[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 50 (Wednesday, March 25, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E405]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING JIMMY ``DUCK'' HOLMES

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 25, 2015

  Mr. THOMPSON, of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 
talented man, Mr. Jimmy ``Duck'' Holmes. Jimmy has shown what can be 
done through hard work, dedication and a desire to be a trailblazer.
  Jimmy ``Duck'' Holmes was born to sharecroppers Carey and Mary Holmes 
in 1947, the year before they opened the Blue Front Cafe. He was one of 
ten children and his parents also raised four children of Mary's 
deceased sister.
  Jimmy ``Duck'' Holmes is the proprietor of one of the oldest juke 
joints in Mississippi, the Blue Front in Bentonia. In the mid-2000s he 
began performing blues actively after many years of performing 
casually, and has already garnered several awards and many accolades. 
He is a practitioner and conscious advocate of a distinctive blues 
style from his hometown whose most famous proponent was blues pioneer 
Skip James.
  Holmes, who never met Skip James, studied the music of Owens, 
learning songs including ``Cherry Ball'', ``Hard Times'', ``I'd Rather 
Be the Devil'', but didn't perform very actively until relatively 
recently. He promoted blues through the founding in 1972 of the 
Bentonia Blues Festival, which took place annually until the mid-'90s 
and was revived in 2006. He took over the Blue Front in 1970 after the 
death of his father, and beginning in the '80s the cafe became a 
popular destination for blues tourists, including annual visits by 
busloads of Japanese fans. In 1995 a commercial for Levi's 501 jeans 
was filmed there.
  Various blues researchers including Alan Lomax recorded Holmes 
beginning at least in the '70s, but until recently his only vocal 
appearance on record was one song, ``Devil's Blues'', that he performed 
together with Cornelius Bright and which appeared on the Austrian Wolf 
label compilation album ``Giants of Country Blues'' Volume 2. In 2006 
the St. Louis-based record label ``Broke & Hungry'' released Holmes' 
debut CD ``Back to Bentonia''. He was joined on the record by Spires 
and drummer, Sam Carr, and in addition to some original songs, Holmes 
also covered the Bentonia standards ``Hard Times'' and ``I'd Rather Be 
the Devil''.
  The CD was well received, and garnered several Living Blues Awards 
and to multiple festival bookings, including the Chicago Blues Festival 
and the Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival. Holmes, who normally 
works as an educator, has traditionally been a somewhat reluctant 
performer, but has enjoyed the opportunity to share his music and talk 
about the Bentonia tradition. ``You don't get nervous when you're doing 
your hobby,'' he says of performing.
  In 2007 ``Broke and Hungry'' released a second CD, ``Done Got Tired 
of Tryin' '', which followed a similar formula, and included James' 
``Cherry Ball''. The CD was nominated for a 2008 Blues Music Award for 
Acoustic Album of the Year, and National Public Radio listed it as one 
of the ``Top 10 Blues Albums'' of the year. Holmes also received 
national publicity in August 2007 when a Mississippi Blues Trail 
historic marker was dedicated in honor of the Blue Front Cafe.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Jimmy 
``Duck'' Holmes a talented and creative Blues Guitarist & Vocalist.

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