Put Your Money in Your Shoes...

Hearing a song about a specific place has always been intriguing to me. When I hear a song about a place, I tend to try to put myself in the shoes of the artist and picture what it is that inspired (or serves as the basis for) the song. The first time I heard Fran refer to Deep Ellum in Dallas, TX, I immediately starting singing The Grateful Dead's version of Deep Elem Blues in my head.

Knowing that it's likely that the Grateful Dead are not the first band or artists to perform the tune, I decided to do a little research. What I found was a wealth of information about Deep Ellum and the song itself. For instance, according to this website, the song dates as far back as the 1930's and the area of Dallas known as Deep Ellum has played host to such blues legends as Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leadbelly. The area saw a resurgence during the 1980's and 1990's but now has a reputation as a pretty rough neighborhood. In walking the sidewalks of Deep Ellum you can see the shell of what was once a lively and thriving area. This picture should demonstrate just how prevalent live music was in Deep Ellum's most recent heyday. I saw this telephone pole on a corner that used to be within a block of no less than 10 live music venues.

However, the front windows in most of the bars that were known for hosting live music now display posters alerting passers-by that zoning restrictions have impacted the nightlife and urging voters to restructure the zoning in the area. What is also evident in roaming Deep Ellum is that the locals have maintained a strong affinity for the area and really want to see another period of resurgence in Deep Ellum in the future. Many of the murals that I saw while there made reference to "The Good Ole' Days" and urged residents and supports to "Keep Deep Ellum Alive" as well as letting them know that "Deep Ellum Lives."

Long story short, I had the opportunity to roam around Deep Ellum taking pictures when I visited Dallas this week and I got some nice pictures of some of the "local flair", so to speak. Enjoy.