Come enjoy the music of Motown and the blues at the annual Catfish in the Alley Festival, slated for today through Saturday.
Activities kick off as Just a Few Cats, a group based in Birmingham, Alabama, performs a free concert at the lawn beside the Tennessee Williams Home and Welcome Center from 5-7 p.m. today.
Nancy Carpenter, CEO of Visit Columbus, noted the band specializes in Motown hits and has played the event before.
While chairs and tables will be provided under a tent, some people bring their own chairs and blankets to set up on the ground, she said.
Visitors can enjoy a crawfish and shrimp boil tonight for the cost of $12 per plate. Carpenter said people can eat on premise or take them home, as all meals will be packaged in to-go containers.
Catfish in the Alley Festival will feature Barbecue and Blues on Friday. Local musicians Keith and Margie Brown will perform on the Tennessee Williams house lawn from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The concert is free.
Keith and Margie Brown performed at Catfish in the Alley several years ago.
“They are local favorites. People really do enjoy their music,” Carpenter said.
For $10, visitors can purchase a meal consisting of a barbecue sandwich, chips and a drink.
Also on Friday, workers will begin to set up for Saturday’s concert. College Street will be closed from Third to Fifth streets around noon. Also, Fourth Street (aka Catfish Alley) from College and Main streets will be closed. The parking lot behind the Main Street buildings in that area will be closed and cleared of vehicles so workers can set up the concert stage and have room for vendors and food trucks.
Saturday will feature music and artisans, Carpenter said. Several food trucks and vendors will be set up. The vendors include goat’s milk soap, woodcarvers, jewelry makers and stained glass.
“Everything is handmade,” Carpenter said.
The four musical acts will perform Saturday. Big Joe Shelton & The Black Prairie Blues Ambassadors, who are best known for their harmonica playing and smooth vocals, will kick things off at 10 a.m.
Pontotoc native Terry “Harmonica” Bean will perform at 11:15 a.m. Bean gained acclaim as a blues harmonicist, guitarist and songwriter. He has produced seven albums and appeared in three film documentaries.
At 12:30 p.m., the award-winning queen of the “boogie-woogie piano and juke-joint blues holler” Eden Brent will take the stage. She has released four solo albums and has been featured in several national publications.
“Eden Brent has not been here in 10 years,” Carpenter said. “She’s really interesting. She plays boogie-woogie piano and does it right. You’ll absolutely love her.”
The final performer will be Jamell Richardson, an up-and-coming guitarist, singer and songwriter and the 2021 recipient of the Jus Blues Foundation’s King of the Blues Award. Richardson will perform from 1:45-3 p.m.
Started about 14 years ago, Catfish in the Alley is a tribute to the African American citizens of Columbus who contributed to the town’s political, historical, cultural and musical heritage.
Sponsored by Columbus Cultural Heritage Foundation, the event helps raise funds for the Tennessee Williams home and museum, which also serves as a welcome center. Carpenter noted that Catfish in the Alley is family friendly and encouraged visitors in town for other activities happening in the Golden Triangle to stop by.
“It is only fitting that the Catfish in the Alley Festival is being held on Catfish Alley — the legendary epicenter of blues, jazz and soul music in north Mississippi,” Carpenter said. “Our region has produced a number of famed musicians, including Howlin’ Wolf and Big Joe Shelton, and it’s because of the path they paved for blues artists — in Mississippi and abroad — that we are here today.
“Come early and be prepared to stay late,” she said. “There will be no shortage of mouthwatering food, family-friendly fun and, of course, incredible music.”
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