James “JB” Barnes

My Mississippi Roots

Independent

James Barnes, known to friends and fans as JB, carries the blues in his blood. On his father’s side, JB traces his lineage back to Mississippi. The year 1865 marked the end of the Civil War, and it was then that the Barnes plantation owners were forced to free their enslaved people throughout the state. Despite the pain and complexity of that legacy, JB’s descendants carried the Barnes name proudly into the future.

JB’s father, Jerry Lee Barnes Sr., was born in Port Gibson, Mississippi, in 1928. In 1947, Jerry Lee married, and from that union came four children, including JB. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, in the mid-1950s, JB moved to New Jersey in 1965, where his Mississippi roots formed the bedrock of his artistic calling. JB didn’t come to the blues casually — he studied the greats, the ones who laid the path before him. In 2016, the New Jersey Blues Hall of Fame honored that devotion by recognizing him as a Great Blues Artist.

JB’s debut album, JB’s Favorite Things (2023), established him as an independent artist with something to say. His band, BBD Rhythm & Blues, which he founded in 2012, has been carrying that message across clubs, festivals, and concert halls throughout New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware for over a decade.

The new album, My Mississippi Roots, is produced by guitarist, songwriter, and longtime friend Anthony Krizan of The Spin Doctors. Six songs are written by JB, while the remaining seven are carefully chosen covers.

The album opens with “Get Up and Go Blues,” which captures the timeless struggle of knowing it’s time to move on but feeling the weight of what’s left behind. Lead vocalist Steven Braxton delivers the main vocal, while Krizan plays guitar and drums. JB’s son, Jarred “Arktkt” Barnes, contributes keyboards, with JB on bass and backing vocals. The music pushes forward even as the heart hesitates: “I got them get up and go blues now baby… something tells me I got to make a change. You tell me that you love me, you got me running around in circles, I’m gonna make it out of here somehow.”

“Gotta Make a Change,” co-written by JB and Barry ‘Blues’ Holmes, is a slow, classic blues number that carries that same spirit of reckoning. With Carmine Diorio on drums, JB declares, “You know I believe, I believe I gotta make a change. You keep running away… when I was a young man I walked the straight and narrow, now I’m older, that’s why I believe I got to make a change.”

“Brown Eyed Blues Man,” co-written by Michael Monteiro, Chip Degaard, Anthony Krizan, and JB, features Krizan singing lead with Will Wilde on harmonica. “I’m a brown-eyed blues man just looking for love… I need a girl to help me find my place. I’m just a big ole brown-eyed blues man. I am, I am, I am.”

“When Did Crime Become Legal,” written by JB, is a pointed and topical track that confronts the times we live in. He asks, “When did crime become legal? When did the politicians become so evil? Lies, lies, lies — all lies. When did crime become legal?”

On “Southern Girl,” co-written by JB and Krizan, JB channels his father’s search for love with warmth and tenderness. Background vocals from Kevin Goings, Krizan, and JB enrich the track as Krizan sings, “They say a good man shouldn’t be alone in life… I don’t have any regrets. Shine a light down on me. When you say you love me, I feel the promises. I’m gonna miss you, baby. Shine a light.”

The title track and emotional centerpiece, “My Mississippi Roots,” co-written by JB and Krizan, tells the story of JB’s father and the family’s enduring legacy. JB plays bass and sings backing vocals while Krizan moans, “Well, I was raised in a holler… I feel a change ‘cause Jim Crow was always there. I didn’t know much about the city, I had to make myself a living. Times in the darkness — it was all my daddy’s blues, his Mississippi roots.”

“The JB Shuffle,” co-written by JB and James McCauley, weaves blues and jazz into a joyful, rollicking instrumental featuring Will Wilde on harmonica and Dave Moore on drums.

On the soulful cover of Hall & Oates’ “Sara Smile,” lead singer Steven Braxton delivers a tender vocal performance as Joey Stan layers tenor, alto, and baritone saxophones: “Sara’s smile with the roving eyes… when I feel cold, you warm me… you and me forever, Sara’s smile.”

“Lonesome Stranger,” written by Carey Bell, features Krizan on guitar and lead vocals, singing, “I’m a lonesome stranger in my home, one man’s town. I need a pretty woman to steal my emptiness. The highway’s my life, and the hotel my home. I’m a stranger… people, people, I’m so tired of being alone.”

The Rolling Stones classic “Wild Horses” gets a soulful and emotional treatment with Braxton on lead vocals, singing, “Wild horses, couldn’t drag me away.” The song becomes a testament to love’s endurance — once found, it’s unshakeable.

“Blues Falling Down Like Rain,” written by Bill Chinnock and inspired by a version sung by Kenny Neal, becomes a gospel-tinged declaration that while the blues may fall heavy, they also nourish and renew. Braxton sings, “Train runs by my backdoor, blues falling down like rain. I never meant to let you go, you know I love you so.”

The instrumental “Brush With The Blues,” written by Jeff Beck, is a seven-minute tribute to Beck’s genius, featuring Krizan’s expressive guitar, Diorio on drums, and JB’s fluid bass lines.

The album closes with “Stand Up and Give Peace & Love a Chance,” a funky, uplifting anthem featuring Kevin Goings and Karen Braxton on vocals. They deliver the hopeful refrain, “Stand up and give peace a chance. Give peace and love a chance. This is my message to the world.”

JB keeps the blues alive by honoring the roots while growing new branches. My Mississippi Roots extends his family’s story — reminding us that the blues is as much about where we’ve been as it is about where we still hope to go.

Thank you, JB and Anthony Krizan.

Richard Ludmerer

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