"We Juke Up in Here" Racks Up Acclaim as Filmmakers, Musicians Hit the Road for Screenings, Concerts

"We Juke Up in Here" Blues Project Racks Up Acclaim as Filmmakers, Musicians Hit the Road for Screenings and Concerts

New Film on Mississippi Juke Joints Enjoys Global Attention (Clarksdale, MS) – Since its world premiere in April, the new blues documentary “We Juke Up in Here” has earned rave reviews from audiences and critics alike. In the coming weeks, the film will enjoy an even higher profile as its filmmakers and featured musicians embark on a series of high-profile screenings and public performances in the United States and abroad. “We Juke Up in Here” tells the story of Mississippi’s once-thriving culture of down-home blues clubs known as juke joints. It is available in a deluxe two-disc collection (DVD with CD soundtrack) fromwww.wejukeupinhere.com and at quality record stores. “We Juke Up in Here” is a joint production of Broke & Hungry Records and Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art. In late August, the film’s creators and several of its featured musicians will travel to Switzerland to participate in the Geneva Art Festival (www.genevartfestival.ch). The film will screen on Tuesday, Aug. 21 and Wednesday, Aug. 22 and will be followed by live performances by three of the film’s stars: Terry “Harmonica” Bean, Louis “Gearshifter” Youngblood and – in his first overseas performance – Jimmy “Duck” Holmes. “We Juke Up in Here” and several of its featured artists also are slated to make prominent appearances in Philadelphia, Pa., in the coming months as part of a yearlong series called the Mississippi Blues Project (www.mississippibluesproject.org). Big George Brock will be the first of the film’s stars to make the trip out east when he and his band perform at the Philadelphia Folk Festival on Sunday, Aug. 19. Two months later, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes and Terry “Harmonica” Bean will travel to Philadelphia to perform on the set of World Café Live. Their Oct. 22 performances will broadcast on the nationally syndicated NPR show. In February 2013, Anthony “Big A” Sherrod, the film’s youngest musical star at 28, will also perform in Philadelphia. The film “We Juke Up in Here” also will screen in Philadelphia at a still-to-be-determined date in the coming months as part of the Mississippi Blues Project. The project is being produced and presented by WXPN Radio. In late October, “We Juke Up in Here” will have several public screenings. On Thursday, Oct. 25, filmmakers Roger Stolle and Jeff Konkel will present the documentary at the Brooks Museum of Art in Memphis before embarking on a three-day screening tour in Mississippi: Friday, Oct. 26 in Jackson; Saturday, Oct. 27 in Ocean Springs and Sunday, Oct. 28 in Meridian. (Click here for information.) “We Juke Up In Here” follows music producers Konkel and Stolle as they explore what remains of Mississippi’s once-thriving juke joint culture. The film is told largely from the vantage point of Red Paden, proprietor of the legendary Red’s Lounge in historic Clarksdale, Mississippi. Featured artists include Terry “Harmonica” Bean, Big George Brock, Hezekiah Early, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes, Anthony “Big A” Sherrod, Robert Lee “Lil’ Poochie” Watson, Elmo Williams and Louis “Gearshifter” Youngblood. “We Juke Up in Here” is a follow-up to the award-winning film “M For Mississippi.” The new movie reunites Konkel and Stolle with Damien Blaylock, their cinematographer and co-producer from the earlier film. Joining the production team for “We Juke Up in Here” was cinematographer and co-producer Lou Bopp. Since its release, “We Juke Up in Here” has been heavily profiled in publications across the globe. A sampling of reviews includes: "Must-viewing." – Friday Blues Fix (U.S) "Roadhouse nirvana." – Blues Rag (U.S) "Idiosyncratic alchemical magic." – Dusted Magazine (U.S) "Visually sexy film." – Real Deep Blues (U.S) "Superb!" – Folk Bulletin (Italy) "Beautifully produced." – Blues & Rhythm (U.K.) "Fascinating." – Les Inrocks (France) "Love at first sight." – Blues Magazine (France) "First class." – Blues News (Germany) The soundtrack to “We Juke Up in Here” also has received heavy radio airplay. The week, the soundtrack topped the charts on “B.B. King’s Bluesville,” the dedicated blues channel on XM/Sirius Radio. For more information about “We Juke Up in Here” or to arrange a screening or a performance by one of the film’s stars, contact Jeff Konkel at jeff@brokeandhungryrecords.com or Roger Stolle at roger@cathead.biz. ### (ALL PHOTOS BY LOU BOPP)