
And that somebody was Dick Waterman.
311
00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:57,840
I was 29.
312
00:13:57,880 --> 00:14:00,000
I was a sports writer
at the time.
313
00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:00,240
I was a sports writer
at the time.
314
00:14:00,280 --> 00:14:05,080
I was writing also on the
folk music business of Cambridge.
315
00:14:05,120 --> 00:14:07,760
They had a publication
called "Broadside".
316
00:14:07,800 --> 00:14:08,000
Dick was a photographer to boot,
317
00:14:08,000 --> 00:14:09,800
Dick was a photographer to boot,
318
00:14:09,840 --> 00:14:11,840
and a journalist,
he could write it up.
319
00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:15,400
So, I told him that
I had a hot lead on Son House.
320
00:14:18,120 --> 00:14:20,160
"Son who?" he said.
321
00:14:20,200 --> 00:14:23,520
I knew Louie Armstrong
and Kid Ory,
322
00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:24,000
and Johnny Dodds,
and New Orleans Swing.
323
00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:26,840
and Johnny Dodds,
and New Orleans Swing.
324
00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:30,120
I knew all of that.
But Country blues? Uh-uh.
325
00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:32,000
He hadn't heard of House,
but that didn't surprise me,
326
00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:33,640
He hadn't heard of House,
but that didn't surprise me,
327
00:14:33,680 --> 00:14:35,360
because very few people had.
328
00:14:35,400 --> 00:14:37,560
# I wanna be a Baptist preacher #
329
00:14:37,600 --> 00:14:40,000
# Just so I won't have to work #
330
00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:40,400
# Just so I won't have to work #
331
00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:43,880
This is the man who recorded
for Paramount in 1930,
332
00:14:43,920 --> 00:14:48,000
recorded a few songs for Alan Lomax
in Mississippi, '41, '42,
333
00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:49,320
recorded a few songs for Alan Lomax
in Mississippi, '41, '42,
334
00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:50,760
and vanished.
335
00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:52,520
Now here we are in '64,
336
00:14:52,560 --> 00:14:55,000
and Bukka White said, "I just went
to the movies with him."
337
00:14:55,040 --> 00:14:56,000
Well, I think there's a story there.
338
00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:57,880
Well, I think there's a story there.
339
00:14:57,920 --> 00:15:00,760
So, I contacted
the "National Observer".
340
00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:04,000
They said, "If you find him,
we buy the story.
341
00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:04,040
They said, "If you find him,
we buy the story.
342
00:15:04,080 --> 00:15:06,280
"If you don't find him,
no interest."
343
00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:07,520
Well, that's all it took.
344
00:15:07,560 --> 00:15:11,520
# If you haven't any hay,
# Get on down the road #
345
00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:12,000
While Spiro and Waterman
prepared to leave Boston,
346
00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:14,240
While Spiro and Waterman
prepared to leave Boston,
347
00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:17,360
John Fahey was also planning
a trip to Mississippi.
348
00:15:17,400 --> 00:15:20,000
Word had come to him of something
that might lead to
349
00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:20,160
Word had come to him of something
that might lead to
350
00:15:20,200 --> 00:15:23,040
the most mysterious
and elusive bluesman of all.
351
00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:27,400
# If I go to Louisiana, Mama,
# Lord, Lord they'll hang me sure #
352
00:15:27,440 --> 00:15:28,000
Skip James had recorded
in Grafton, Wisconsin
353
00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:30,160
Skip James had recorded
in Grafton, Wisconsin
354
00:15:30,200 --> 00:15:33,280
for Paramount records
in the early 1930s.
355
00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:36,000
Among bluesmen of that era,
James was special.
356
00:15:36,000 --> 00:15:36,320
Among bluesmen of that era,
James was special.
357
00:15:36,360 --> 00:15:39,520
He played guitar and piano
with equal command.
358
00:15:39,560 --> 00:15:42,480
His songs drifted between
extreme states of feeling,
359
00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:44,000
from jaunty celebrations of life,
360
00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:44,520
from jaunty celebrations of life,
361
00:15:44,560 --> 00:15:48,000
to the most haunting tales of
bitterness and desperation.
362
00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:52,000
A lot of Skip songs have to
do with money problems
363
00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:52,280
A lot of Skip songs have to
do with money problems
364
00:15:52,320 --> 00:15:54,840
and the darkness of life.
365
00:15:56,160 --> 00:15:58,720
Universal themes
that have never changed,
366
00:15:58,760 --> 00:16:00,000
and probably never will.
367
00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:00,200
and probably never will.
368
00:16:00,240 --> 00:16:02,640
# You know, people are drifting #
369
00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:08,000
# But you can't find no heaven,
# I don't care where they go #
370
00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:08,040
# But you can't find no heaven,
# I don't care where they go #
371
00:16:08,080 --> 00:16:12,160
# Ah-ha, uh-huh... #
372
00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:15,400
# Ah-ha, uh-huh... #
373
00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:22,240
# When you hear me singing
# this old lonesome song #
374
00:16:22,280 --> 00:16:24,000
# You know these hard times
# can last us so very long #
375
00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:26,360
# You know these hard times
# can last us so very long #
376
00:16:26,400 --> 00:16:30,040
# Ah-ha, uh-huh... #
377
00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:32,000
# Ah-ha, uh-huh... #
378
00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:33,560
# Ah-ha, uh-huh... #
379
00:16:33,600 --> 00:16:36,840
Like Son House,
Skip James was a phantom.
380
00:16:36,880 --> 00:16:39,280
His birthplace was
a subject of debate,
381
00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:40,000
no photographs of him
were known to exist.
382
00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:41,840
no photographs of him
were known to exist.
383
00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:44,160
And no one,
not even John Fahey,
384
00:16:44,200 --> 00:16:47,160
could decipher the tuning
in which he composed his songs.
385
00:16:47,200 --> 00:16:48,000
Fahey had searched for James before,
with no luck.
386
00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:50,480
Fahey had searched for James before,
with no luck.
387
00:16:50,520 --> 00:16:52,160
Yet he had reason to believe
388
00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,560
the summer of 1964
would be different.
389
00:16:55,600 --> 00:16:56,000
Finally springtime comes
390
00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:57,480
Finally springtime comes
391
00:16:57,520 --> 00:16:59,560
and it's time for me
to make my annual journey
392
00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:02,160
through the South land,
looking for Skip James.
393
00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:03,800
On all these trips,
394
00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:04,000
I asked everyone I met
about blues singers,
395
00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:06,560
I asked everyone I met
about blues singers,
396
00:17:06,600 --> 00:17:09,160
nobody I talked to had ever
heard of Skip James.
397
00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:11,280
But the blues grapevine
informed me that
398
00:17:11,320 --> 00:17:12,000
Ishman Bracey had turned up
in Jackson, Mississippi.
399
00:17:12,000 --> 00:17:14,560
Ishman Bracey had turned up
in Jackson, Mississippi.
400
00:17:14,600 --> 00:17:17,520
Bracey had recorded for
the same company as James
401
00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:18,880
at about the same time.
402
00:17:20,200 --> 00:17:22,560
I set about organizing
one more trip.
403
00:17:22,600 --> 00:17:25,400
I asked two friends,
Henry Vestine and Bill Barth
404
00:17:25,440 --> 00:17:27,200
to go collecting with me.
405
00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:33,240
As Fahey and his friends
started for Mississippi,
406
00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:36,000
Phil Spiro and Dick Waterman
arrived in New York.
407
00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:36,080
Phil Spiro and Dick Waterman
arrived in New York.
408
00:17:36,120 --> 00:17:38,840
They were about to meet
the third member of their team.
409
00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:44,000
The situation with Nick Perls
was really quite unexpected.
410
00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:45,040
The situation with Nick Perls
was really quite unexpected.
411
00:17:47,440 --> 00:17:50,120
His family was extremely rich,
412
00:17:50,160 --> 00:17:52,000
the bottom floor was a gallery,
an art gallery,
413
00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:53,160
the bottom floor was a gallery,
an art gallery,
414
00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:55,160
the Perls Gallery.
415
00:17:55,200 --> 00:17:59,320
And the residence were
the four floors over the gallery.
416
00:17:59,360 --> 00:18:00,000
Literally,
five stories of fine art.
417
00:18:00,000 --> 00:18:02,680
Literally,
five stories of fine art.
418
00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:08,000
My parents were not impressed
by the blues.
419
00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:08,840
My parents were not impressed
by the blues.
420
00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:13,440
They didn't think that
Black or African American culture
421
00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,000
was very interesting
or, um, something that
422
00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:17,880
was very interesting
or, um, something that
423
00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:21,960
their family
should be involved in.
424
00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:24,000
But my brother
was not too interested in
425
00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:26,080
But my brother
was not too interested in
426
00:18:26,120 --> 00:18:28,760
doing what other people
wanted him to do.
427
00:18:28,800 --> 00:18:31,440
What he wanted was blues.
428
00:18:31,480 --> 00:18:32,000
He loved to listen to the bluesmen
from the '20s and '30s.
429
00:18:32,000 --> 00:18:36,080
He loved to listen to the bluesmen
from the '20s and '30s.
430
00:18:36,120 --> 00:18:39,200
Put on his headphones,
smoke a little grass,
431
00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:40,000
get a little high.
And then just drift away.
432
00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:42,360
get a little high.
And then just drift away.
433
00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:47,680
United by the dream of
making contact
434
00:18:47,720 --> 00:18:48,000
with the blues mythical origins,
435
00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:49,720
with the blues mythical origins,
436
00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:53,080
both groups of searchers
were now on their way.
437
00:18:53,120 --> 00:18:56,000
# Going down south,
# I'm going down south #
438
00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:57,280
# Going down south,
# I'm going down south #
439
00:18:57,320 --> 00:19:01,400
# Going down south,
# I'm going down south #
440
00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:04,000
# Chilly wind don't blow #
441
00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:04,520
# Chilly wind don't blow #
442
00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:08,120
We left in the
second week of June,
443
00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:12,000
three dudes in a Volkswagen bug
with New York plates.
444
00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:12,840
three dudes in a Volkswagen bug
with New York plates.
445
00:19:12,880 --> 00:19:16,840
# I'm going with you babe,
# I'm going with you babe #
446
00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:20,000
# I'm going with you babe,
# I'm going with you babe #
447
00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:20,680
# I'm going with you babe,
# I'm going with you babe #
448
00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:23,720
# I don't care where you go #
449
00:19:31,960 --> 00:19:35,600
The thought of getting in a car
and kind of pointing it south,
450
00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:36,000
and thinking that it would be
easy enough to find
451
00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:38,800
and thinking that it would be
easy enough to find
452
00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:42,520
a performer like Sun House?
I mean, it's like Bigfoot hunting.
453
00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:44,000
There was so little information
for them to go on.
454
00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:45,680
There was so little information
for them to go on.
455
00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:47,360
You look back on it
and you say,
456
00:19:47,400 --> 00:19:51,000
"I must have been batshit
to do things like that!"
457
00:19:51,040 --> 00:19:52,000
They may have been aware of
what was happening in Mississippi,
458
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:53,800
They may have been aware of
what was happening in Mississippi,
459
00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:56,640
but the absolute danger
in violence
460
00:19:56,680 --> 00:19:58,880
that was a reality
for local Black Americans,
461
00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:00,000
was an abstract notion for
the average white college student.
462
00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:02,720
was an abstract notion for
the average white college student.
463
00:20:07,720 --> 00:20:08,000
To go into Mississippi
in the summer of 1964,
464
00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:12,400
To go into Mississippi
in the summer of 1964,
465
00:20:12,440 --> 00:20:15,400
you had to be either very brave,
466
00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:16,000
very stupid,
or very uninformed.
467
00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:18,280
very stupid,
or very uninformed.
468
00:20:20,320 --> 00:20:22,800
If I had known what was going on,
I sure as hell
469
00:20:22,840 --> 00:20:24,000
would not have wanted to go to
Mississippi at that point.
470
00:20:24,000 --> 00:20:25,560
would not have wanted to go to
Mississippi at that point.
471
00:20:33,201 --> 00:20:35,880
We can see what's happening
in this country
472
00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:38,240
wherever segregation breaks down,
473
00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:40,000
the social structure breaks down
at the same time.
474
00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:43,080
the social structure breaks down
at the same time.
475
00:20:46,480 --> 00:20:48,000
In 1964,
several things were happening.
476
00:20:48,000 --> 00:20:49,000
In 1964,
several things were happening.
477
00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:52,600
One was that Blacks were of course
being denied the right to vote,
478
00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:54,680
and their basic rights
as citizens in the country.
479
00:20:55,600 --> 00:20:56,000
And there was very little attention
being given to that.
480
00:20:56,000 --> 00:20:58,040
And there was very little attention
being given to that.
481
00:20:59,720 --> 00:21:01,200
Segregation was blatant.
482
00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:04,000
I mean, you had no question
about the roles people had to play.
483
00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:04,680
I mean, you had no question
about the roles people had to play.
484
00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:07,720
And those Blacks
who were making a stand,
485
00:21:07,760 --> 00:21:11,520
or trying to make a stand,
were dying. They were being killed.
486
00:21:11,560 --> 00:21:12,000
For 250 years,
487
00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:14,000
For 250 years,
488
00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:17,960
the white man acted,
and the negro reacted.
489
00:21:18,920 --> 00:21:20,000
And now the roles
are being reversed.
490
00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,160
And now the roles
are being reversed.
491
00:21:22,200 --> 00:21:24,400
But, as we are acting,
492
00:21:24,440 --> 00:21:27,160
the white man's reaction
becomes a lynch mob, the rope,
493
00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:28,000
the gun, the bomb,
494
00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:28,840
the gun, the bomb,
495
00:21:28,880 --> 00:21:31,600
the threatening telephone call,
the cross.
496
00:21:31,640 --> 00:21:33,000
There was just a terror
497
00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:34,960
associated with
the word "Mississippi"
498
00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:36,000
in Black America.
499
00:21:36,000 --> 00:21:36,560
in Black America.
500
00:21:36,600 --> 00:21:39,560
I mean, the policemen
were members of the clan,
501
00:21:39,600 --> 00:21:42,000
daily violence was committed
with impunity,
502
00:21:42,040 --> 00:21:43,600
and if you spoke out
against the system
503
00:21:43,640 --> 00:21:44,000
it was 10 times worse.
504
00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:44,960
it was 10 times worse.
505
00:21:45,840 --> 00:21:48,880
To us it was war,
we were in a war.
506
00:21:48,920 --> 00:21:51,280
The country
couldn't see itself
507
00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:52,000
in all those murders
that were happening.
508
00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:53,560
in all those murders
that were happening.
509
00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:55,520
That's basically
what the issue was.
510
00:21:55,560 --> 00:21:58,720
How do we get the country to
actually take a good look at itself.
511
00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:04,520
Freedom Summer was this idea that
we need to gain citizenship,
512
00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:07,600
and one avenue and expression of
that is going to be voting rights.
513
00:22:07,640 --> 00:22:08,000
But, there was never going to be
514
00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:09,800
But, there was never going to be
515
00:22:09,840 --> 00:22:12,800
mass voting for Black people
in the South,
516
00:22:12,840 --> 00:22:14,920
unless there was federal help.
517
00:22:14,960 --> 00:22:16,000
We were getting shot,
we were getting beat,
518
00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:16,760
We were getting shot,
we were getting beat,
519
00:22:16,800 --> 00:22:19,440
we were getting killed.
But it wasn't making no difference.
520
00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:21,000
So, the idea came up,
521
00:22:21,040 --> 00:22:23,240
that we got to bring
white folks to Mississippi.
522
00:22:23,280 --> 00:22:24,000
We knew that was the only way
we were going to get attention.
523
00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:25,640
We knew that was the only way
we were going to get attention.
524
00:22:25,680 --> 00:22:28,440
And it's not just
any white people, right?
525
00:22:28,480 --> 00:22:30,880
It needed the sons and daughters
526
00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:32,000
of the people who were actually
running the country.
527
00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:33,520
of the people who were actually
running the country.
528
00:22:33,560 --> 00:22:37,600
The country could take a look
at itself through their eyes.
529
00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:39,840
NARRATOR:
Almost 1,000 college students
530
00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:40,000
volunteered to spend
the summer of 1964 in Mississippi.
531
00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:43,560
volunteered to spend
the summer of 1964 in Mississippi.
532
00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:47,320
One was Andrew Goodman,
a sophomore at Queens College.
533
00:22:47,360 --> 00:22:48,000
He had participated in
a few civil rights demonstrations
534
00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:50,160
He had participated in
a few civil rights demonstrations
535
00:22:50,200 --> 00:22:52,400
in New York,
and wanted to do more.
536
00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:56,000
Even, if it meant entering the
most dangerous part of the South.
537
00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:56,320
Even, if it meant entering the
most dangerous part of the South.
538
00:22:56,360 --> 00:22:59,480
When your child says,
"I want to go, I want to do it.
539
00:22:59,520 --> 00:23:02,960
"I want to register voters.
I want to buck the clan."
540
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:04,000
You know, your heart sinks.
541
00:23:04,000 --> 00:23:05,040
You know, your heart sinks.
542
00:23:05,080 --> 00:23:07,720
But, I wasn't going to
tell him not to go.
543
00:23:07,760 --> 00:23:10,000
And so, he had a duffle bag,
544
00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:12,000
and I would throw in
bandages and iodine.
545
00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:13,360
and I would throw in
bandages and iodine.
546
00:23:13,400 --> 00:23:16,440
I thought, "Well, you know, he'll
probably get into some trouble,
547
00:23:16,480 --> 00:23:19,080
"and maybe they'll beat him up
or something like that.
548
00:23:19,120 --> 00:23:20,000
"He ought to have something to
take care of himself."
549
00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:22,040
"He ought to have something to
take care of himself."
550
00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:24,960
The idea was to keep the spotlight
on Mississippi.
551
00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:28,000
I knew there were risks,
but we had real tasks to do,
552
00:23:28,000 --> 00:23:30,040
I knew there were risks,
but we had real tasks to do,
553
00:23:30,080 --> 00:23:32,600
running the Freedom School,
doing voter registration.
554
00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:34,640
This was serious work.
555
00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:36,000
So, you had white college students
coming from California and New York
556
00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:38,040
So, you had white college students
coming from California and New York
557
00:23:38,080 --> 00:23:41,200
to move down to Mississippi
for one summer, to devote
558
00:23:41,240 --> 00:23:44,000
all of their time and effort to
overturning Jim Crow segregation.
559
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:45,880
all of their time and effort to
overturning Jim Crow segregation.
560
00:23:46,760 --> 00:23:49,200
The first volunteers
would arrive in Mississippi
561
00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:51,120
on Sunday, June 21st.
562
00:23:51,160 --> 00:23:52,000
And in the weeks before,
the state went on alert.
563
00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:54,240
And in the weeks before,
the state went on alert.
564
00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:56,520
We are not going to permit
565
00:23:56,560 --> 00:23:59,920
any outside group
to come into this state,
566
00:23:59,960 --> 00:24:00,000
and to drive the wedge of
division and dissension,
567
00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:03,440
and to drive the wedge of
division and dissension,
568
00:24:03,480 --> 00:24:06,400
and to subvert
the very foundation pillars
569
00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:08,000
of the great government
of the State of Mississippi,
570
00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:09,200
of the great government
of the State of Mississippi,
571
00:24:09,240 --> 00:24:10,640
and of her people.
572
00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,840
It was tense,
and we drove into this.
573
00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:19,800
We found a motel,
574
00:24:19,840 --> 00:24:23,520
a very modest motel
south of Memphis,
575
00:24:23,560 --> 00:24:24,000
just over the line in Mississippi
by about a mile or so.
576
00:24:24,000 --> 00:24:28,160
just over the line in Mississippi
by about a mile or so.
577
00:24:28,200 --> 00:24:30,080
And we used that
as our headquarters
578
00:24:30,120 --> 00:24:32,000
for about 10 days
that we were there.
579
00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:32,120
for about 10 days
that we were there.
580
00:24:32,160 --> 00:24:34,760
To begin,
they sought out Lilian Glover,
581
00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:36,000
the friend of Bukka White's
582
00:24:36,040 --> 00:24:39,520
who was said to have seen Son House
coming out of a movie theatre.
583
00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:40,000
It turned out to be
a total dead end.
584
00:24:40,000 --> 00:24:41,680
It turned out to be
a total dead end.
585
00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:44,520
There was... nothing,
586
00:24:44,560 --> 00:24:48,000
it began and ended
with her running into Son
587
00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:48,280
it began and ended
with her running into Son
588
00:24:48,320 --> 00:24:50,880
coming out of a theatre
a year ago.
589
00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:52,680
And she could learn nothing further.
590
00:24:57,520 --> 00:25:00,000
So here we were,
we're here.
591
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:01,920
What do we do now?
592
00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:04,000
# Lord, that 61 Highway #
593
00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:05,920
# Lord, that 61 Highway #
594
00:25:05,960 --> 00:25:09,120
# Is the longest road
# that I know #
595
00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:19,600
# Lord, that 61 Highway #
596
00:25:19,640 --> 00:25:20,000
# Is the longest road I know #
597
00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:22,720
# Is the longest road I know #
598
00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:33,200
# She run from New York City #
599
00:25:33,240 --> 00:25:36,000
# Down the Gulf of Mexico #
600
00:25:36,000 --> 00:25:36,680
# Down the Gulf of Mexico #
601
00:25:39,840 --> 00:25:41,760
That was our only lead.
602
00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:44,000
We had no plan B,
we had no back-up.
603
00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:45,360
We had no plan B,
we had no back-up.
604
00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:49,000
We were just three guys
who barely knew each other,
605
00:25:49,040 --> 00:25:52,000
who were sharing
a very hair-brained idea of
606
00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:52,240
who were sharing
a very hair-brained idea of
607
00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:54,280
"Let's go down to Memphis,
608
00:25:54,320 --> 00:25:57,320
"and see what we can learn
about Son House."
609
00:25:57,360 --> 00:26:00,000
# I said please... #
610
00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:00,640
# I said please... #
611
00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:03,520
# Please see somebody for me #
612
00:26:10,440 --> 00:26:14,920
# I said please... #
613
00:26:16,120 --> 00:26:18,000
# Please see somebody for me #
614
00:26:18,040 --> 00:26:21,240
Henry Vestine, Bill Barth
and John Fahey
615
00:26:21,280 --> 00:26:24,000
first stopped in Jackson.
They were going to talk Bracey.
616
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:24,920
first stopped in Jackson.
They were going to talk Bracey.
617
00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:28,320
Bassman Bracey was the bluesman
I had found a year earlier.
618
00:26:28,360 --> 00:26:31,800
Gayle Dean Wardlow
was a rare thing in 1964,
619
00:26:31,840 --> 00:26:32,000
a white Mississippian
with the love of the blues.
620
00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:34,520
a white Mississippian
with the love of the blues.
621
00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:36,840
And while no one in Boston
or Berkeley knew it,
622
00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:40,000
he had been looking for Son House
and Skip James for months.
623
00:26:40,000 --> 00:26:40,120
he had been looking for Son House
and Skip James for months.
624
00:26:40,160 --> 00:26:42,760
I was determined, I'm going to
find out where these guys are from,
625
00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:44,040
if they're alive or dead.
626
00:26:44,080 --> 00:26:46,040
I learned how to find
death certificates,
627
00:26:46,080 --> 00:26:48,000
use city directories,
courthouse records.
628
00:26:48,000 --> 00:26:48,200
use city directories,
courthouse records.
629
00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:50,000
It was like an obsession,
I admit it.
630
00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:51,920
Along the way,
631
00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:55,320
Wardlow had discovered
the name of Skip James' hometown.
632
00:26:55,360 --> 00:26:56,000
But he could not keep that
piece of information to himself.
633
00:26:56,000 --> 00:26:58,520
But he could not keep that
piece of information to himself.
634
00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:02,080
I made the mistake of telling Bracey
one time, when I visited him,
635
00:27:02,120 --> 00:27:04,000
I found out where Skip James
was from, Bentonia.
636
00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:04,480
I found out where Skip James
was from, Bentonia.
637
00:27:04,520 --> 00:27:06,480
That's all I said to him.
638
00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:09,960
Henry told me the story later on.
He said, we paid him $30,
639
00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:12,000
all our money we had,
for information,
640
00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:12,280
all our money we had,
for information,
641
00:27:12,320 --> 00:27:14,720
and we asked him about
where's Skip James from.
642
00:27:14,760 --> 00:27:16,560
And he said, "Go to Bentonia."
643
00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:28,000
Here we were in Memphis,
644
00:27:28,000 --> 00:27:28,480
Here we were in Memphis,
645
00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:31,800
not knowing which end was up,
but that we were there,
646
00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:35,680
and we ought to do something that
looked like looking for Son House.
647
00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:36,000
We had almost no information
about Son.
648
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:38,800
We had almost no information
about Son.
649
00:27:38,840 --> 00:27:41,840
The records, such as they were,
had information
650
00:27:41,880 --> 00:27:44,000
that his name was Eugene,
he wore a cowboy hat,
651
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:44,800
that his name was Eugene,
he wore a cowboy hat,
652
00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:46,320
and he was fat.
653
00:27:46,360 --> 00:27:51,600
Son House was last known
to have lived in Robinsonville,
654
00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:52,000
just below the
Mississippi/Tennessee line.
655
00:27:52,000 --> 00:27:54,720
just below the
Mississippi/Tennessee line.
656
00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:56,240
Let's go to Robinsonville.
657
00:28:18,160 --> 00:28:22,120
Black people who we did speak to
were guarded, of course,
658
00:28:22,160 --> 00:28:24,000
because we were white.
659
00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:24,040
because we were white.
660
00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:26,720
And they had no reason at all
to trust us.
661
00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:30,000
Three white kids in their 20s,
662
00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:32,000
with New York license plates,
and New York accents?
663
00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:32,520
with New York license plates,
and New York accents?
664
00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:35,320
No, none of the Black people
were going to talk to them.
665
00:28:36,800 --> 00:28:39,120
I mean, Mississippi
for young white people
666
00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:40,000
who might have come from
New England, or California,
667
00:28:40,000 --> 00:28:42,440
who might have come from
New England, or California,
668
00:28:42,480 --> 00:28:45,440
was really like a new world.
You couldn't imagine it.
669
00:28:45,480 --> 00:28:47,600
We can't go out
on the plantations, really.
670
00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:48,000
You know, you can't just
go out there and tell a Negro
671
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:50,120
You know, you can't just
go out there and tell a Negro
672
00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:52,240
to come off the plantation and
go to the courthouse.
673
00:28:52,280 --> 00:28:54,440
What happens is in the town,
674
00:28:54,480 --> 00:28:56,000
we organize the town people,
675
00:28:56,000 --> 00:28:56,360
we organize the town people,
676
00:28:56,400 --> 00:28:58,320
and then they have friends
on the plantations.
677
00:28:58,360 --> 00:29:01,440
The volunteers gathered
in Oxford, Ohio for training,
678
00:29:01,480 --> 00:29:03,360
beginning on
Sunday, June 14th.
679
00:29:03,400 --> 00:29:04,000
These are college students
who are used to proms,
680
00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:05,640
These are college students
who are used to proms,
681
00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,400
and-and pleasure, and nightlife.
682
00:29:08,440 --> 00:29:11,600
And they're going to be living
basically in another century,
683
00:29:11,640 --> 00:29:12,000
in another culture.
684
00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:13,040
in another culture.
685
00:29:13,080 --> 00:29:14,640
It's rigidly segregated,
686
00:29:14,680 --> 00:29:17,280
racial etiquette is
harshly enforced.
687
00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:19,840
And by "racial etiquette",
we mean, you know, tipping your hat
688
00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:20,000
when white people pass by,
689
00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:21,280
when white people pass by,
690
00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:24,680
certainly, uh, only speaking
when you're spoken to.
691
00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:28,000
Never, being close to white women
if you're a Black man,
692
00:29:28,000 --> 00:29:28,360
Never, being close to white women
if you're a Black man,
693
00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:30,080
really under
the threat of death.
694
00:29:30,120 --> 00:29:34,400
It was important for
civil right's workers to realize
695
00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:36,000
that the white people felt
as though they were under siege,
696
00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:37,680
that the white people felt
as though they were under siege,
697
00:29:37,720 --> 00:29:42,680
and the way in which they behaved
was illegal and violent.
698
00:29:42,720 --> 00:29:44,000
They will arrest you and then
hold you for a couple of hours
699
00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:45,600
They will arrest you and then
hold you for a couple of hours
700
00:29:45,640 --> 00:29:46,840
and dream up a charge,
701
00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:49,800
because they don't have
any particular one to arrest you on.
702
00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:52,000
You must be prepared to face
continual and constant arrest.
703
00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:53,760
You must be prepared to face
continual and constant arrest.
704
00:29:53,800 --> 00:29:55,960
They will fingerprint you
and photograph you,
705
00:29:56,000 --> 00:29:58,440
and wire your photograph
around the state
706
00:29:58,480 --> 00:30:00,000
so in case you show up
any place else,
707
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:00,640
so in case you show up
any place else,
708
00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:03,880
they will know exactly
who you are, where you're from,
709
00:30:03,920 --> 00:30:06,800
and all personal data
about yourself.
710
00:30:06,840 --> 00:30:08,000
Try to bring your knees
all the way up to your elbows,
711
00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:09,320
Try to bring your knees
all the way up to your elbows,
712
00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:11,520
don't cross your legs or arms.
713
00:30:11,560 --> 00:30:14,080
Most likely a cop won't try to
chunk you in here.
714
00:30:14,120 --> 00:30:16,000
But, he will hit you
across here.
715
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:16,240
But, he will hit you
across here.
716
00:30:16,280 --> 00:30:17,760
You can generally
take those licks.
717
00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:20,320
We were quite aware of the danger
718
00:30:20,360 --> 00:30:23,880
that the volunteers that would be
coming down would be facing, whites.
719
00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:24,000
They'd be faced with the same danger
as the Blacks who lived there.
720
00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:28,120
They'd be faced with the same danger
as the Blacks who lived there.
721
00:30:28,160 --> 00:30:31,280
We knew people had been beaten,
we knew people had been murdered.
722
00:30:31,320 --> 00:30:32,000
We were talked with about
the potential of that to happen.
723
00:30:32,000 --> 00:30:37,200
We were talked with about
the potential of that to happen.
724
00:30:37,240 --> 00:30:39,920
If you were in an interracial car
for example,
725
00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:40,000
and you were driving into
some little village,
726
00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:42,600
and you were driving into
some little village,
727
00:30:42,640 --> 00:30:45,240
you had to make sure
you weren't there, after dark.
728
00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:47,040
INSTRUCTOR:
Stay off the streets at night.
729
00:30:47,080 --> 00:30:48,000
Darkness seems to be
an encouragement
730
00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:49,080
Darkness seems to be
an encouragement
731
00:30:49,120 --> 00:30:51,160
to many of these people
to do a little bit more dirt.
732
00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:54,960
And another thing I suggest we be
a bit more serious about this thing.
733
00:30:55,000 --> 00:30:56,000
I know it don't even seem
real to you now,
734
00:30:56,000 --> 00:30:57,600
I know it don't even seem
real to you now,
735
00:30:57,640 --> 00:30:59,760
but it will when you go
down to Mississippi.
736
00:31:01,520 --> 00:31:03,200
We were having training
in Oxford,
737
00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:04,000
for the kids to get ready
to come down,
738
00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:04,760
for the kids to get ready
to come down,
739
00:31:04,800 --> 00:31:06,920
so the Clan had decided
they were going to
740
00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:09,640
make some examples of what's going
to happen if you come down here.
741
00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:11,480
And on Tuesday, June 16th,
742
00:31:11,520 --> 00:31:12,000
one of the churches that
had agreed to be a Freedom School,
743
00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:15,640
one of the churches that
had agreed to be a Freedom School,
744
00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:17,400
had been burned,
745
00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:19,880
and the members of that church
who had been holding a meeting,
746
00:31:19,920 --> 00:31:20,000
had been beaten outside
by the Clan.
747
00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:21,880
had been beaten outside
by the Clan.
748
00:31:21,920 --> 00:31:24,160
NARRATOR:
During orientation in Ohio,
749
00:31:24,200 --> 00:31:26,800
Andrew Goodman was approached
by the organizers
750
00:31:26,840 --> 00:31:28,000
who had been working in the area
surrounding the burned church,
751
00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:29,920
who had been working in the area
surrounding the burned church,
752
00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:32,080
James Chaney
and Mickey Schwerner.
753
00:31:32,120 --> 00:31:34,680
They invited Goodman
to join them for the summer.
754
00:31:34,720 --> 00:31:36,000
Chaney was a native of
Meridian, Mississippi,
755
00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:37,600
Chaney was a native of
Meridian, Mississippi,
756
00:31:37,640 --> 00:31:41,920
Schwerner a New Yorker who had moved
to the state at the start of 1964.
757
00:31:41,960 --> 00:31:44,000
I assigned them to
the Meridian project office,
758
00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:44,920
I assigned them to
the Meridian project office,
759
00:31:44,960 --> 00:31:48,960
where they went in and set up a
Freedom School and Freedom Library,
760
00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:51,200
and began to work on
the voter registration pieces
761
00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:52,000
between Meridian
and Philadelphia, Mississippi.
762
00:31:52,000 --> 00:31:54,400
between Meridian
and Philadelphia, Mississippi.
763
00:31:55,360 --> 00:31:57,320
By June of 1964,
764
00:31:57,360 --> 00:32:00,000
the Clan had already begun to plot
Mickey Schwerner's murder.
765
00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:00,520
the Clan had already begun to plot
Mickey Schwerner's murder.
766
00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:02,320
Outsiders were not welcome,
767
00:32:02,360 --> 00:32:04,080
and would not be tolerated.
768
00:32:04,120 --> 00:32:07,240
It doesn't matter if
you're looking for blues artists,
769
00:32:07,280 --> 00:32:08,000
or blues records,
770
00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:08,760
or blues records,
771
00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:11,000
or if you are trying to
register voters,
772
00:32:11,040 --> 00:32:13,760
you are an outside agitator
773
00:32:13,800 --> 00:32:16,000
to white segregationists
in Mississippi.
774
00:32:16,040 --> 00:32:20,080
The people were unwelcoming
and obviously,
775
00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:24,000
they didn't want to see cars with
license plates from Massachusetts,
776
00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:25,320
they didn't want to see cars with
license plates from Massachusetts,
777
00:32:25,360 --> 00:32:27,120
or Illinois, or New York.
778
00:32:27,160 --> 00:32:30,480
Since their own
investigating had come to nothing,
779
00:32:30,520 --> 00:32:32,000
Perls, Spiro, and Waterman
780
00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:32,520
Perls, Spiro, and Waterman
781
00:32:32,560 --> 00:32:35,400
appealed to another blues singer
from the old days.
782
00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:40,000
Robert Wilkins had been
a wonderful, wonderful bluesman
783
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:40,120
Robert Wilkins had been
a wonderful, wonderful bluesman
784
00:32:40,160 --> 00:32:43,400
with a long recording history
from the late '20s.
785
00:32:43,440 --> 00:32:45,320
# I'm going home #
786
00:32:45,360 --> 00:32:48,000
# Friends, sit down
# and tell my mama... #
787
00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:49,120
# Friends, sit down
# and tell my mama... #
788
00:32:49,160 --> 00:32:51,240
Dad had played
all over the Delta.
789
00:32:51,280 --> 00:32:54,080
You know, he had played all over
the Mississippi area, you know,
790
00:32:54,120 --> 00:32:56,000
singing the blues from the hilltop
to the bottom, you know.
791
00:32:56,000 --> 00:32:58,040
singing the blues from the hilltop
to the bottom, you know.
792
00:32:58,080 --> 00:33:00,120
He was an ordained minister,
793
00:33:00,160 --> 00:33:03,880
and had converted many of
his best blues cuts
794
00:33:03,920 --> 00:33:04,000
into religious songs.
795
00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:05,400
into religious songs.
796
00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:08,440
# That's no way
# for me to get along... #
797
00:33:08,480 --> 00:33:10,960
He knew a lot of musicians,
you know?
798
00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:12,000
So, he knew just about
where they were playing at.
799
00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:13,000
So, he knew just about
where they were playing at.
800
00:33:13,040 --> 00:33:14,880
And I think that's how
they felt like
801
00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:17,440
Daddy should know these guys
that were playing
802
00:33:17,480 --> 00:33:19,600
in these country tonks
and all that kind of stuff.
803
00:33:19,640 --> 00:33:20,000
He remembered Son from the old days,
and he agreed to help us.
804
00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:23,040
He remembered Son from the old days,
and he agreed to help us.
805
00:33:23,080 --> 00:33:26,800
# And that'd be a way
# to get along... #
806
00:33:26,840 --> 00:33:28,000
# Well, a poor boy #
807
00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:28,920
# Well, a poor boy #
808
00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:31,800
# Got all he had and
# started on down the road #
809
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:33,920
# Started on down the road #
810
00:33:33,960 --> 00:33:36,000
# Got all he had and
# started on down the road #
811
00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:37,760
# Got all he had and
# started on down the road #
812
00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:41,640
# Got all he had and
# he started on down the road #
813
00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:44,000
# And that'd be
# a way to get along... #
814
00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:44,840
# And that'd be
# a way to get along... #
815
00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:49,240
We went looking through
Robinsonville and Lake Cormorant,
816
00:33:49,280 --> 00:33:51,400
which the locals call
Lake Carmen.
817
00:33:51,440 --> 00:33:52,000
He would roll down the windows
818
00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:53,200
He would roll down the windows
819
00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:56,120
and talk to
an older Black person
820
00:33:56,160 --> 00:33:58,240
about who we were looking for.
821
00:33:58,280 --> 00:34:00,000
So, they would speak to us
through him.
822
00:34:00,000 --> 00:34:01,200
So, they would speak to us
through him.
823
00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:04,280
# Got away from home #
824
00:34:04,320 --> 00:34:07,600
# Spent all that he had,
# spent all that he had #
825
00:34:07,640 --> 00:34:08,000
# Got away from home
# and spent all that he had #
826
00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:11,440
# Got away from home
# and spent all that he had #
827
00:34:11,480 --> 00:34:13,960
# Got away from home
# and spent all that he had #
828
00:34:15,280 --> 00:34:16,000
# And that's no way to get along #
829
00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:17,600
# And that's no way to get along #
830
00:34:17,640 --> 00:34:19,840
Can you imagine?!
831
00:34:19,880 --> 00:34:22,520
Three white kids and one Black guy
in a Volkswagen!
832
00:34:25,000 --> 00:34:26,120
Yeah, in a Volkswagen.
833
00:34:26,160 --> 00:34:29,520
He guided us in what to do,
and what not to do.
834
00:34:29,560 --> 00:34:32,000
And when in doubt,
we kept our mouths shut
835
00:34:32,040 --> 00:34:33,280
and let him lead.
836
00:34:33,320 --> 00:34:37,040
He had ideas about where to look
and who to talk to,
837
00:34:37,080 --> 00:34:38,920
that we had no notion.
838
00:34:40,800 --> 00:34:44,320
# Far down the road
# as his father sees #
839
00:34:44,360 --> 00:34:47,280
# Far down the road
# as his father sees #
840
00:34:48,200 --> 00:34:50,920
# And that'd be a way to get along #
841
00:34:53,080 --> 00:34:56,000
Driving around in a New York bug,
with a Black minister,
842
00:34:56,000 --> 00:34:58,040
Driving around in a New York bug,
with a Black minister,
843
00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:01,000
was perhaps not the smartest thing
we could have done,
844
00:35:01,040 --> 00:35:04,000
but he was willing to do it,
and so were we.
845
00:35:04,000 --> 00:35:04,800
but he was willing to do it,
and so were we.
846
00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:12,000
There was one episode
that's really indelible in my mind.
847
00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:14,480
There was one episode
that's really indelible in my mind.
848
00:35:14,520 --> 00:35:17,920
We were going way out in the field,
totally rural, totally rural.
849
00:35:17,960 --> 00:35:20,000
Just out in the cotton fields.
850
00:35:20,000 --> 00:35:20,120
Just out in the cotton fields.
851
00:35:20,160 --> 00:35:22,400
And there was a pickup truck
852
00:35:22,440 --> 00:35:25,320
with a couple of white men
lounging on the hood.
853
00:35:25,360 --> 00:35:28,000
And Reverend Wilkins said,
"Stop here, and I'll ask."
854
00:35:28,000 --> 00:35:29,240
And Reverend Wilkins said,
"Stop here, and I'll ask."
855
00:35:30,360 --> 00:35:31,960
We didn't want
any part of this.
856
00:35:32,000 --> 00:35:34,600
But, if he said we're going to ask,
we're going to ask.
857
00:35:36,040 --> 00:35:39,520
We stopped the car, and the Reverend
opened the door and got up,
858
00:35:39,560 --> 00:35:43,440
and said, "I'm looking for
such and such street,
859
00:35:43,480 --> 00:35:44,000
"can you tell me where it is?"
860
00:35:44,000 --> 00:35:44,760
"can you tell me where it is?"
861
00:35:46,680 --> 00:35:49,520
They looked at him and
then they went back to talking.
862
00:35:51,720 --> 00:35:52,000
And he said to them,
"Look here, I'm talking to you.
863
00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:56,400
And he said to them,
"Look here, I'm talking to you.
864
00:35:57,800 --> 00:36:00,000
"I'm looking for
such and such a street."
865
00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:00,120
"I'm looking for
such and such a street."
866
00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:07,400
The silence was palpable.
867
00:36:09,440 --> 00:36:11,520
They looked at him
and they said...
868
00:36:12,920 --> 00:36:16,000
"Go down the road so far,
take a left, and go so far."
869
00:36:16,000 --> 00:36:17,840
"Go down the road so far,
take a left, and go so far."
870
00:36:17,880 --> 00:36:20,200
And the Reverend touched his hat,
871
00:36:20,240 --> 00:36:23,720
and he said, "Thank you,
I'm much obliged to you gentlemen."
872
00:36:24,880 --> 00:36:28,360
He nodded his head,
got back in the car, drove away.
873
00:36:37,920 --> 00:36:39,880
We get to Bentonia,
874
00:36:39,920 --> 00:36:40,000
we find some of Skip James'
relatives who try to help us,
875
00:36:40,000 --> 00:36:43,480
we find some of Skip James'
relatives who try to help us,
876
00:36:43,520 --> 00:36:44,680
but really can't.
877
00:36:44,720 --> 00:36:48,000
Even relatives of James
find him hard to pin down.
878
00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:48,200
Even relatives of James
find him hard to pin down.
879
00:36:48,240 --> 00:36:51,640
An aged uncle tells us that
James lives in a town or a city
880
00:36:51,680 --> 00:36:54,040
near Tunica, Mississippi.
881
00:36:54,080 --> 00:36:56,000
The first letter of the name
of this town is he thinks a D,
882
00:36:56,000 --> 00:36:58,000
The first letter of the name
of this town is he thinks a D,
883
00:36:58,040 --> 00:37:02,640
Dunker, Dubbs, Dundee, Denton,
but he's really not sure.
884
00:37:02,680 --> 00:37:04,000
Of one thing he's certain,
885
00:37:04,000 --> 00:37:05,240
Of one thing he's certain,
886
00:37:05,280 --> 00:37:07,960
the end of the rainbow
is near Tunica.
887
00:37:12,640 --> 00:37:14,360
On Friday, June 19th
888
00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:16,400
after a three-month-long
filibuster,
889
00:37:16,440 --> 00:37:19,000
the Civil Rights Act
finally passed the Senate.
890
00:37:19,040 --> 00:37:20,000
Segregation was now illegal
in America's restaurants, hotels,
891
00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:22,880
Segregation was now illegal
in America's restaurants, hotels,
892
00:37:22,920 --> 00:37:24,480
and other public spaces.
893
00:37:24,520 --> 00:37:26,800
We say to Lyndon B. Johnson,
894
00:37:26,840 --> 00:37:28,000
and all the Jews, and niggers...
895
00:37:28,000 --> 00:37:28,600
and all the Jews, and niggers...
896
00:37:30,200 --> 00:37:32,360
..that they can take
this Civil Rights Act
897
00:37:32,400 --> 00:37:34,880
and if they hold on to it
and light it up...
898
00:37:34,920 --> 00:37:36,000
..and the rest of it.
899
00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:37,840
..and the rest of it.
900
00:37:37,880 --> 00:37:40,360
They'll get burned
before it's over with.
901
00:37:42,560 --> 00:37:44,000
Many southerners
pledged defiance of the law,
902
00:37:44,000 --> 00:37:45,240
Many southerners
pledged defiance of the law,
903
00:37:45,280 --> 00:37:47,160
and those leaving
for Mississippi
904
00:37:47,200 --> 00:37:49,000
could expect no help
from the government.
905
00:37:49,040 --> 00:37:51,760
We most certainly do not,
and will not give protection
906
00:37:51,800 --> 00:37:52,000
to Civil Right workers.
907
00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:53,520
to Civil Right workers.
908
00:37:53,560 --> 00:37:56,920
In the first place, the FBI is
not a police organization.
909
00:37:56,960 --> 00:37:58,880
J Edgar Hoover
made this open statement
910
00:37:58,920 --> 00:38:00,000
that we're not going to be
protecting people.
911
00:38:00,000 --> 00:38:01,000
that we're not going to be
protecting people.
912
00:38:01,040 --> 00:38:03,440
In other words, he was saying
it was open season. Go get them.
913
00:38:03,480 --> 00:38:06,720
The nation's not a democracy
simply because I can vote
914
00:38:06,760 --> 00:38:08,000
when I become 21
in New York City,
915
00:38:08,000 --> 00:38:09,040
when I become 21
in New York City,
916
00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:11,720
but only if everyone can vote,
917
00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:14,680
uh, and practice his right
as a citizen,
918
00:38:14,720 --> 00:38:16,000
and the Federal government, I think
has betrayed its responsibility
919
00:38:16,000 --> 00:38:18,280
and the Federal government, I think
has betrayed its responsibility
920
00:38:18,320 --> 00:38:21,280
to enforce the constitution of
our country in Mississippi.
921
00:38:21,320 --> 00:38:23,480
Did you talk this
over with your parents
922
00:38:23,520 --> 00:38:24,000
before you made the decision?
Yes, Fred.
923
00:38:24,000 --> 00:38:25,320
before you made the decision?
Yes, Fred.
924
00:38:25,360 --> 00:38:27,600
I discussed it with them,
925
00:38:27,640 --> 00:38:30,080
and they felt, of course,
what I feel
926
00:38:30,120 --> 00:38:32,000
and that is fear of
what might happen there.
927
00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:33,240
and that is fear of
what might happen there.
928
00:38:33,280 --> 00:38:35,560
Arrest is actually
the least of my worries.
929
00:38:37,280 --> 00:38:39,200
This chase is
thoroughly difficult
930
00:38:39,240 --> 00:38:40,000
because we do not even comprehend
what we are looking for.
931
00:38:40,000 --> 00:38:43,440
because we do not even comprehend
what we are looking for.
932
00:38:43,480 --> 00:38:45,800
There is danger lurking around us.
933
00:38:45,840 --> 00:38:48,000
Something big, growing bigger,
934
00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:48,400
Something big, growing bigger,
935
00:38:48,440 --> 00:38:50,760
the civil rights storm.
936
00:38:50,800 --> 00:38:53,880
Everywhere we go,
there are eyes watching.
937
00:38:53,920 --> 00:38:55,960
The hunters are being hunted.
938
00:38:56,880 --> 00:39:00,120
"Whitey thinks we're going
help give the vote to Blacks."
939
00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:03,040
We couldn't possibly be
looking for old blues singers.
940
00:39:03,080 --> 00:39:04,000
Nobody does that,
not even crazy people!
941
00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:06,600
Nobody does that,
not even crazy people!
942
00:39:06,640 --> 00:39:10,240
Several times we will be
accosted by police.
943
00:39:10,280 --> 00:39:12,000
Guns drawn and pointing,
944
00:39:12,000 --> 00:39:12,200
Guns drawn and pointing,
945
00:39:12,240 --> 00:39:16,040
"What are you boys doing
fooling around with our Negros?
946
00:39:16,080 --> 00:39:18,080
"Don't you know
you can get in trouble
947
00:39:18,120 --> 00:39:20,000
"for fooling around
with our Negros?"
948
00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:20,040
"for fooling around
with our Negros?"
949
00:39:25,280 --> 00:39:28,000
When Mickey decided to
go back to Mississippi,
950
00:39:28,000 --> 00:39:29,680
When Mickey decided to
go back to Mississippi,
951
00:39:29,720 --> 00:39:32,880
he went back at
the most dangerous time.
952
00:39:32,920 --> 00:39:36,000
Which, was just before
everybody was going back.
953
00:39:36,000 --> 00:39:36,320
Which, was just before
everybody was going back.
954
00:39:36,360 --> 00:39:38,040
Mickey left the training
one day early,
955
00:39:38,080 --> 00:39:39,720
because he wanted
to get back down there,
956
00:39:39,760 --> 00:39:41,840
and go out and talk to
the people in that church
957
00:39:41,880 --> 00:39:44,000
about what had happened.
So, he drove down and took
958
00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:44,120
about what had happened.
So, he drove down and took
959
00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:48,520
James Chaney and Andrew Goodman
from Queens College with him.
960
00:39:48,560 --> 00:39:51,280
He said, "Mom, there's a church
that's burned.
961
00:39:51,320 --> 00:39:52,000
"So there are a couple of kids who
are driving down there,
962
00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:53,840
"So there are a couple of kids who
are driving down there,
963
00:39:53,880 --> 00:39:55,640
"and I'm going with them."
964
00:39:55,680 --> 00:39:57,560
And I thought, "Oh God."
965
00:39:57,600 --> 00:39:59,760
And they drove down in
a station wagon
966
00:39:59,800 --> 00:40:00,000
on Saturday, June 20th,
967
00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:01,640
on Saturday, June 20th,
968
00:40:01,680 --> 00:40:04,560
the day after the Civil Rights Bill
passes the Senate.
969
00:40:04,600 --> 00:40:06,360
When I met Andy Goodman,
970
00:40:06,400 --> 00:40:08,000
he was with Mickey Schwerner
and James Chaney
971
00:40:08,000 --> 00:40:08,960
he was with Mickey Schwerner
and James Chaney
972
00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:10,840
on the way back from Oxford.
973
00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:13,240
And I was surprised to see
Goodman in the car.
974
00:40:13,280 --> 00:40:16,000
Goodman was really insistent on
riding with Chaney and Schwerner.
975
00:40:16,000 --> 00:40:17,160
Goodman was really insistent on
riding with Chaney and Schwerner.
976
00:40:17,200 --> 00:40:20,560
I shook his hand, and spoke to him,
and welcomed him to the state.
977
00:40:21,480 --> 00:40:24,000
So, I knew he was going to Meridian.
But, I had no idea,
978
00:40:24,000 --> 00:40:24,480
So, I knew he was going to Meridian.
But, I had no idea,
979
00:40:24,520 --> 00:40:27,320
because I would have objected to
his going to Philadelphia,
980
00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:29,200
because he was too green.
981
00:40:29,240 --> 00:40:31,480
And so, they went off to Meridian
982
00:40:31,520 --> 00:40:32,000
and I went the opposite direction
to Shreveport.
983
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:33,560
and I went the opposite direction
to Shreveport.
984
00:40:51,160 --> 00:40:53,640
20 miles from Tunica,
near Dubbs,
985
00:40:53,680 --> 00:40:55,520
we stop at a gas station.
986
00:40:55,560 --> 00:40:56,000
I engage the young Black
gas pumper in conversation,
987
00:40:56,000 --> 00:40:58,600
I engage the young Black
gas pumper in conversation,
988
00:40:58,640 --> 00:41:00,880
leading up to
the person of my quest.
989
00:41:00,920 --> 00:41:04,000
I had been doing this for years
to no avail.
990
00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:04,640
I had been doing this for years
to no avail.
991
00:41:04,680 --> 00:41:08,640
But now,
something very interesting happens.
992
00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:11,200
"I don't know if this is the right
guy that you're looking for.
993
00:41:11,240 --> 00:41:12,000
"But, one night I was over at
Benny Simmon's Barber Shop in Dubbs,
994
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:14,480
"But, one night I was over at
Benny Simmon's Barber Shop in Dubbs,
995
00:41:14,520 --> 00:41:17,320
"and this crazy drunk old man
came over and started yelling
996
00:41:17,360 --> 00:41:19,920
"and screaming at us. But,
one of the things he raved about,
997
00:41:19,960 --> 00:41:20,000
"was that he used to be
a famous and great blues singer,
998
00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:23,040
"was that he used to be
a famous and great blues singer,
999
00:41:23,080 --> 00:41:25,160
"and that he played
guitar and piano.
1000
00:41:26,360 --> 00:41:28,000
"Said, he made all kinds of
records in Wisconsin.
1001
00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:28,880
"Said, he made all kinds of
records in Wisconsin.
1002
00:41:28,920 --> 00:41:31,480
"Kept yelling at us,
saying he was a genius."
1003
00:41:31,520 --> 00:41:34,520
Finally, the key words:
1004
00:41:34,560 --> 00:41:36,000
"crazy", "genius",
"guitar and piano", "Wisconsin".
1005
00:41:36,000 --> 00:41:38,320
"crazy", "genius",
"guitar and piano", "Wisconsin".
1006
00:41:38,360 --> 00:41:40,120
It had to be James!
1007
00:41:51,760 --> 00:41:52,000
At the same time
only 30 miles away,
1008
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:54,200
At the same time
only 30 miles away,
1009
00:41:54,240 --> 00:41:57,160
the team looking for Son House,
seemed to have a lead.
1010
00:41:57,200 --> 00:41:59,680
Thanks to Reverend Wilkins
they found a man
1011
00:41:59,720 --> 00:42:00,000
whose ex wife was believed to be
Son House's step-daughter.
1012
00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:02,600
whose ex wife was believed to be
Son House's step-daughter.
1013
00:42:02,640 --> 00:42:04,520
Now, she lived in Detroit.
1014
00:42:04,560 --> 00:42:07,760
We called that number,
and we said,
1015
00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:08,000
"Your mother is married to
Eugene House, the blues singer?"
1016
00:42:08,000 --> 00:42:12,680
"Your mother is married to
Eugene House, the blues singer?"
1017
00:42:12,720 --> 00:42:16,000
"No, she's married to a man
who used to sing the blues,
1018
00:42:16,000 --> 00:42:16,200
"No, she's married to a man
who used to sing the blues,
1019
00:42:16,240 --> 00:42:19,040
"but it's not Eugene,
it's Eddie."
1020
00:42:19,080 --> 00:42:22,760
"Well, we'll take that.
Now where is he?"
1021
00:42:22,800 --> 00:42:24,000
"Oh he lives in Rochester,
New York."
1022
00:42:24,000 --> 00:42:24,920
"Oh he lives in Rochester,
New York."
1023
00:42:26,600 --> 00:42:28,920
We almost gave up at that point.
1024
00:42:28,960 --> 00:42:32,000
So, on Sunday, June 21,
1025
00:42:32,000 --> 00:42:32,320
So, on Sunday, June 21,
1026
00:42:32,360 --> 00:42:36,000
we spoke to a man named
Eddie House,
1027
00:42:36,040 --> 00:42:37,760
we had a list there.
1028
00:42:37,800 --> 00:42:40,000
"Eddie House, do they call you Son?"
1029
00:42:40,000 --> 00:42:40,360
"Eddie House, do they call you Son?"
1030
00:42:40,400 --> 00:42:41,960
"Yeah, they call me Son."
1031
00:42:42,000 --> 00:42:46,200
"Did you know Charlie Patton
and Robert Johnson?
1032
00:42:46,240 --> 00:42:48,000
"Did you record for Lomax?
1033
00:42:48,000 --> 00:42:48,320
"Did you record for Lomax?
1034
00:42:48,360 --> 00:42:53,200
"Did you go to Grafton, Wisconsin
and make records for Paramount?"
1035
00:42:53,240 --> 00:42:56,000
There's this long pause,
and he said,
1036
00:42:56,000 --> 00:42:56,320
There's this long pause,
and he said,
1037
00:42:56,360 --> 00:42:58,800
"Say, who is this anyway?"
1038
00:42:59,680 --> 00:43:03,720
And we said, "We're just blues fans.
And we just want to know."
1039
00:43:03,760 --> 00:43:04,000
"Yeah, I did them things.
I know them fellas."
1040
00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:07,680
"Yeah, I did them things.
I know them fellas."
1041
00:43:07,720 --> 00:43:12,000
And we went,
"Rah, we got him. We got him!"
1042
00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:12,800
And we went,
"Rah, we got him. We got him!"
1043
00:43:12,840 --> 00:43:14,600
He was as surprised as we were.
1044
00:43:14,640 --> 00:43:18,720
Nobody had expressed
the slightest interest in his music
1045
00:43:18,760 --> 00:43:20,000
for over 25 years.
1046
00:43:20,000 --> 00:43:20,520
for over 25 years.
1047
00:43:20,560 --> 00:43:23,120
He said, "I'll put my wife
on the phone."
1048
00:43:23,160 --> 00:43:26,840
She said, "Ah, he's an old man,
he don't play no more."
1049
00:43:26,880 --> 00:43:28,000
We said, "Well, there could be
some money in it for him.
1050
00:43:28,000 --> 00:43:30,680
We said, "Well, there could be
some money in it for him.
1051
00:43:30,720 --> 00:43:34,360
"He could go back to making records
and making money."
1052
00:43:34,400 --> 00:43:36,000
She said, "Well, I suppose
we could talk about THAT."
1053
00:43:36,000 --> 00:43:38,400
She said, "Well, I suppose
we could talk about THAT."
1054
00:43:50,920 --> 00:43:52,000
When John Fahey,
Bill Barth and Henry Vestine,
1055
00:43:52,000 --> 00:43:53,960
When John Fahey,
Bill Barth and Henry Vestine,
1056
00:43:54,000 --> 00:43:56,600
acting on the tip given to them
at the gas station,
1057
00:43:56,640 --> 00:44:00,000
reached Benny Simmon's Barber Shop
that same Sunday, June 21st,
1058
00:44:00,000 --> 00:44:00,920
reached Benny Simmon's Barber Shop
that same Sunday, June 21st,
1059
00:44:00,960 --> 00:44:03,600
they were shown to
a house across the street.
1060
00:44:03,640 --> 00:44:06,920
On its porch sat Skip James' wife.
1061
00:44:06,960 --> 00:44:08,000
She told them that her husband
was in Tunica's hospital
1062
00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:10,240
She told them that her husband
was in Tunica's hospital
1063
00:44:10,280 --> 00:44:12,520
recovering from
a cancer operation.
1064
00:44:13,600 --> 00:44:16,000
A Black nurse takes us
to the Black ward.
1065
00:44:16,000 --> 00:44:16,040
A Black nurse takes us
to the Black ward.
1066
00:44:17,640 --> 00:44:19,680
"How are you feeling Mr James?
1067
00:44:19,720 --> 00:44:22,520
"There's, some boys here who want to
talk with you about music.
1068
00:44:22,560 --> 00:44:24,000
"Is that alright?"
1069
00:44:24,000 --> 00:44:24,600
"Is that alright?"
1070
00:44:24,640 --> 00:44:27,120
The silent figure nods his head.
1071
00:44:30,720 --> 00:44:32,000
It was Skip James!
1072
00:44:32,000 --> 00:44:32,560
It was Skip James!
1073
00:44:33,920 --> 00:44:36,200
What a tremendous
and exciting moment
1074
00:44:36,240 --> 00:44:39,280
for those three guys to
find that man.
1075
00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:40,000
It's incredible, I mean,
it's really incredible.
1076
00:44:40,000 --> 00:44:41,680
It's incredible, I mean,
it's really incredible.
1077
00:44:43,760 --> 00:44:47,160
# And the doctor came,
# he's looking very sad #
1078
00:44:48,400 --> 00:44:51,600
# The doctor came here
# looking very sad #
1079
00:44:53,160 --> 00:44:55,720
# Doctor came here
# looking very sad #
1080
00:44:57,200 --> 00:45:00,720
# He diagnosed my case
# and said it was awful bad... #
1081
00:45:00,760 --> 00:45:03,360
For the three,
this was the climatic moment,
1082
00:45:03,400 --> 00:45:04,000
the fulfilment of
an impossible quest.
1083
00:45:04,000 --> 00:45:06,240
the fulfilment of
an impossible quest.
1084
00:45:06,280 --> 00:45:08,200
And they spun a grand design,
1085
00:45:08,240 --> 00:45:11,240
talking of a record contract,
and a tour to go with it.
1086
00:45:11,280 --> 00:45:12,000
James eyed his searchers doubtfully,
unsure if he could trust them,
1087
00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:15,520
James eyed his searchers doubtfully,
unsure if he could trust them,
1088
00:45:15,560 --> 00:45:19,640
and days removed from an operation,
the doctors forbade his release.
1089
00:45:19,680 --> 00:45:20,000
Come back later he said.
1090
00:45:20,000 --> 00:45:22,160
Come back later he said.
1091
00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:26,480
# I got a long trip,
# I'm just too weak to ride #
1092
00:45:27,360 --> 00:45:28,000
# I got a long trip and
# I'm just too weak to ride #
1093
00:45:28,000 --> 00:45:31,320
# I got a long trip and
# I'm just too weak to ride #
1094
00:45:31,360 --> 00:45:35,280
# I got a long trip and
# I'm just too weak to ride #
1095
00:45:35,320 --> 00:45:36,000
# Now it's a thousand people
# standing at my bedside #
1096
00:45:36,000 --> 00:45:39,480
# Now it's a thousand people
# standing at my bedside #
1097
00:45:42,120 --> 00:45:44,000
# You take a stone
# you can bruise my bone #
1098
00:45:44,000 --> 00:45:46,320
# You take a stone
# you can bruise my bone #
1099
00:45:47,960 --> 00:45:50,720
# You take a stone
# you can bruise my bone #
1100
00:45:51,920 --> 00:45:52,000
# Next morning
# you can bruise my bones #
1101
00:45:52,000 --> 00:45:55,240
# Next morning
# you can bruise my bones #
1102
00:45:55,280 --> 00:45:58,920
# But you really gonna miss me
# when I'm dead and gone #
1103
00:46:00,120 --> 00:46:02,440
It was somewhere
in the vicinity of the church
1104
00:46:02,480 --> 00:46:05,560
that James Chaney was arrested
on a traffic violation, Sunday,
1105
00:46:05,600 --> 00:46:07,240
by a Sheriff's Deputy.
1106
00:46:07,280 --> 00:46:08,000
Chaney and his white companions
Mickey Schwerner and Andy Goodman,
1107
00:46:08,000 --> 00:46:10,840
Chaney and his white companions
Mickey Schwerner and Andy Goodman,
1108
00:46:10,880 --> 00:46:12,920
were taken to
the Neshoba County jail
1109
00:46:12,960 --> 00:46:15,200
where Chaney was booked
on the traffic charge,
1110
00:46:15,240 --> 00:46:16,000
the others held for investigation.
1111
00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:17,360
the others held for investigation.
1112
00:46:17,400 --> 00:46:19,800
Their names appear
on the docket for that day.
1113
00:46:21,000 --> 00:46:22,400
I got a call in,
1114
00:46:22,440 --> 00:46:24,000
it was about 6 o'clock
that evening, on the 21st.
1115
00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:25,200
it was about 6 o'clock
that evening, on the 21st.
1116
00:46:26,200 --> 00:46:29,080
They had not heard from
Mickey and them.
1117
00:46:29,120 --> 00:46:31,720
So, I asked what time were they
supposed to check in.
1118
00:46:32,680 --> 00:46:34,920
And so, they said,
"4 o'clock."
1119
00:46:34,960 --> 00:46:37,200
And I told- I knew...
1120
00:46:45,120 --> 00:46:46,720
Um...
1121
00:46:48,440 --> 00:46:51,600
The fact is that
he and James Chaney,
1122
00:46:51,640 --> 00:46:54,120
if he said 4 o'clock, they were
going to check in at 4 o'clock.
1123
00:46:54,160 --> 00:46:56,000
The people in the office
called the police,
1124
00:46:56,000 --> 00:46:56,600
The people in the office
called the police,
1125
00:46:56,640 --> 00:46:58,840
they called hospitals,
they called other places,
1126
00:46:58,880 --> 00:47:00,800
and they could not be located.
1127
00:47:00,840 --> 00:47:04,000
The police didn't admit
that they had them,
1128
00:47:04,000 --> 00:47:04,200
The police didn't admit
that they had them,
1129
00:47:04,240 --> 00:47:05,560
and they couldn't be found.
1130
00:47:05,600 --> 00:47:09,280
Eventually,
about 10:30pm, a deputy says,
1131
00:47:09,320 --> 00:47:12,000
they were released
after Chaney paid a $20 fine.
1132
00:47:12,000 --> 00:47:12,600
they were released
after Chaney paid a $20 fine.
1133
00:47:12,640 --> 00:47:15,640
The deputy says the trio
left the jail by car.
1134
00:47:15,680 --> 00:47:18,840
He accompanied them in another car
through part of Philadelphia,
1135
00:47:18,880 --> 00:47:20,000
and got them onto Mississippi
Route 19 for Meridian,
1136
00:47:20,000 --> 00:47:22,160
and got them onto Mississippi
Route 19 for Meridian,
1137
00:47:22,200 --> 00:47:24,760
and the point from which
they had started.
1138
00:47:24,800 --> 00:47:28,000
So far as is known,
the three never got there.
1139
00:47:28,000 --> 00:47:28,360
So far as is known,
the three never got there.
1140
00:47:33,280 --> 00:47:35,680
Chaney, Goodman and
Schwerner disappeared
1141
00:47:35,720 --> 00:47:36,000
on Sunday June, 21st,
1142
00:47:36,000 --> 00:47:37,880
on Sunday June, 21st,
1143
00:47:37,920 --> 00:47:41,160
the same day Son House
and Skip James were found.
1144
00:47:41,200 --> 00:47:43,400
As the Summer Project
got underway,
1145
00:47:43,440 --> 00:47:44,000
the search for
the missing activists began.
1146
00:47:44,000 --> 00:47:45,840
the search for
the missing activists began.
1147
00:47:47,560 --> 00:47:52,000
# Every day,
# nothing seems to change #
1148
00:47:52,000 --> 00:47:52,640
# Every day,
# nothing seems to change #
1149
00:47:52,680 --> 00:47:57,480
# Everywhere I go,
# I keep seeing the same old thing #
1150
00:47:57,520 --> 00:47:59,440
# And I... #
1151
00:48:02,600 --> 00:48:05,400
# I can't take it no more #
1152
00:48:10,040 --> 00:48:13,680
# Oh, I would leave this town,
# but I... #
1153
00:48:13,720 --> 00:48:16,000
# I ain't got
# nowhere else to go... #
1154
00:48:16,000 --> 00:48:16,440
# I ain't got
# nowhere else to go... #
1155
00:48:18,200 --> 00:48:21,200
The danger of Mississippi
was no longer a rumour.
1156
00:48:21,240 --> 00:48:24,000
While waiting for Skip James to
get out of the hospital,
1157
00:48:24,000 --> 00:48:24,040
While waiting for Skip James to
get out of the hospital,
1158
00:48:24,080 --> 00:48:27,240
Fahey and his friends were
mistaken for civil right's workers
1159
00:48:27,280 --> 00:48:28,960
and thrown in jail.
1160
00:48:29,000 --> 00:48:31,640
Spared the fate of their
counterparts in Philadelphia,
1161
00:48:31,680 --> 00:48:32,000
they were released
after one night.
1162
00:48:32,000 --> 00:48:33,720
they were released
after one night.
1163
00:48:33,760 --> 00:48:36,120
Pleased to meet all of you.
So happy to have you.
1164
00:48:36,160 --> 00:48:39,040
As Fahey and James prepared
to leave Mississippi,
1165
00:48:39,080 --> 00:48:40,000
the Freedom Schools and
registration drives opened,
1166
00:48:40,000 --> 00:48:41,960
the Freedom Schools and
registration drives opened,
1167
00:48:42,000 --> 00:48:44,600
despite more bombings
and beatings.
1168
00:48:44,640 --> 00:48:47,840
# I wake up in the morning #
1169
00:48:47,880 --> 00:48:48,000
# More bad news #
1170
00:48:48,000 --> 00:48:50,720
# More bad news #
1171
00:48:50,760 --> 00:48:55,320
# Sometimes I feel like
# I was born to lose #
1172
00:48:55,360 --> 00:48:56,000
# And I... #
1173
00:48:56,000 --> 00:48:57,400
# And I... #
1174
00:49:00,480 --> 00:49:02,680
# It's driving me out of my mind #
1175
00:49:02,720 --> 00:49:04,000
No, I do not have any regrets
1176
00:49:04,000 --> 00:49:04,840
No, I do not have any regrets
1177
00:49:04,880 --> 00:49:08,200
because if I did, it would mean
I didn't believe ardently
1178
00:49:08,240 --> 00:49:10,080
in the reason
that they are down there.
1179
00:49:10,120 --> 00:49:12,000
# Oh, I'll be ready now #
1180
00:49:12,000 --> 00:49:12,720
# Oh, I'll be ready now #
1181
00:49:14,560 --> 00:49:16,720
# I'll be ready for my train #
1182
00:49:21,920 --> 00:49:23,160
# Oh, I'll be ready now #
1183
00:49:26,720 --> 00:49:28,000
# I'll be ready
# when my train comes in #
1184
00:49:28,000 --> 00:49:30,080
# I'll be ready
# when my train comes in #
1185
00:49:33,720 --> 00:49:36,000
# I know my time ain't long
# and I... #
1186
00:49:36,000 --> 00:49:38,040
# I know my time ain't long
# and I... #
1187
00:49:38,080 --> 00:49:41,280
# I can't live this life no more #
1188
00:49:59,040 --> 00:50:00,000
June 23rd, we were at
61 Green Street in Rochester.
1189
00:50:00,000 --> 00:50:03,720
June 23rd, we were at
61 Green Street in Rochester.
1190
00:50:03,760 --> 00:50:07,120
This is it boys,
two weeks on the road.
1191
00:50:07,160 --> 00:50:08,000
Here it is.
1192
00:50:08,000 --> 00:50:08,520
Here it is.
1193
00:50:08,560 --> 00:50:11,920
There was a thin guy
sitting on the stoop.
1194
00:50:11,960 --> 00:50:15,880
We said, "Do you know if
Mr and Mrs Eddie House
1195
00:50:15,920 --> 00:50:16,000
"live on the fourth floor?"
1196
00:50:16,000 --> 00:50:17,840
"live on the fourth floor?"
1197
00:50:17,880 --> 00:50:20,040
"Yes, they do, they do."
1198
00:50:20,080 --> 00:50:23,040
So, as we started up the steps,
1199
00:50:23,080 --> 00:50:24,000
he said,
"But, he ain't in there."
1200
00:50:24,000 --> 00:50:25,720
he said,
"But, he ain't in there."
1201
00:50:27,760 --> 00:50:31,280
We turned and said,
"He's not? How do you know?"
1202
00:50:31,320 --> 00:50:32,000
And the man said,
"Because, I'm him!"
1203
00:50:32,000 --> 00:50:34,360
And the man said,
"Because, I'm him!"
1204
00:50:37,520 --> 00:50:40,000
So, we had finally met Son House.
1205
00:50:41,680 --> 00:50:43,480
When we went off
looking for Son,
1206
00:50:43,520 --> 00:50:46,040
we didn't know if
he was 40 or a 100.
1207
00:50:46,080 --> 00:50:48,000
We didn't know if
he ever cared to record again.
1208
00:50:48,000 --> 00:50:50,640
We didn't know if
he ever cared to record again.
1209
00:50:50,680 --> 00:50:53,400
Anything could have been
the result.
1210
00:50:53,440 --> 00:50:56,000
We asked him if he would play.
1211
00:50:56,000 --> 00:50:56,280
We asked him if he would play.
1212
00:50:56,320 --> 00:50:59,080
He hadn't played
in many, many years.
1213
00:50:59,960 --> 00:51:03,120
His hands were shaking,
tremors.
1214
00:51:04,240 --> 00:51:05,960
But, he took the guitar,
1215
00:51:06,000 --> 00:51:09,280
and he looked down at his hand
for a long time.
1216
00:51:09,320 --> 00:51:10,840
And then...
1217
00:51:17,880 --> 00:51:20,000
# Yeah, I got a letter
# this morning #
1218
00:51:20,000 --> 00:51:21,600
# Yeah, I got a letter
# this morning #
1219
00:51:21,640 --> 00:51:24,360
# How you reckon it read? #
1220
00:51:24,400 --> 00:51:26,960
# It said "Hurry, hurry!" #
1221
00:51:27,000 --> 00:51:28,000
# "The girl you love is dead" #
1222
00:51:28,000 --> 00:51:29,800
# "The girl you love is dead" #
1223
00:51:29,840 --> 00:51:32,320
# Got a letter this morning #
1224
00:51:32,360 --> 00:51:34,960
# Yeah, how you reckon it read? #
1225
00:51:38,360 --> 00:51:42,280
# It said, "Hurry, hurry! #
1226
00:51:42,320 --> 00:51:44,000
# "Because the girl
# you love is dead" #
1227
00:51:44,000 --> 00:51:45,080
# "Because the girl
# you love is dead" #
1228
00:51:45,120 --> 00:51:47,280
I had heard Reverend Davis,
1229
00:51:47,320 --> 00:51:49,120
and Mississippi John,
1230
00:51:49,160 --> 00:51:52,000
and they were just like children,
1231
00:51:52,000 --> 00:51:52,320
and they were just like children,
1232
00:51:52,360 --> 00:51:54,400
and the MAN had walked in.
1233
00:51:54,440 --> 00:51:57,160
# I grabbed up my suitcase #
1234
00:51:57,200 --> 00:52:00,000
# Mm, and I took off
# down the road #
1235
00:52:00,000 --> 00:52:00,080
# Mm, and I took off
# down the road #
1236
00:52:03,160 --> 00:52:06,920
# I say, when I got there #
1237
00:52:06,960 --> 00:52:08,000
# She's laying on a coolin' board #
1238
00:52:08,000 --> 00:52:09,840
# She's laying on a coolin' board #
1239
00:52:12,920 --> 00:52:16,000
# You know,
# I thought I'd never love #
1240
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:16,160
# You know,
# I thought I'd never love #
1241
00:52:16,200 --> 00:52:18,760
# But four women in my life #
1242
00:52:18,800 --> 00:52:20,960
# My mother, my sister #
1243
00:52:21,000 --> 00:52:23,280
# My dead girl and my wife #
1244
00:52:23,320 --> 00:52:24,000
# I thought I'd never love,
# I say, but four women in my life #
1245
00:52:24,000 --> 00:52:28,360
# I thought I'd never love,
# I say, but four women in my life #
1246
00:52:31,440 --> 00:52:32,000
# I say, my mother and my sister #
1247
00:52:32,000 --> 00:52:34,600
# I say, my mother and my sister #
1248
00:52:34,640 --> 00:52:38,240
# Mm, my dead girl and my wife #
1249
00:52:38,280 --> 00:52:40,000
So, here's Son, 34 years from
the original 1930s recordings,
1250
00:52:40,000 --> 00:52:43,960
So, here's Son, 34 years from
the original 1930s recordings,
1251
00:52:44,000 --> 00:52:48,000
rusty as hell,
but, recognizably Son House.
1252
00:52:48,000 --> 00:52:48,600
rusty as hell,
but, recognizably Son House.
1253
00:52:55,360 --> 00:52:56,000
We felt great at that point.
1254
00:52:56,000 --> 00:52:58,160
We felt great at that point.
1255
00:52:58,200 --> 00:53:01,680
We looked at each other
and we said, "Wow!
1256
00:53:01,720 --> 00:53:04,000
"What have we found?
What have we got here?"
1257
00:53:04,000 --> 00:53:04,280
"What have we found?
What have we got here?"
1258
00:53:04,320 --> 00:53:07,480
The obvious thing to do was to see
if we could get him on
1259
00:53:07,520 --> 00:53:10,800
at the Newport Folk Festival,
which was a few weeks away.
1260
00:53:13,480 --> 00:53:16,760
The Newport Folk Festival,
held in Rhode Island in July,
1261
00:53:16,800 --> 00:53:19,560
was the most important event
of the folk revival.
1262
00:53:19,600 --> 00:53:20,000
Its four days of concerts
and workshops attracted an audience
1263
00:53:20,000 --> 00:53:23,400
Its four days of concerts
and workshops attracted an audience
1264
00:53:23,440 --> 00:53:25,600
that was slowly morphing
into the counter-culture
1265
00:53:25,640 --> 00:53:27,360
for which the '60s
would be known.
1266
00:53:29,120 --> 00:53:32,560
Newport was Woodstock
before there WAS Woodstock.
1267
00:53:32,600 --> 00:53:35,360
The place where Joan Baez
became a star,
1268
00:53:35,400 --> 00:53:36,000
and where Mississippi John Hurt,
1269
00:53:36,000 --> 00:53:37,160
and where Mississippi John Hurt,
1270
00:53:37,200 --> 00:53:41,800
enjoyed the first days of
his triumphant second act in 1963.
1271
00:53:42,720 --> 00:53:44,000
So, we called the Newport people
1272
00:53:44,000 --> 00:53:44,680
So, we called the Newport people
1273
00:53:44,720 --> 00:53:47,400
and we said,
"We just found Son House.
1274
00:53:47,440 --> 00:53:49,440
"The great Son House
has been found."
1275
00:53:49,480 --> 00:53:52,000
And they said, "Yeah, we just had a
call that Skip James has been found.
1276
00:53:52,000 --> 00:53:52,920
And they said, "Yeah, we just had a
call that Skip James has been found.
1277
00:53:52,960 --> 00:53:56,520
"Three guys from California
found him the same day
1278
00:53:56,560 --> 00:53:58,000
"in a Tunica hospital."
1279
00:53:58,040 --> 00:53:59,880
I said,
"What are you talking about?!
1280
00:53:59,920 --> 00:54:00,000
"We just came from two weeks
in Tunica, right outside of Tunica."
1281
00:54:00,000 --> 00:54:03,640
"We just came from two weeks
in Tunica, right outside of Tunica."
1282
00:54:06,440 --> 00:54:08,000
It was a Newsweek magazine
saying that
1283
00:54:08,000 --> 00:54:09,000
It was a Newsweek magazine
saying that
1284
00:54:09,040 --> 00:54:12,800
two great blues icons
had been recently discovered,
1285
00:54:12,840 --> 00:54:14,920
Skip James and Son House.
1286
00:54:14,960 --> 00:54:16,000
That's where I found out.
1287
00:54:16,000 --> 00:54:16,480
That's where I found out.
1288
00:54:17,560 --> 00:54:19,760
It broke my heart man.
1289
00:54:19,800 --> 00:54:22,040
They happened to find
the right person
1290
00:54:22,080 --> 00:54:24,000
who knew where James was living.
1291
00:54:24,000 --> 00:54:24,400
who knew where James was living.
1292
00:54:24,440 --> 00:54:26,840
Whereas I had been up there
two or three times,
1293
00:54:26,880 --> 00:54:29,880
didn't find that person.
It is- in a sense it's luck,
1294
00:54:29,920 --> 00:54:31,440
but you know what?
You make your luck.
1295
00:54:38,040 --> 00:54:40,000
# Mm, gonna buy me a hammock #
1296
00:54:40,000 --> 00:54:40,960
# Mm, gonna buy me a hammock #
1297
00:54:41,960 --> 00:54:45,560
# Set it down beneath a tree #
1298
00:54:46,960 --> 00:54:48,000
# Mm-hmm... #
1299
00:54:48,000 --> 00:54:49,120
# Mm-hmm... #
1300
00:54:51,120 --> 00:54:54,280
# Gonna buy me a hammock #
1301
00:54:54,320 --> 00:54:56,000
# Set it underneath a tree... #
1302
00:54:56,000 --> 00:54:58,200
# Set it underneath a tree... #
1303
00:54:58,240 --> 00:55:00,200
Basically,
I got a phone call saying,
1304
00:55:00,240 --> 00:55:02,880
"We found Skip and
we need to bring him up north."
1305
00:55:02,920 --> 00:55:04,000
And so, I went there to do that.
1306
00:55:04,000 --> 00:55:04,520
And so, I went there to do that.
1307
00:55:04,560 --> 00:55:07,000
# So when the wind blows #
1308
00:55:07,040 --> 00:55:10,880
# The leaves may fall on me... #
1309
00:55:10,920 --> 00:55:12,000
After meeting
John Hurt and Bukka,
1310
00:55:12,000 --> 00:55:14,000
After meeting
John Hurt and Bukka,
1311
00:55:14,040 --> 00:55:17,640
I kind of expected
another outgoing person.
1312
00:55:17,680 --> 00:55:20,000
And then suddenly,
here was Skip
1313
00:55:20,000 --> 00:55:20,080
And then suddenly,
here was Skip
1314
00:55:20,120 --> 00:55:22,160
and he was
totally different.
1315
00:55:22,200 --> 00:55:23,840
Skip was an intellectual.
1316
00:55:23,880 --> 00:55:27,680
He was interested in time
and motion studies.
1317
00:55:27,720 --> 00:55:28,000
And so, he was not as empathetic,
I guess you would say.
1318
00:55:28,000 --> 00:55:32,640
And so, he was not as empathetic,
I guess you would say.
1319
00:55:32,680 --> 00:55:35,280
He was more reserved, on his own.
1320
00:55:44,040 --> 00:55:47,080
Skip really thought of
himself as an artist,
1321
00:55:47,120 --> 00:55:50,520
and had a big disappointment
that he should have been a star.
1322
00:55:50,560 --> 00:55:52,000
He's on his deathbed practically
by the time people find him.
1323
00:55:52,000 --> 00:55:54,600
He's on his deathbed practically
by the time people find him.
1324
00:55:54,640 --> 00:55:58,920
It was almost like he was waiting
for somebody from out there,
1325
00:55:58,960 --> 00:56:00,000
to kind of get the memo,
1326
00:56:00,000 --> 00:56:00,400
to kind of get the memo,
1327
00:56:00,440 --> 00:56:03,480
that I'm important and
that you need to recognize this.
1328
00:56:03,520 --> 00:56:04,840
And that was his stance.
1329
00:56:04,880 --> 00:56:07,160
I just wondered
where you learned that song?
1330
00:56:07,200 --> 00:56:08,000
SKIP JAMES:
Well, it's not yours to know,
1331
00:56:08,000 --> 00:56:09,760
SKIP JAMES:
Well, it's not yours to know,
1332
00:56:09,800 --> 00:56:12,880
but if you want to learn it,
then you copy after my playing.
1333
00:56:12,920 --> 00:56:15,120
Oh, see now, that-
You can get an idea from me,
1334
00:56:15,160 --> 00:56:16,000
but where I learned it,
you might not never know.
1335
00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:17,240
but where I learned it,
you might not never know.
1336
00:56:17,280 --> 00:56:19,080
Unless, you tell me.
I don't want to go there.
1337
00:56:19,120 --> 00:56:21,320
Unless, you tell me.
That's why I'm asking you.Well...
1338
00:56:21,360 --> 00:56:24,000
I use my own words,
and I compose my own things.
1339
00:56:24,000 --> 00:56:25,160
I use my own words,
and I compose my own things.
1340
00:56:25,200 --> 00:56:26,280
Yeah.
1341
00:56:31,800 --> 00:56:32,000
A record doesn't talk back,
1342
00:56:32,000 --> 00:56:33,600
A record doesn't talk back,
1343
00:56:33,640 --> 00:56:35,280
it doesn't make demands of you.
1344
00:56:35,320 --> 00:56:36,880
It's an easy thing to love,
1345
00:56:36,920 --> 00:56:38,720
it's an easy thing to control.
1346
00:56:38,760 --> 00:56:40,000
It's really different
when you have a musician
1347
00:56:40,000 --> 00:56:41,160
It's really different
when you have a musician
1348
00:56:41,200 --> 00:56:43,200
you know, sitting a few feet
away from you.
1349
00:56:43,240 --> 00:56:45,960
You just have to deal with
all the messy complications
1350
00:56:46,000 --> 00:56:48,000
of who this person is
as a human being.
1351
00:56:48,000 --> 00:56:48,040
of who this person is
as a human being.
1352
00:56:48,080 --> 00:56:50,840
The contradictions, you know,
the paradoxes.
1353
00:56:50,880 --> 00:56:54,640
They actually are not
frozen in amber, you know.
1354
00:56:54,680 --> 00:56:56,000
Now just to
tell the truth about it,
1355
00:56:56,000 --> 00:56:57,000
Now just to
tell the truth about it,
1356
00:56:57,040 --> 00:57:01,200
I was brought up in church
from a little boy on up,
1357
00:57:01,240 --> 00:57:04,000
and I didn't believe in
no blues, or none.
1358
00:57:04,000 --> 00:57:04,160
and I didn't believe in
no blues, or none.
1359
00:57:04,200 --> 00:57:05,200
I was too churchy.
1360
00:57:07,400 --> 00:57:10,720
I didn't believe in that.
And I talked against it.
1361
00:57:10,760 --> 00:57:12,000
Son House, you know
he had a problem, I guess,
1362
00:57:12,000 --> 00:57:14,080
Son House, you know
he had a problem, I guess,
1363
00:57:14,120 --> 00:57:19,240
coming to terms with, you know,
the church and the blues,
1364
00:57:19,280 --> 00:57:20,000
and just kind of
not going together.
1365
00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:20,800
and just kind of
not going together.
1366
00:57:24,680 --> 00:57:28,000
And the way he played,
he would just, you know,
1367
00:57:28,000 --> 00:57:29,120
And the way he played,
he would just, you know,
1368
00:57:29,160 --> 00:57:31,240
just go some place else.
1369
00:57:31,280 --> 00:57:36,000
# Oh, oh, Lord he was sick #
1370
00:57:36,000 --> 00:57:36,200
# Oh, oh, Lord he was sick #
1371
00:57:36,240 --> 00:57:39,840
# Oh my, don't be so #
1372
00:57:41,000 --> 00:57:44,000
We found later
that Son was an alcoholic,
1373
00:57:44,000 --> 00:57:44,480
We found later
that Son was an alcoholic,
1374
00:57:44,520 --> 00:57:46,720
he needed the booze to play,
1375
00:57:46,760 --> 00:57:49,160
and he needed medication to
keep from the shakes.
1376
00:57:49,200 --> 00:57:52,000
I couldn't believe
how bad it could get,
1377
00:57:52,000 --> 00:57:52,400
I couldn't believe
how bad it could get,
1378
00:57:52,440 --> 00:57:55,240
and would we be able
to do anything
1379
00:57:55,280 --> 00:57:57,400
that would prepare him
for Newport.
1380
00:57:58,680 --> 00:58:00,000
Most of those guys on
a Saturday night fish fry,
1381
00:58:00,000 --> 00:58:02,080
Most of those guys on
a Saturday night fish fry,
1382
00:58:02,120 --> 00:58:05,480
you'd drop your dimes and nickels
in the hat as he played.
1383
00:58:05,520 --> 00:58:07,320
And as soon as you get enough,
he would look
1384
00:58:07,360 --> 00:58:08,000
and go get a quart of beer,
a bottle of wine, a jug of wine.
1385
00:58:08,000 --> 00:58:10,200
and go get a quart of beer,
a bottle of wine, a jug of wine.
1386
00:58:10,240 --> 00:58:12,400
And they played for fun
all night.
1387
00:58:12,440 --> 00:58:14,080
Son House did that all his life,
1388
00:58:14,120 --> 00:58:16,000
so how can you change
a 75-year-old man
1389
00:58:16,000 --> 00:58:17,280
so how can you change
a 75-year-old man
1390
00:58:17,320 --> 00:58:21,360
into a 26-year-old rockstar,
superstar.
1391
00:58:21,400 --> 00:58:23,240
Just don't let him try nothing,
1392
00:58:23,280 --> 00:58:24,000
don't let him get enough drink
until he go to the stage.
1393
00:58:24,000 --> 00:58:25,520
don't let him get enough drink
until he go to the stage.
1394
00:58:25,560 --> 00:58:29,320
Charlie Patton,
Willie Brown and Robert Johnson,
1395
00:58:29,360 --> 00:58:32,000
they- they died, one, uh,
just right one after the other,
1396
00:58:32,000 --> 00:58:34,400
they- they died, one, uh,
just right one after the other,
1397
00:58:34,440 --> 00:58:38,600
and then that scared me, and I said,
"Well maybe, oh Lord, I'm next."
1398
00:58:38,640 --> 00:58:40,000
And I got scared and
quit playing for 16 years
1399
00:58:40,000 --> 00:58:41,840
And I got scared and
quit playing for 16 years
1400
00:58:41,880 --> 00:58:45,200
until Mr Dick Waterman found me
1401
00:58:45,240 --> 00:58:48,000
and gave me nerve enough
to try it again.
1402
00:58:48,000 --> 00:58:48,680
and gave me nerve enough
to try it again.
1403
00:58:52,200 --> 00:58:56,000
We went down there and asked
these people to come up with us
1404
00:58:56,000 --> 00:58:57,080
We went down there and asked
these people to come up with us
1405
00:58:57,120 --> 00:59:00,600
without a thought that this might be
a strange thing to do,
1406
00:59:00,640 --> 00:59:02,440
or a stupid thing to do.
1407
00:59:02,480 --> 00:59:04,000
Just this must be done.
1408
00:59:04,000 --> 00:59:04,040
Just this must be done.
1409
00:59:04,880 --> 00:59:08,120
We didn't have
any plan B. You know?
1410
00:59:08,160 --> 00:59:11,120
If the gigs didn't come through
we didn't have any money either.
1411
00:59:12,240 --> 00:59:15,760
For Son House and Skip James,
it couldn't have been more marginal
1412
00:59:15,800 --> 00:59:18,400
to go the Newport Festival
at that point in time,
1413
00:59:18,440 --> 00:59:20,000
given how important it was
to white America.
1414
00:59:20,000 --> 00:59:21,480
given how important it was
to white America.
1415
00:59:21,520 --> 00:59:22,680
"Boogie Chillen".
1416
00:59:22,720 --> 00:59:26,400
It does give them that national,
historical stage.
1417
00:59:26,440 --> 00:59:28,000
They have the opportunity
to connect with
1418
00:59:28,000 --> 00:59:28,840
They have the opportunity
to connect with
1419
00:59:28,880 --> 00:59:30,680
a broad American public.
1420
00:59:30,720 --> 00:59:33,920
# Yeah, my mama didn't allow me #
1421
00:59:33,960 --> 00:59:36,000
# Just to stay out all night long #
1422
00:59:36,000 --> 00:59:36,360
# Just to stay out all night long #
1423
00:59:40,960 --> 00:59:43,080
# I didn't care
# what she didn't allow #
1424
00:59:44,360 --> 00:59:47,320
# Lord, I would
# boogie-woogie anyhow... #
1425
00:59:48,800 --> 00:59:51,720
Newport is full of these
big old houses,
1426
00:59:51,760 --> 00:59:52,000
and one of them later became
called the "Blues House".
1427
00:59:52,000 --> 00:59:54,520
and one of them later became
called the "Blues House".
1428
00:59:56,080 --> 00:59:58,560
When we arrived there
a day ahead of schedule,
1429
00:59:58,600 --> 01:00:00,000
there was already
a party going on,
1430
01:00:00,000 --> 01:00:00,760
there was already
a party going on,
1431
01:00:00,800 --> 01:00:02,720
and that party lasted for days.
1432
01:00:02,760 --> 01:00:07,520
Probably the greatest
gathering of acoustic bluesmen
1433
01:00:07,560 --> 01:00:08,000
ever assembled.
1434
01:00:08,000 --> 01:00:08,960
ever assembled.
1435
01:00:09,000 --> 01:00:13,720
# I'm going down to the river #
1436
01:00:13,760 --> 01:00:15,600
# I said I'm gonna drown... #
1437
01:00:17,120 --> 01:00:19,360
Son was there, Skip was there.
1438
01:00:19,400 --> 01:00:20,680
John Hurt,
1439
01:00:20,720 --> 01:00:23,400
Fred McDowell
from Como, Mississippi.
1440
01:00:23,440 --> 01:00:24,000
# I'm gonna let the waves of water #
1441
01:00:24,000 --> 01:00:25,880
# I'm gonna let the waves of water #
1442
01:00:25,920 --> 01:00:28,680
# Lord, be to wash my trouble down #
1443
01:00:28,720 --> 01:00:31,120
Each bluesman had his own bedroom.
1444
01:00:31,160 --> 01:00:32,000
You would listen to Fred McDowell
do a song or two,
1445
01:00:32,000 --> 01:00:34,920
You would listen to Fred McDowell
do a song or two,
1446
01:00:34,960 --> 01:00:36,400
then go down the hall,
1447
01:00:36,440 --> 01:00:38,560
and Sleepy John Estes
would be playing.
1448
01:00:40,920 --> 01:00:43,640
Sleepy John Estes, Hammy Nixon.
1449
01:00:43,680 --> 01:00:48,000
Elizabeth Cotton,
a wonderful woman, great guitarist.
1450
01:00:48,000 --> 01:00:49,000
Elizabeth Cotton,
a wonderful woman, great guitarist.
1451
01:00:50,640 --> 01:00:53,640
Robert P Williams
from Louisiana.
1452
01:00:55,160 --> 01:00:56,000
Jesse Fuller was there.
1453
01:00:56,000 --> 01:00:56,720
Jesse Fuller was there.
1454
01:00:59,200 --> 01:01:01,520
Muddy Waters was there, too.
1455
01:01:01,560 --> 01:01:04,000
# Oh, I wish I was in heaven... #
1456
01:01:04,000 --> 01:01:04,240
# Oh, I wish I was in heaven... #
1457
01:01:04,280 --> 01:01:07,400
And coincidentally
Reverend Robert Wilkins
1458
01:01:07,440 --> 01:01:09,840
had been booked to play
at the festival.
1459
01:01:09,880 --> 01:01:11,840
And it was nice to see him again.
1460
01:01:11,880 --> 01:01:12,000
# Oh, angels, oh my Lord,
# Lord, I wish I was in heaven... #
1461
01:01:12,000 --> 01:01:16,960
# Oh, angels, oh my Lord,
# Lord, I wish I was in heaven... #
1462
01:01:17,000 --> 01:01:20,000
Son came to Newport,
but he took sick,
1463
01:01:20,000 --> 01:01:20,080
Son came to Newport,
but he took sick,
1464
01:01:20,120 --> 01:01:22,760
and he was
immediately hospitalized.
1465
01:01:22,800 --> 01:01:24,800
So, he didn't appear there.
1466
01:01:24,840 --> 01:01:27,200
He had a pain in his abdomen,
1467
01:01:27,240 --> 01:01:28,000
that was never fully diagnosed.
1468
01:01:28,000 --> 01:01:29,640
that was never fully diagnosed.
1469
01:01:29,680 --> 01:01:32,400
But, it didn't cause
any kind of a ripple,
1470
01:01:32,440 --> 01:01:34,000
because if
you had never heard him,
1471
01:01:34,040 --> 01:01:36,000
you didn't know what
you weren't going to hear.
1472
01:01:36,000 --> 01:01:36,880
you didn't know what
you weren't going to hear.
1473
01:01:36,920 --> 01:01:40,000
# Oh, put yo knees together #
1474
01:01:40,040 --> 01:01:42,280
# And let your backbone move #
1475
01:01:42,320 --> 01:01:44,000
# It ain't no woman in town
# can shake 'em down like you #
1476
01:01:44,000 --> 01:01:45,880
# It ain't no woman in town
# can shake 'em down like you #
1477
01:01:45,920 --> 01:01:47,520
# Lordy, must I low #
1478
01:01:49,360 --> 01:01:52,000
That weekend, the only thing
I can compare it to
1479
01:01:52,040 --> 01:01:55,200
was the first year that the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame began.
1480
01:01:55,240 --> 01:01:58,160
And Chuck Berry, Little Richard,
and James Brown, Fats Domino,
1481
01:01:58,200 --> 01:02:00,000
they were all inducted
at the same time.
1482
01:02:00,000 --> 01:02:00,560
they were all inducted
at the same time.
1483
01:02:00,600 --> 01:02:03,200
You'd be walking around and
you'd say, "Oh, there's James Brown!
1484
01:02:03,240 --> 01:02:04,960
"Oh, there's Jerry Lee Lewis!"
You know?
1485
01:02:05,000 --> 01:02:06,520
That was what it was like
at Newport.
1486
01:02:06,560 --> 01:02:08,000
It was, it was like walking round
among the stars.
1487
01:02:08,000 --> 01:02:11,360
It was, it was like walking round
among the stars.
1488
01:02:11,400 --> 01:02:16,000
But all of it paled, all of it
was obliterated for me
1489
01:02:16,000 --> 01:02:16,400
But all of it paled, all of it
was obliterated for me
1490
01:02:16,440 --> 01:02:19,000
by Skip James performance
that afternoon.
1491
01:02:23,240 --> 01:02:24,000
In '64, the Blues Workshop
was the place to be.
1492
01:02:24,000 --> 01:02:27,480
In '64, the Blues Workshop
was the place to be.
1493
01:02:28,400 --> 01:02:30,920
They played on a low pallet,
1494
01:02:30,960 --> 01:02:32,000
and there was just people, probably
a couple of thousand people.
1495
01:02:32,000 --> 01:02:34,240
and there was just people, probably
a couple of thousand people.
1496
01:02:34,280 --> 01:02:37,760
At that workshop,
that Saturday afternoon,
1497
01:02:37,800 --> 01:02:40,000
where Skip appeared...
I mean, when he came out,
1498
01:02:40,000 --> 01:02:40,520
where Skip appeared...
I mean, when he came out,
1499
01:02:40,560 --> 01:02:43,000
there was no idea
what to expect.
1500
01:02:43,040 --> 01:02:46,960
He had made some scratchy 78s
in 1931,
1501
01:02:47,000 --> 01:02:48,000
and now 33 years later,
1502
01:02:48,000 --> 01:02:49,880
and now 33 years later,
1503
01:02:49,920 --> 01:02:54,080
a legend coming back in the flesh
to make music.
1504
01:02:54,120 --> 01:02:56,000
He's up there on stage
1505
01:02:56,040 --> 01:02:58,240
and he's got a guitar
that clearly isn't his,
1506
01:02:58,280 --> 01:02:59,840
that he had borrowed.
And he's wearing
1507
01:02:59,880 --> 01:03:01,880
this Black preacher's hat,
and this little suit,
1508
01:03:01,920 --> 01:03:03,680
and there's this pause...
1509
01:03:08,600 --> 01:03:12,000
# I'd rather be the devil #
1510
01:03:12,000 --> 01:03:12,760
# I'd rather be the devil #
1511
01:03:16,520 --> 01:03:20,000
# I'd rather be the devil #
1512
01:03:20,000 --> 01:03:21,480
# I'd rather be the devil #
1513
01:03:21,520 --> 01:03:25,080
# Than be that woman, man #
1514
01:03:25,120 --> 01:03:27,960
# Just be a man, be a man #
1515
01:03:30,800 --> 01:03:34,320
# I'd rather be the devil #
1516
01:03:35,440 --> 01:03:36,000
# Than be that woman #
1517
01:03:36,000 --> 01:03:38,560
# Than be that woman #
1518
01:03:44,520 --> 01:03:49,080
# You know, nothin' but the devil #
1519
01:03:51,240 --> 01:03:52,000
# Nothin' but the devil #
1520
01:03:52,000 --> 01:03:55,280
# Nothin' but the devil #
1521
01:03:55,320 --> 01:03:58,720
# Changed my baby's mind #
1522
01:04:03,040 --> 01:04:06,680
# Was nothin' but the devil #
1523
01:04:07,760 --> 01:04:08,000
# Changed my baby's mind #
1524
01:04:08,000 --> 01:04:11,520
# Changed my baby's mind #
1525
01:04:12,680 --> 01:04:16,000
We just hear this unearthly falsetto
floating across the field.
1526
01:04:16,000 --> 01:04:17,520
We just hear this unearthly falsetto
floating across the field.
1527
01:04:17,560 --> 01:04:20,520
# I'd rather be the devil... #
1528
01:04:21,960 --> 01:04:24,000
I felt like I was at
a truly historic moment.
1529
01:04:24,000 --> 01:04:26,000
I felt like I was at
a truly historic moment.
1530
01:04:26,040 --> 01:04:29,520
Greatness such as this
will not pass my way again.
1531
01:04:29,560 --> 01:04:32,000
# Than to be that woman, man #
1532
01:04:32,000 --> 01:04:32,640
# Than to be that woman, man #
1533
01:04:46,080 --> 01:04:48,000
Traditionally,
the biggest event of the year
1534
01:04:48,000 --> 01:04:48,360
Traditionally,
the biggest event of the year
1535
01:04:48,400 --> 01:04:50,920
in Neshoba County, Mississippi,
is the county fair,
1536
01:04:50,960 --> 01:04:54,040
time for a full week of
horse racing, merry making,
1537
01:04:54,080 --> 01:04:55,960
and political speeches.
1538
01:04:56,000 --> 01:04:58,080
But, this year, there was
another big event here,
1539
01:04:58,120 --> 01:05:00,160
a tragic one.
1540
01:05:00,200 --> 01:05:03,040
Three civil rights workers
were murdered six weeks ago,
1541
01:05:03,080 --> 01:05:04,000
and their bodies
were discovered last week
1542
01:05:04,000 --> 01:05:05,440
and their bodies
were discovered last week
1543
01:05:05,480 --> 01:05:07,680
a scant two miles
from the fairgrounds.
1544
01:05:16,040 --> 01:05:17,600
They found the bodies.
1545
01:05:18,880 --> 01:05:20,000
The police and the Clan
1546
01:05:20,000 --> 01:05:20,720
The police and the Clan
1547
01:05:20,760 --> 01:05:23,200
were the people responsible
for their deaths.
1548
01:05:25,960 --> 01:05:27,280
I'd had it.
1549
01:05:29,120 --> 01:05:32,440
And then I go to
the memorial services,
1550
01:05:32,480 --> 01:05:34,320
and I get up to talk,
1551
01:05:34,360 --> 01:05:36,000
and I see Billing Chaney
sitting there.
1552
01:05:36,000 --> 01:05:38,560
and I see Billing Chaney
sitting there.
1553
01:05:43,320 --> 01:05:44,000
And I could see everybody,
1554
01:05:44,000 --> 01:05:45,720
And I could see everybody,
1555
01:05:45,760 --> 01:05:47,720
and I just lose it.
I just lost it.
1556
01:05:47,760 --> 01:05:51,560
As I stand here, a lot of things
pass through my mind.
1557
01:05:51,600 --> 01:05:52,000
I can remember the Emmet Till case.
1558
01:05:52,000 --> 01:05:54,240
I can remember the Emmet Till case.
1559
01:05:55,080 --> 01:05:57,080
What happened to him,
1560
01:05:57,120 --> 01:05:59,520
and what happened to
the people who killed him.
1561
01:06:00,480 --> 01:06:03,520
And I'm sick and tired and I can't
help but feel bitter, you see.
1562
01:06:03,560 --> 01:06:05,760
Deep down inside,
I'm not going to stand here
1563
01:06:05,800 --> 01:06:08,000
and ask anybody here
not to be angry tonight.
1564
01:06:08,000 --> 01:06:08,320
and ask anybody here
not to be angry tonight.
1565
01:06:09,320 --> 01:06:11,800
Each and everyone of us
as individuals are going to have to
1566
01:06:11,840 --> 01:06:14,400
take it upon ourselves to become
leaders in our community,
1567
01:06:14,440 --> 01:06:16,000
block by block, house by house,
1568
01:06:16,000 --> 01:06:17,160
block by block, house by house,
1569
01:06:17,200 --> 01:06:19,040
city by city,
county by county,
1570
01:06:19,080 --> 01:06:21,800
state by state,
throughout this entire country.
1571
01:06:21,840 --> 01:06:24,000
Your neighbours down there who are
too afraid to come to this memorial,
1572
01:06:24,000 --> 01:06:25,800
Your neighbours down there who are
too afraid to come to this memorial,
1573
01:06:25,840 --> 01:06:27,800
take them to another memorial.
1574
01:06:27,840 --> 01:06:30,000
Pick them up
and take them down there.
1575
01:06:30,040 --> 01:06:32,000
Make them register to vote,
and YOU register to vote.
1576
01:06:32,000 --> 01:06:32,480
Make them register to vote,
and YOU register to vote.
1577
01:06:32,520 --> 01:06:35,280
I doubt if one fourth
of this house is registered.
1578
01:06:35,320 --> 01:06:36,960
Go down there and do it!
1579
01:06:45,080 --> 01:06:48,000
# Times is hard here
# and everywhere you go #
1580
01:06:48,000 --> 01:06:50,360
# Times is hard here
# and everywhere you go #
1581
01:06:50,400 --> 01:06:54,000
# Times is harder
# than ever been before #
1582
01:06:54,040 --> 01:06:56,000
If It hadn't been for
Mickey Schwerner and Andy Goodman,
1583
01:06:56,000 --> 01:06:57,760
If It hadn't been for
Mickey Schwerner and Andy Goodman,
1584
01:06:57,800 --> 01:07:00,440
and regardless of
what I thought or what I say,
1585
01:07:00,480 --> 01:07:02,720
that I don't believe that my son
would have been known
1586
01:07:02,760 --> 01:07:04,000
or would have been found today.
1587
01:07:04,000 --> 01:07:04,240
or would have been found today.
1588
01:07:04,280 --> 01:07:05,920
Nobody, they would have
just went on.
1589
01:07:05,960 --> 01:07:08,160
They would have never known
nothing happened.
1590
01:07:08,200 --> 01:07:10,800
No matter all that work we did,
all the suffering we were doing,
1591
01:07:10,840 --> 01:07:12,000
all the jail arrests,
and beatings, and murders.
1592
01:07:12,000 --> 01:07:14,800
all the jail arrests,
and beatings, and murders.
1593
01:07:14,840 --> 01:07:16,200
We weren't getting no attention.
1594
01:07:16,240 --> 01:07:19,520
When those two kids got killed,
1595
01:07:19,560 --> 01:07:20,000
those two white boys from New York
got killed, you saw it.
1596
01:07:20,000 --> 01:07:23,280
those two white boys from New York
got killed, you saw it.
1597
01:07:23,320 --> 01:07:26,120
# People you know,
# these hard times... #
1598
01:07:26,160 --> 01:07:28,000
And that is the tragic truth of
the Freedom Summer Project,
1599
01:07:28,000 --> 01:07:28,920
And that is the tragic truth of
the Freedom Summer Project,
1600
01:07:28,960 --> 01:07:31,800
that you have to use
the white volunteers
1601
01:07:31,840 --> 01:07:34,720
in order to capture the attention of
the American public
1602
01:07:34,760 --> 01:07:36,000
and in order to challenge
1603
01:07:36,000 --> 01:07:36,360
and in order to challenge
1604
01:07:36,400 --> 01:07:39,200
the collective consciousness of
white America.
1605
01:07:39,240 --> 01:07:44,000
# If I ever can get up off
# this killin' floor #
1606
01:07:44,000 --> 01:07:44,200
# If I ever can get up off
# this killin' floor #
1607
01:07:44,240 --> 01:07:48,000
# I'll never get this low no more #
1608
01:07:48,040 --> 01:07:50,400
It was all over the news.
1609
01:07:50,440 --> 01:07:52,000
It was all over
the international news.
1610
01:07:52,000 --> 01:07:53,080
It was all over
the international news.
1611
01:07:53,120 --> 01:07:56,200
It did bring about
the desired focus
1612
01:07:56,240 --> 01:07:59,120
on what was going on
in the Deep South.
1613
01:07:59,160 --> 01:08:00,000
It forced the country to say
1614
01:08:00,000 --> 01:08:01,040
It forced the country to say
1615
01:08:01,080 --> 01:08:03,560
voting is a matter of
life and death in Mississippi.
1616
01:08:03,600 --> 01:08:07,680
It created an enormous momentum
for what became
1617
01:08:07,720 --> 01:08:08,000
the Selma Movement,
and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
1618
01:08:08,000 --> 01:08:11,160
the Selma Movement,
and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
1619
01:08:11,200 --> 01:08:13,720
The country was shamed
into doing this.
1620
01:08:14,920 --> 01:08:16,000
I don't think it was because
the people who passed it
1621
01:08:16,000 --> 01:08:17,640
I don't think it was because
the people who passed it
1622
01:08:17,680 --> 01:08:19,720
said this is the right thing to do,
or felt that way.
1623
01:08:19,760 --> 01:08:21,920
But, they had said this is
the thing we GOT to do
1624
01:08:21,960 --> 01:08:24,000
in order to preserve our status
in the world as a free country.
1625
01:08:24,000 --> 01:08:26,160
in order to preserve our status
in the world as a free country.
1626
01:08:27,200 --> 01:08:28,600
And so, that's what happened.
1627
01:08:28,640 --> 01:08:32,000
We forced the hand of the country
to do what was right.
1628
01:08:32,000 --> 01:08:32,920
We forced the hand of the country
to do what was right.
1629
01:08:32,960 --> 01:08:36,200
One of the big mistakes
in my own thinking was that
1630
01:08:36,240 --> 01:08:40,000
I never anticipated how resistant
the other side would be,
1631
01:08:40,000 --> 01:08:40,840
I never anticipated how resistant
the other side would be,
1632
01:08:40,880 --> 01:08:44,720
and that they would never give up.
So that we could win things,
1633
01:08:44,760 --> 01:08:48,000
and then if we were then complacent
about winning the right to vote,
1634
01:08:48,000 --> 01:08:49,200
and then if we were then complacent
about winning the right to vote,
1635
01:08:49,240 --> 01:08:52,120
or improving education,
1636
01:08:52,160 --> 01:08:55,120
the other side would turn around
and try to undercut it.
1637
01:08:55,160 --> 01:08:56,000
It took the left wingers
and the integrationists 58 years
1638
01:08:56,000 --> 01:09:00,920
It took the left wingers
and the integrationists 58 years
1639
01:09:00,960 --> 01:09:04,000
to get the Supreme Court
to change its mind
1640
01:09:04,000 --> 01:09:04,080
to get the Supreme Court
to change its mind
1641
01:09:04,120 --> 01:09:07,480
and reverse the separate
but equal concept.
1642
01:09:07,520 --> 01:09:09,440
But, I'm sure,
Ladies and Gentlemen
1643
01:09:09,480 --> 01:09:12,000
it won't take us that long to
reverse the Black Monday decision.
1644
01:09:12,000 --> 01:09:13,600
it won't take us that long to
reverse the Black Monday decision.
1645
01:09:20,120 --> 01:09:23,440
In fact, it won't take us
that long, my friends,
1646
01:09:23,480 --> 01:09:25,840
to change the Supreme Court
of the United States.
1647
01:09:33,000 --> 01:09:36,000
These things are an infection
1648
01:09:36,000 --> 01:09:36,360
These things are an infection
1649
01:09:36,400 --> 01:09:39,920
that's in the subconscious of
American culture.
1650
01:09:39,960 --> 01:09:44,000
So Black Americans are
constantly trying to affirm
1651
01:09:44,040 --> 01:09:45,680
and prove their humanity.
1652
01:09:45,720 --> 01:09:50,520
And, other people are actively
working in the other direction.
1653
01:09:51,880 --> 01:09:52,000
You have to keep telling the story,
you have to keep reaching out,
1654
01:09:52,000 --> 01:09:54,680
You have to keep telling the story,
you have to keep reaching out,
1655
01:09:54,720 --> 01:09:57,560
and you have to keep an eye on
what those people are doing
1656
01:09:57,600 --> 01:10:00,000
to take back what they feel
that they lost.
1657
01:10:03,080 --> 01:10:07,440
In the '60s, a lot of attention
was brought to the way
1658
01:10:07,480 --> 01:10:08,000
in which Black lives were made
not to matter institutionally.
1659
01:10:08,000 --> 01:10:10,160
in which Black lives were made
not to matter institutionally.
1660
01:10:12,080 --> 01:10:15,920
Black people kind of emerged
in the public eye as a community,
1661
01:10:15,960 --> 01:10:16,000
as a people
who were definitely feeling
1662
01:10:16,000 --> 01:10:18,320
as a people
who were definitely feeling
1663
01:10:18,360 --> 01:10:21,040
the swing of a certain momentum,
towards justice,
1664
01:10:21,080 --> 01:10:24,000
towards recognition,
towards visible presence, you know,
1665
01:10:24,000 --> 01:10:24,400
towards recognition,
towards visible presence, you know,
1666
01:10:24,440 --> 01:10:27,880
in American life, in a way
that really hadn't been seen before.
1667
01:10:27,920 --> 01:10:31,600
But, I don't think that
would have been as potent,
1668
01:10:31,640 --> 01:10:32,000
would have been as deeply felt,
without the musical presence.
1669
01:10:32,000 --> 01:10:35,560
would have been as deeply felt,
without the musical presence.
1670
01:10:38,800 --> 01:10:40,000
My generation of white southerners,
1671
01:10:40,000 --> 01:10:41,280
My generation of white southerners,
1672
01:10:41,320 --> 01:10:45,040
we grew up thinking that
we were destined to use big words,
1673
01:10:45,080 --> 01:10:46,440
and run the world,
1674
01:10:46,480 --> 01:10:48,000
but that Black people had
the keys to the human heart.
1675
01:10:48,000 --> 01:10:49,000
but that Black people had
the keys to the human heart.
1676
01:10:49,040 --> 01:10:52,440
And that's why we wanted to court
our girlfriends to Black music.
1677
01:10:52,480 --> 01:10:55,600
Somehow we believed
that Black people had a key,
1678
01:10:55,640 --> 01:10:56,000
had a deeper understanding of that.
1679
01:10:56,000 --> 01:10:58,080
had a deeper understanding of that.
1680
01:11:00,480 --> 01:11:03,480
Little did most white people realize
1681
01:11:03,520 --> 01:11:04,000
that this Black-led movement
in Mississippi by Moses,
1682
01:11:04,000 --> 01:11:06,880
that this Black-led movement
in Mississippi by Moses,
1683
01:11:06,920 --> 01:11:11,320
had more profound ideas about our
own democratic theories than we did.
1684
01:11:12,680 --> 01:11:16,680
They were really leaders in what
the promise of democracy really was.
1685
01:11:17,840 --> 01:11:20,000
But, music was the forerunner,
it was ahead of politics.
1686
01:11:20,000 --> 01:11:20,560
But, music was the forerunner,
it was ahead of politics.
1687
01:11:24,480 --> 01:11:27,680
# Freight train, freight train,
# run so fast #
1688
01:11:30,200 --> 01:11:34,440
# Mm, freight train, freight train
# run so fast #
1689
01:11:35,920 --> 01:11:36,000
# Well, please don't tell them
# which train I'm on #
1690
01:11:36,000 --> 01:11:40,400
# Well, please don't tell them
# which train I'm on #
1691
01:11:40,440 --> 01:11:43,760
# They won't know
# what route I'm going #
1692
01:11:43,800 --> 01:11:44,000
These guys, many of them
didn't have a career
1693
01:11:44,000 --> 01:11:46,720
These guys, many of them
didn't have a career
1694
01:11:46,760 --> 01:11:50,320
in the first place as musicians.
They made a couple of records,
1695
01:11:50,360 --> 01:11:52,000
and they went back to being
a railroad porter,
1696
01:11:52,000 --> 01:11:52,640
and they went back to being
a railroad porter,
1697
01:11:52,680 --> 01:11:55,040
itinerant preacher,
or whatever.
1698
01:11:55,080 --> 01:12:00,000
But Newport 1964
put a stamp on Country blues
1699
01:12:00,000 --> 01:12:00,280
But Newport 1964
put a stamp on Country blues
1700
01:12:00,320 --> 01:12:03,400
as something that was
worth public attention.
1701
01:12:03,440 --> 01:12:06,280
So if, they wanted a career
they could have one.
1702
01:12:06,320 --> 01:12:08,000
# When I'm dead and in my grave #
1703
01:12:08,000 --> 01:12:09,920
# When I'm dead and in my grave #
1704
01:12:12,040 --> 01:12:16,000
# No more good times here I crave #
1705
01:12:16,000 --> 01:12:16,400
# No more good times here I crave #
1706
01:12:16,440 --> 01:12:19,240
Son House and Skip James
did have another career,
1707
01:12:19,280 --> 01:12:23,000
living just long enough to
witness their own resurrection.
1708
01:12:23,040 --> 01:12:24,000
Skip died of cancer in 1969.
1709
01:12:24,000 --> 01:12:25,960
Skip died of cancer in 1969.
1710
01:12:26,000 --> 01:12:28,880
Son House retired for good,
not long after.
1711
01:12:28,920 --> 01:12:32,000
But, never again did their blues
retreat into obscurity.
1712
01:12:32,000 --> 01:12:32,280
But, never again did their blues
retreat into obscurity.
1713
01:12:32,320 --> 01:12:34,680
And they were honoured by
their native State,
1714
01:12:34,720 --> 01:12:38,280
something that would have been
unthinkable in 1964.
1715
01:12:38,320 --> 01:12:40,000
In one of history's
least predictable turns,
1716
01:12:40,000 --> 01:12:41,280
In one of history's
least predictable turns,
1717
01:12:41,320 --> 01:12:45,000
the music created by a scorned
and oppressed people
1718
01:12:45,040 --> 01:12:47,400
became the pride of Mississippi.
1719
01:12:47,440 --> 01:12:48,000
# Oh, freight train,
# freight train run so fast #
1720
01:12:48,000 --> 01:12:51,240
# Oh, freight train,
# freight train run so fast #
1721
01:12:53,720 --> 01:12:55,960
# Freight train, freight train... #
1722
01:12:56,000 --> 01:12:59,400
The blues revival had
an immeasurable impact, I think,
1723
01:12:59,440 --> 01:13:01,960
on the course of popular music,
certainly.
1724
01:13:02,000 --> 01:13:04,000
And really inadvertently
kind of seeded
1725
01:13:04,000 --> 01:13:04,400
And really inadvertently
kind of seeded
1726
01:13:04,440 --> 01:13:06,520
the whole second wave
of Rock and Roll.
1727
01:13:07,520 --> 01:13:11,280
We tend to focus on the story of
young whites propriating blues,
1728
01:13:11,320 --> 01:13:12,000
you know, becoming millionaires,
in the '60s.
1729
01:13:12,000 --> 01:13:13,920
you know, becoming millionaires,
in the '60s.
1730
01:13:13,960 --> 01:13:17,720
But, I think they were very much
an instrument of history
1731
01:13:17,760 --> 01:13:19,480
and of Black culture.
1732
01:13:19,520 --> 01:13:20,000
You know, in the case of
Fahey and Waterman,
1733
01:13:20,000 --> 01:13:21,840
You know, in the case of
Fahey and Waterman,
1734
01:13:21,880 --> 01:13:24,040
I mean, they basically spend
the rest of their lives
1735
01:13:24,080 --> 01:13:27,880
in service to what that music
represented to their younger selves.
1736
01:13:29,000 --> 01:13:32,680
We were just nerdy guys
into the music.
1737
01:13:32,720 --> 01:13:35,160
But, the day that
we actually found Son,
1738
01:13:35,200 --> 01:13:36,000
my life pivoted, and my life has
never been the same since.
1739
01:13:36,000 --> 01:13:39,200
my life pivoted, and my life has
never been the same since.
1740
01:13:39,240 --> 01:13:42,560
That was when I found out
I could go out in the world
1741
01:13:42,600 --> 01:13:44,000
and achieve things,
and important things.
1742
01:13:44,000 --> 01:13:46,120
and achieve things,
and important things.
1743
01:13:47,520 --> 01:13:50,040
Now these men's names
and their art,
1744
01:13:50,080 --> 01:13:52,000
and their knowledge
will live on forever.
1745
01:13:52,000 --> 01:13:52,640
and their knowledge
will live on forever.
1746
01:13:55,240 --> 01:14:00,000
# I want to live
# so that God can use me #
1747
01:14:00,000 --> 01:14:00,840
# I want to live
# so that God can use me #
1748
01:14:02,560 --> 01:14:04,320
# Anywhere... #
1749
01:14:05,920 --> 01:14:07,760
# Anytime... #
1750
01:14:08,920 --> 01:14:14,920
# I want to live
# so God can use me... #
1751
01:14:15,880 --> 01:14:16,000
# Anywhere, Lord #
1752
01:14:16,000 --> 01:14:18,920
# Anywhere, Lord #
1753
01:14:18,960 --> 01:14:20,800
# Yes, anytime #
1754
01:14:22,240 --> 01:14:24,000
# Yes, I wanna sing
# so that God can use me #
1755
01:14:24,000 --> 01:14:27,960
# Yes, I wanna sing
# so that God can use me #
1756
01:14:29,280 --> 01:14:31,960
# Anywhere #
1757
01:14:32,000 --> 01:14:34,240
# Lord, anytime #
1758
01:14:35,360 --> 01:14:40,000
# I wanna sing
# so that God can use me #
1759
01:14:40,000 --> 01:14:41,360
# I wanna sing
# so that God can use me #
1760
01:14:41,400 --> 01:14:44,040
# Yes, anywhere #
1761
01:14:45,120 --> 01:14:48,000
# Yes, anytime #
1762
01:14:48,040 --> 01:14:50,480
# You know, I wanna pray
1763
01:14:50,520 --> 01:14:54,040
# so that God can use me #
1764
01:14:55,320 --> 01:14:56,000
# Anywhere #
1765
01:14:56,000 --> 01:14:57,800
# Anywhere #
1766
01:14:57,840 --> 01:14:59,960
# Yes, anytime #
1767
01:15:01,120 --> 01:15:04,000
# Yes, I wanna pray #
1768
01:15:04,000 --> 01:15:05,040
# Yes, I wanna pray #
1769
01:15:05,080 --> 01:15:07,800
# so God can use me #
1770
01:15:07,840 --> 01:15:10,160
# Oh, anytime #
1771
01:15:11,280 --> 01:15:12,000
# Mm-mm... #
1772
01:15:12,000 --> 01:15:12,800
# Mm-mm... #
1773
01:15:14,080 --> 01:15:16,000
# Sometimes I wanna moan #
1774
01:15:16,040 --> 01:15:20,000
# so that God can use me #
1775
01:15:20,000 --> 01:15:20,640
# so that God can use me #
1776
01:15:20,680 --> 01:15:23,200
# Anywhere #
1777
01:15:23,240 --> 01:15:25,200
# Yes, anytime #
1778
01:15:26,280 --> 01:15:28,000
# You know I wanna moan #
1779
01:15:28,000 --> 01:15:28,680
# You know I wanna moan #
1780
01:15:28,720 --> 01:15:32,680
# So that God can use me #
1781
01:15:32,720 --> 01:15:34,680
# Yes, anywhere #
1782
01:15:35,800 --> 01:15:36,000
# Yes, anytime #
1783
01:15:36,000 --> 01:15:37,560
# Yes, anytime #
1784
01:15:38,800 --> 01:15:44,000
# Sometimes I wanna cry #
# so that God can use me #
1785
01:15:44,000 --> 01:15:44,720
# Sometimes I wanna cry #
# so that God can use me #
1786
01:15:45,520 --> 01:15:48,080
# Anywhere #
1787
01:15:48,120 --> 01:15:49,960
# Yes, anytime #
1788
01:15:51,320 --> 01:15:52,000
# Sometimes I wanna cry
# so that God can use me #
1789
01:15:52,000 --> 01:15:56,920
# Sometimes I wanna cry
# so that God can use me #
1790
01:15:57,760 --> 01:15:59,520
# Anywhere #
1791
01:16:00,600 --> 01:16:02,920
# Yes, anytime #
1792
01:16:10,400 --> 01:16:16,400
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