Illustration by Nathan Ota
 
Bradley Beesley’s nitty gritty documentary Hill Stomp Hollar is a captivating look into the world of Mississippi bluesman R.L. Burnside, his friends, family and record label.

Featuring Burnside collaborator Jon Spencer and fellow musicians Cedell Davis, Junior Kimbrough and T-Model Ford, Beesley’s Beesley’s style is unobtrusive, leaving it to the musicians to tell their hard-bitten tales. 

While the Hill Stomp Hollar focuses much of its attention on Burnside’s record label Fat Possum, who’ve been in and out of all kinds of financial and legal hassles, the thrill is in watching the blues legends talk about their lives and play their music. And the studio footage with the Jon Spencer Explosion is dynamite.

T. model Ford, a convicted killer, didn’t pick up a guitar until he was 50 and it wasn’t until he was 77 that he released his first album. Proof you’re never too old to rock and roll.

“My Momma told me if I messed around and played the blues, I was gonna go to Hell.” Cedell Davis