Beale Street, Memphis TN

January 2018

Put on my blue suede shoes
And I boarded the plane
Touched down in the land of the Delta Blues
In the middle of the pouring rain
W.C. Handy, won’t you look down over me
Yeah, I got a first class ticket
But I’m as blue as a boy can be

Then I’m walking in Memphis
Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel?

– Marc Cohn

(Read on to see my favorite Beale Street photos)

Seeing Beale Street, home of the blues, was a bucket list achievement for me.

I’m a huge fan of music, especially the blues and rock n roll. Being on this street where so many musicians came to perform and grow over the decades was amazing to me, or as Marc Chohn put it, I was “Walking with my feet teen feet off Beale”.

meandguitar — Music Geek (me) with Johnny Cash Art Guitar

It was mid-January and a bit chilly. The ice and snow from the previous few days had melted down and the weather was finally getting good. My coworker and I finished up our assignment and we ventured out and spent some time one day exploring the local music scene in Memphis.

We eventually found ourselves walking up and down Beale street checking out all the shops, restaurants and bars on both sides, stopping to read all the signs and peer into places and learn as much as we could about the history of this very famous street and the surrounding area. We had just come from a tour of the Gibson Factory a few streets over (another post on that soon) and we walked over to Beale to check it all out and get something to eat. (Later on we went to Sun Studio, story on that – HERE)

It was on a Monday during the early afternoon so there was hardly anyone on the street. We had lunch at BB King’s (another post on that soon too) and afterwards we had a good opportunity to explore the street and take lots of photos.

Below are some of my more favorite pictures that I took while walking on Beale Street.
(click each to make larger)