Live at Jackson Station: Music, Community, and Tragedy in a Southern Blues Bar

by Daniel M. Harrison

The smoke was thick, the music was loud, and the beer was flowing. In the fast-and-loose 1980s, Jackson Station Rhythm & Blues Club in Hodges, South Carolina, was a festive late-night roadhouse filled with people from all walks of life who gathered to listen to the live music of high-energy performers. Housed in a Reconstruction-era railway station, the blues club embraced local Southern culture and brought a cosmopolitan vibe to the South Carolina backcountry.

Over the years, Jackson Station became known as one of the most iconic blues bars in the South. It offered an exciting venue for local and traveling musical artists, including Widespread Panic, the Swimming Pool Qs, Bob Margolin, Tinsley Ellis, and R&B legend Nappy Brown, who loved to keep playing long after sunrise.

The good times ground to a terrifying halt in the early morning hours of April 7, 1990. A brutal attack―an apparent hate crime―on the owner Gerald Jackson forever altered the lives of all involved.

In this fast-paced narrative, Jackson Station emerges as a cultural kaleidoscope that served as an oasis of tolerance and diversity in a time and place that often suffered from undercurrents of bigotry and violence―an uneasy coexistence of incongruent forces that have long permeated southern life and culture.

256 pages, Paperback

Published January 28, 2021

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unless you're a boomer or Gen Xer from the South Carolina Piedmont, there's more than a good chance you've never heard of Jackson's Station. I hope this book changes that. Full disclaimer: I grew up in the town depicted here, and know some of its people. Harrison's done an exemplary and thorough job here in reconstructing a place and time I only heard rumors about, growing up. For a brief period in the Eighties, an out-of-the-way blues and rock club in the boonies run by two out gay men in the rural South not only existed but became the brief stuff of legend, hosting such diverse acts as Koko Taylor, Widespread Panic and Love Tractor. At its heart, this book is also a love story--between people and music, and the complicated and sometimes paradoxical South. If you enjoyed Grace Hale's Cool Town--her account of the Athens music scene in the 1980s--this book would be a perfect complement. While I was mostly underage during the heydays of Jackson's and only got to visit it once (regrettably on an off-night, at that), Harrison's account more than makes up for it. With only the best kind of hangover.

[Nancy Hart Wicker · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful story about music, a rural community, a legendary blues bar, and the characters that built it! Since I live in Greenwood, I relished the history of the town of Hodges and what was going on at the time of Jackson Station’s peak. This book combines history and interviews and weaves them into a captivating narrative. I only wish now that I could go back an experience the Jackson Station that was described so poignantly.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank Mr. Harrison for bringing Jackson’s Station back to life. During it’s time I was in the Upstate of SC attending college and working at a local record store. I was well aware of the great musicians who played there, but not much else. This book deepens the regret of never making it to a show there. Gerald sounds like he was an amazing person. Wish I could have met him. Very happy to have found this book which brings the life of the owners and the magic of the venue back to life. Also loved the input from Reverend Billy C. Wirtz. He is a walking encyclopedia of the blues and a legend in his own right.
Only criticism I have is that the book could have used some additional editing. Quite a few typos / grammatical errors, but has no impact on the enjoyment of the book. What a wild ride it must have been.

[Angie Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Harrison paints a well-researched picture of Jackson Station in its heyday, one that is electric and eclectic (and has the distinct ability to make me wish I were old enough to have experienced it at least once...) As a SC native, I thoroughly appreciated Harrison's depiction of the culture at the time - he fairly highlights some of the best and worst of the attitudes in the 80s South. The true crime aspect makes this a compelling read (if not just for the history) and has lingered in my mind since finishing.