Times Like Deese (2011)

Directed by: Maarten Schmidt, Thomas Doebele | 88 minutes | documentary

“I voted for Obama, I tell you honestly, not only because something had to change, but also because I was curious if a black man could become president.” Speaking is ‘Blind Mississippi’ Morris Cummings, one of the giants of the Low Blues, the raw blues form that originated in the Mississippi Delta. There, on the cotton fields, the black population in the first half of the twentieth century sang the problems. The racial inequality, poverty and discrimination they had to deal with were sung about, but also love, faith and life itself. Two Dutch filmmakers, Maarten Schmidt and Thomas Doebele, took their cameras to Clarksdale, Mississippi, the place that is known as the cradle of the blues. Greats such as Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker were born there (as were soul heroes Sam Cooke and Ike Turner by the way) and the town is still teeming with blues talent, as we see in the documentary ‘Times Like Deese’ (2011).

Old hands like ‘Blind Mississippi’ Morris, LC Ulmer, James ‘Super Chikan’ Johnson and Josh ‘Razorblade’ Stewart have consciously lived through the time of the oppression of African Americans. It is a period that has left deep marks in their souls. They use their music to give their feelings and memories a place. Schmidt and Doebele give the musicians plenty of space to tell their story, both spoken and sung. The Vietnam War has an important role to play. As difficult as that time was, for many black American soldiers it was the first time they experienced some form of equality. “We could even have fighter jets come. All that power at your fingertips. And then suddenly you’re back in a factory sweeping the floor. That was it,” Charlie Sayles recalls. A hard life has shaped him. In the meantime, he has managed to secure a place for himself in the blues world. He picked up the blues harp while in Vietnam. In the seventies and eighties he played with the greats of the earth, but he can just as easily perform his songs on the street.

And that actually applies to all musicians who put Schmidt and Doebele in front of their lens. They know the tricks of the trade, have gone through deep valleys and have an undeniable talent. The directors are questioned by the directors about African-American history, but also about the current situation. The arrival of a black president brought sky-high expectations. Have those expectations been fulfilled almost three years later? The answers show that the situation has barely improved. To make this clear, Schmidt and Doebele also let young musicians have their say. Rapsters Kechelle Britton and Debra Pickens agitate against poverty and discrimination, for example, Enoch ‘The 7th Prophet’ El Shamesh has a more spiritual approach. Although they shout just as loudly, their words are much less expressive than those of their older fellow townspeople. Perhaps that also has to do with the fact that this younger generation is treated much less extensively. To be fair, their story is less interesting than that of, say, seventies LC Ulmer, who makes as sharp an observation of the present-day situation as James Meredith, the first black student admitted to the University of Mississippi in 1962.

‘Times Like Deese’ is simultaneously a music documentary and a social and political document. Musically, this is a wonderful film, which puts some hidden gems from the blues world in the spotlight. The musicians are portrayed on the basis of African-American history and their own lives. As a minus you could say that a number of these men are so interesting that they are actually paid too little attention (while the younger generation of musicians add too little). Their life story could have easily filled an entire movie. However, the makers have opted for this form and are therefore forced to divide their time. Nevertheless, ‘Times Like Deese’ has become a beautiful music document, which will certainly appeal to fans of the traditional blues.