This special thematic issue focuses on Alabama’s contribution to the blues genre:
"The Life and Death of Pioneer Bluesman Butler ‘String Beans’ May by Doug Seroff and Lynn Abbott; "Butler County Blues," by Kevin Nutt; "Tracking Down a Legend: The ‘Jaybird’ Coleman Story" by James Patrick Cather; "A Life of the Blues" by Willie King, with photo essay by Axel Kustner; "Livingston, Alabama, Blues: The significance of Vera Ward Hall" by Jerrilyn McGregory;" and "Chasing John Henry in Alabama and Mississippi" by John Garst plus reviews of two CDs, The Traditional Musics of Alabama, Vol. I and Alabama: From Lullabies to Blues.