I'm not making this up: In the upcoming film "Black Snake Moan," Samuel L. Jackson plays a veteran bluesman who chains Christina Ricci to a radiator in an effort to cure her of nymphomania. Yowza! Listening to Jackson's take on the old bloody blues chestnut "Stackolee" (aka "Stagger Lee," "Stagolee," etc.) makes me think the movie's not going to have any problems matching the lowdown and dirty mood of classic juke joint blues. Jackson clearly relishes the song's badass lyrics -- which afford him ample opportunity to wrap his lips around a certain four-syllable curse word he has come to be closely associated with. For comparison's sake, you might want to check out famed bluesman Mississippi John Hurt's gentle 1928 version.
-- D.M.
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