ALABAMA: Visiting a 97-Year-Old Blues Legend Before It Was Too Late episode artwork

EPISODE · Sep 12, 2025 · 16 MIN

ALABAMA: Visiting a 97-Year-Old Blues Legend Before It Was Too Late

from The Radio Vagabond · host Palle Bo

In this emotional Flashback Friday episode of The Radio Vagabond, I travel to Bessemer, Alabama to experience Gip's Place  –  a legendary juke joint founded in the backyard of Henry "Gip" Gipson. At the time, Gip was an astonishing 97 years old, still hosting Saturday night blues sessions in his tin-roofed music shed alongside family, locals, and wandering musicians. His motto, "No black, no white, just blues," resonated through every note. Update: Sadly, Henry "Gip" Gipson passed away on October 8, 2019, at the age of 99, closing a chapter on one of America's last authentic juke joints. See pictures and read more on https://www.theradiovagabond.com/066-alabama/ This Flashback Friday episode was first released on March 15, 2019.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Sep 12, 2025

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ALABAMA: Visiting a 97-Year-Old Blues Legend Before It Was Too Late

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