I love my home state of Mississippi. It’s not being portrayed in an awesome light right now (that’s another blog) but Mississippi has a vast history that has contributed to this great nation (good and some bad).  The food, the culture, the people and importantly the music.  Did you know that Elvis, Faith Hill, Brandy, BB King, David Banner, Sam Cooke, Nate Dogg, David Ruffin, Ike Turner, Mary Wilson, Muddy Waters all hail from Mississippi.  Now this is just a short list of talent that has been born out of the Magnolia State.

I am from Clarksdale and we have a historic sign in town called the Crossroads.  This sign sits at the intersection of Highways 61 and 49.  Now there is an urban legend tied to this sign.  Many people know that Mississippi is known for blues.  You saw BB King’s name listed above.  Blues was always played in my house on Saturday morning while we were cleaning up.  The best blues festivals in the world happens in Mississippi every year.  One famous blues singer was Robert Johnson.  Legend has it that Robert Johnson had a great desire to be the best blues signer and guitarist in the world.  One night at the Crossroads, Robert Johnson took his guitar to the Devil for him to tune up.  After this encounter Robert Johnson had to leave his soul with the Devil in exchange for mastery with the guitar.

Now you know the story has changed over the years and really seems far fetched when you first hear it.   No one knows how this legend started and why it is still told today.  But history does show that Robert Johnson was a beast on the guitar during his short lifetime. His music inspired a generation and people still regard him as one of the best to have every done it.