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'Tis the season! Let CAT HEAD help make it merry and bright with gifts from CLARKSDALE, Mississippi.
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 For the past 24 holiday shopping seasons, many of y'all have let CAT HEAD into your homes with the gifts that get worn, displayed, read, listened to and talked about the most. Gifts that are from a one-of-a-kind place — not just some warehouse or chain store. CAT HEAD may be based around blues and the Mississippi Delta, but it is built around people. People like you, your friends and family. People from all over the country and 40-some countries around the world. And we THANK YOU.
Please visit us in-person at 252 Delta Ave in Clarksdale when you can. (We're open every day but Thanksgiving and Christmas.) Or shop our www.cathead.biz WEB STORE for Tees, hoodies, hats, books, posters, music, beer glasses, shotglasses, turntable mats, mugs, magnets, patches and much more! We'll do our very best to get it to you ASAP.
Wishing you and yours all the best,
Roger and Santa Pug (aka Ayler)
PICS: Young me—rockin' Christmas (obviously)! Old me watching Ayler Pug question my musical taste. And the classic Santa nightlight I grew up with.
 
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SHOP CLARKSDALE'S CAT HEAD IN-STORE EVERY DAY TILL CHRISTMAS OR ONLINE NOW AT CATHEAD.BIZ
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| CAT HEAD has great gift ideas for all your family and friends! Shop in-store at 252 Delta Ave every day till Christmas (Mon-Fri 11am-5pm, Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-3pm) or ONLINE NOW at www.cathead.biz with your credit card, ApplePay, PayPal, Venmo or GooglePay. Details online.
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GIFT CERTIFICATES & MORE!
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CLARKSDALE, MISSISSIPPI & THE BLUES IN THE NEWS
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| CNN calls Clarksdale one of America's Best Towns to Visit!
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Good Morning America visits Ground Zero Blues Club & Blue Front!
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GOOD MORNING AMERICA woke up last month with the blues in Clarksdale, Mississippi, plus a side trip to Bentonia and beyond! Watch the full show at the link below, or search it out on Facebook. GMA (full episode): https://youtu.be/JN_bSBsEzAc?si=nE3bNx07dSZ7bt4p
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Wanderlust magazine names best things to do in Mississippi
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Forbes covers Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience...
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New York Times has Sinners movie director Ryan Coogler narrate the best music scene in the film...
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SPEND NEW YEAR'S EVE AT THE CROSSROADS!
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| For unique lodging, tasty restaurants, blues shows and one helluva party, it's hard to beat Clarksdale, MS, for NEW YEAR'S EVE, y'all!
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WED, 12/31, 2025 - NEW YEAR'S EVE in Clarksdale:
- 11am-5pm - Shop CAT HEAD store, y'all!
- 3pm - Sean "Bad" Apple's Blues Music & History Show at Bad Apple Blues Club (349 Issaquena Ave.).
- 7pm - NY'S EVE Dinner w/Gramm Phillips (reservations 662-302-6474) at Levon's Bar & Grill (232 Sunflower Ave).
- 8pm - NEW YEAR'S EVE Blues Party w/Little Willie Farmer Band at Red's Juke Joint (395 Sunflower Ave.).
- 8pm - NEW YEAR'S EVE Bash w/live music at Auberge Hostel/Old Madidi Bar (164 Delta Ave.).
- 8pm - "Black & White" NEW YEAR'S EVE w/Party Shot at The Matchbox (311 Delta Ave).
- Stay tuned for more New Year's Eve happenings in Clarksdale at places like Hambone!
PLUS, PLEASE NOTE that 'Early Pre-Sale' Wristbands for April's epic JUKE JOINT FESTIVAL go on sale Thurs., 1/1, 2026 at www.jukejointfestival.com!
(IMAGES: 2025 New Year's crossroads promo image. Plus, a 2003 GZBC New Year's Eve letterpress poster I used to promote the first NYE show I booked there... good times!)   |
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16TH ANNUAL CLARKSDALE FILM & MUSIC FESTIVAL
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| Plan now to attend at Stone Pony Tack Room "pop-up" theater...
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| The Clarksdale Film & Music Festival specializes in blues/roots-music and Mississippi-connected films... plus 'live' blues music... very special guests... a daily reception and more! Tix are supa-cheap! $5 per day. Or $10 for a weekend pass. Friday and Saturday's film venue is Stone Pony's Tack Room, so you have great access to eats, drinks, restrooms, etc. Our Sunday afternoon music venue is Bluesberry Cafe, so same thing there. It truly makes for a fun, wonderful weekend at the crossroads—while winter does its thing outside. A note of thanks to all of the festival supporters, filmmakers, volunteers, musicians and attendees; y'all make it special. Full festival lineup coming soon at www.clarksdalefilmfestival.com
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GET READY, Y'ALL... "EARLY PRE-SALE" JUKE JOINT FEST WRISTBANDS GO ON SALE ONLINE ON JANUARY 1ST!!
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| "Early Pre-Sale" JJF Wristbands GO ON SALE at www.jukejointfestival.com—exclusively—on January 1, 2026!
This will be the lowest price of the year (for a limited time only!) and guarantees that you beat another possible sellout, so please don't wait. Note that because JJF knows life can be expensive, the festival pays all credit card/Paypal fees and any applicable sales tax for you. Plus, since we do not ship wristbands, and you pick the up in-person the week of the event, you also save on shipping costs.
Juke Joint Festival wristbands are valid for over two dozen official Saturday-night JJF venues on April 11, 2026, only. Details will be on the website.
Thanks as always for supporting our nonprofit (501c3) and Clarksdale's "biggest blues and business week of the year"!
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And finally, some very bad, very sad news...
CLARKSDALE PASSINGS — RIP
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| Ellis Coleman... world-famous Red's Dancer
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| Like everyone else in the Clarksdale and blues music communities, I'm still absorbing the terrible news of December 13th. When Red's Lounge impresario Orlando called, it simply didn't seem real.
Ellis Coleman was just plain a fine human being. He cared about people. He always made folks feel like they belonged. And his smile was absolutely genuine. (He could dance a bit, too!)
It's hard to fathom a Red's Lounge—let alone a Clarksdale—without his majestic presence. We will remember and talk about Ellis as long as each of us remains on this side of eternity.
My standing (literally) joke with Ellis when he came off the Red's dance floor, sweaty and ready for a beer, was to ask him if he needed me to take over. He laughed every time. Since I can't dance. And can prove it.
One night, Ellis was dancing elegantly with a visiting tourist. She was young and exuberant. He was exuberant. At one point, he spun her and let gravity do its job. He went in for the catch. And missed. We all laughed... with him. (And she was fine. Young folks bounce.)
Twice, Red's legendary barman Big Charles was fueled up and had had enough of everyone saying what a great dancer Ellis was. Charles—a rather large man as his nickname implies—sashayed out from behind the bar and joined the dance floor. It ended with both of them in a dancing "draw." Laughing.
In fact, that's how I will remember Ellis. Laughing. With a genuine smile.
(PHOTO: Me with bluesman Robert Kimbrough Sr and legendary Red's dancer Ellis Coleman.)
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Genie Hayes... a big Clarksdale blues supporter
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Genie Hays Wall passed away on December 11, 2025... Genie's passion for Clarksdale and its deeply rooted blues heritage, ignited by the iconic intersection of Highway 49 and 61, energized her for the city's thriving festivals, particularly the Juke Joint Festival, where she has had many good times with friends and family. Visitation is Tuesday, December 16, 2025, from 12:00pm - 2:00pm at Meredith Nowell Funeral Home in Clarksdale, MS. There will be a private family burial. READ FULL OBITUARY: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/name/gene-wall-obituary?id=60287045
(PHOTO: Genie at Juke Joint Festival, courtesy of funeral home.)
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Because we have to end on a happier note...
please remember that CLARKSDALE, MISSISSIPPI, will once again be the only small town in the world with 'live' blues music 365 nights a year and over a dozen annual festivals in 2026! It's time to #visitclarksdale
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