From Andrea Lisle's article in The Commercial Appeal
In the 1930s, the Mississippi Sheiks, an African-American string band, was one of the most popular groups to hit Memphis.
They were prolific; in five years, the Sheiks cut 70-plus songs for labels like Bluebird, Okeh and Paramount.
Then, around the advent of World War II, electric instruments took over, and string bands were out.
After playing to black and white audiences in such far-flung places as Chicago, West Texas and New York City, bandmates Bo Carter and Lonnie and Sam Chatmon, who were brothers, returned home to Mississippi and found work on plantations.
Sam Chatmon enjoyed a brief revival, courtesy of the 1960s folk scene.
Lonnie Chatmon faded from the public eye.
Carter, once one of the South's biggest recording stars, died blind and destitute in Memphis in September 1964.
Now, the Mississippi Sheiks' sound is the foundation of "The Great Debaters," one of the most talked-about movies to hit the screens this month.
The soundtrack to "The Great Debaters" was recorded here at Ardent Studios this summer and fall. The movie is out now.
The soundtrack is available here
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