Archived rare and historically significant items included in exhibition
OXFORD, Miss. – When the University of Mississippi opened its Blues
Archive to the public in 1984, it was touted to become “the finest of
its kind in the world.”
Those familiar with the many treasures sheltered in the archive say
it’s a dream come true.
“With the exception of the Library of
Congress, I know of no other such archive in the world that surpasses
it,” said Greg Johnson, blues curator and associate professor in the
J.D. Williams Library. “Every year, fans from around the world visit to
examine commercially unavailable audio and video recordings of their
favorite blues performers.”
Johnson is curator of “Still Got
the Blues: A Silver Anniversary Exhibition,” celebrating the archive’s
25th year. An opening reception for the exhibition is scheduled 4-6
p.m. Tuesday (Sept. 22), in Archives and Special Collections on the
library’s third floor. Scheduled for a yearlong run, the exhibition is
free and open to the public from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through
Fridays.
Visitors can sign out portable audio/video players onsite to
hear musical selections and view interviews with the featured artists
as they tour the exhibition. The elaborate display fills 18 cases in
the Faulkner Room and includes rare and historically significant
holdings from many of the archive’s audio, visual and print
collections. Some of the material will be rotated throughout the year.
The material highlights artists such as B.B. King, Robert
Johnson, The Red Tops and James “Son” Thomas, as well as blues
collectors/authors including Sheldon Harris, Kenneth Goldstein and
Gayle Dean Wardlow.
Items include original record contracts for Elmore James and
Sonny Boy Williamson, rare sound recordings by Robert Johnson and
Charlie Patton, artwork by Lightnin’ Hopkins and James “Son” Thomas and
records from the personal record collection of world-renowned blues
icon B.B. King, as well as a recently donated bronze bust of King by
Taylor artist William Beckwith, adjunct assistant professor of art.
The exhibition also examines the history of the Blues Archive
and follows Living Blues magazine from its 1970 origins in Chicago to
its present home in UM’s Center for the Study of Southern Culture,
where the blues archive began as the brainchild of the center’s first
director, William Ferris. The magazine’s spring 1984 issue stated:
“This archive will be the finest of its kind anywhere in the world, and
its resources will be available to all blues scholars and researchers.”
Founded by the center, the archive resided with the music
library in Farley Hall for nearly two decades before merging with the
library in 2002. It comprises more than 60,000 audio recordings,
ranging from wax cylinders to compact discs; more than 20,000
photographs; at least 7,000 books, magazines and newsletters; 900 video
recordings; and many collections of manuscripts, posters and ephemera.
Ted Ownby, CSSC director, sees the archive as an important part
of Southern culture and in line with the center’s mission.
“Through his own work and his encouragement of Living Blues
magazine and the archive, William Ferris worked to establish the
University of Mississippi as a place to study the blues,” Ownby said.
“Today, the Blues Archive, along with ‘Highway 61’ radio show and the
publication of Living Blues, gives the university a central role in
documenting and studying the blues.”
The archive continues to expand with the donation of new
collections, such as the recently acquired Sid Graves Collection of
materials related to the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale and the David
Hinckley Collection of 300 78-rpm records.
University-sponsored academic interest in the blues can be
traced as far back as 1907; however, in-depth study of the blues began
in 1977 with the center’s founding. CSSC offers courses in blues music,
history and culture; publishes Living Blues magazine; and co-hosts the
annual “Blues Today: A Living Blues Symposium.”
“This exhibition is a tribute to all those who have helped
further the field of blues scholarship at the University of Mississippi
through teaching, writing and producing films and radio programs,”
Johnson said.
For more information about the J.D. Williams Library, visit http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/
To learn more about the Center for the Study of Southern Culture, visit http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/