30 Mississippi Musicians to Pay Tribute to Dixon

VICKSBURG, Miss. (Blues News Website) - About 30 Mississippi musicians will pay homage to bluesman Willie Dixon, a Vicksburg native who was called "the poet laureate of the blues.''

The free concert will be held Sunday at the Vicksburg Convention Center. Donations will be accepted for a statue of Dixon, who died in 1992 at 76.

On Monday, a downtown street will be dedicated as Willie Dixon Way.
Mayor Laurence Leyens said the concert and dedication is a way for the city to associate itself with the blues. "We're where the Delta begins and we're trying to re-establish our roots in the blues,'' Leyens said.

Dixon, who was born in Vicksburg in 1915, wrote hundreds of songs, including "(I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man,'' "Wang Dang Doodle'' and "Spoonful.''
He played with Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson, said blues musician and historian David Hughes, who helped organize the concert and street dedication.

Dixon's 1988 album, "Hidden Charms,'' won a Grammy for best traditional blues recording.