Photo by Jay Petsko
James Barnes — known to audiences throughout the region as JB — carries the blues in his blood. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in New Jersey after his family moved east in 1965, he grew up steeped in the sound and spirit of the music. On his father's side, JB traces his lineage back to Mississippi, the wellspring from which so much of this tradition flows. Those "Mississippi Roots" became more than just family history; they formed the bedrock of his artistic calling.
JB didn't come to the blues casually. He studied the greats — those who laid the path before him, those who continue to shape the form today. That study became devotion, and in 2016, the New Jersey Blues Hall of Fame recognized that devotion, honoring him as a "Great Blues Artist." His first recording, JB's Favorite Things (2023), established him as an independent artist with something genuine to say. His long-running 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 more than a decade.
JB's mission is plain spoken yet profound: to honor the artists who came before him while ensuring the blues remains vibrant in the present. His latest project makes that mission personal. My Mississippi Roots was released on October 17, 2025. It is more than a record — it is a testimony. The title track tells the story of JB's father, Jerry Lee Barnes Sr., a man of quiet determination who journeyed from the deep South to the industrial North in search of work and a better life for his family. "His Mississippi Roots," JB says, "are my Mississippi Roots."
Produced by guitarist, songwriter, and longtime friend Anthony Krizan, My Mississippi Roots combines JB's storytelling with contributions from a host of musicians —including his son, Jarred "Arktkt" Barnes — whose playing brings fresh fire to the tradition. The record traverses the landscape of the blues and beyond: original compositions, heartfelt tributes, and reimagined classics all rendered with conviction.
"When I listen to My Mississippi Roots, you can tell we had fun and enjoyed what we' were doing. There's something for everybody on MMR. Its blues-rock, soul-based, and will take you on a soulful emotional roller coaster ride -- from traditional blues-feeling songs to '70s rock in the vein of Hendrix, to Retro soul. There is a common thread throughout, and that's the blues! - Anthony Krizan, Musician/Producer
From the introspective ache of "Gotta Make a Change" to the celebratory groove of "The JB Shuffle"; from the political bite of "When Did Crime Become Legal" to the reimagined soul of "Sara Smile" and the deep homage to Carey Bell in "Lonesome Stranger" — Krizan was masterful with co-writing several of the originals along with providing some great heartfelt blues guitar playing throughout the entire record. These songs embody both personal narrative and cultural continuity.
For JB, keeping the blues alive is not about nostalgia — it is about honoring roots while growing branches. With My Mississippi Roots, he extends his family's story into the continuum of blues history, reminding us that the music is as much about where we've been as it is about where we still hope to go.
My Mississippi Roots – Track by Track
Get Up and Go Blues (4:39) - An upbeat, soul-inflected blues to open the record, "Get Up and Go Blues" sets the tone with a sense of restless urgency. It's the age-old blues dilemma—knowing it's time to move on, but carrying the weight of what you're leaving behind. The music pushes forward even as the heart hesitates.
Gotta Make a Change (4:24) - Here JB slows the tempo and digs deep. "Gotta Make a Change" is a slow blues in the classic tradition, a mirror held up to the self. The song embodies that moment of reckoning familiar to anyone who has had to strip life down to its barest truth and rebuild from there.
Brown-Eyed Blues Man (4:15) - With its R&B feel and confessional tone, this track is both personal reflection and tribute. Written by a friend, the song becomes JB's own testimony. "I'm a brown-eyed blues man too," he admits, turning the lyric into an act of shared identity—an embrace of brotherhood within the blues tradition.
When Did Crime Become Legal (2:41) - JB's humor sharpens here into social critique. Over a playful groove, he poses a question that resonates with the absurdities of 21st-century politics: how do some people get away with everything? The laughter doesn't blunt the edge—it makes the commentary hit even harder.
Southern Girl (4:53) - This is a love story anchored in family history. JB recalls his father's search for a soulmate, and his eventual meeting with JB's mother. With warmth and tenderness, "Southern Girl" celebrates not only romantic union but the foundation of home itself.
My Mississippi Roots (5:15) - The album's centerpiece. In this title track, JB tells his father's story: leaving the South in search of a better life, but never leaving behind the soil that shaped him. The narrative is deeply personal, but it resonates with countless others whose families followed the same path. JB reminds us that the blues is not only music—it's migration, memory, and survival.
The JB Shuffle (4:09) - A celebration of groove itself. Co-created years ago with longtime friend and drummer James McCauley, this tune welds blues and jazz into a joyous shuffle. It's less about narrative than about feel—JB reminding listeners that sometimes the story is told with the hips, not the words.
Sara Smile (4:05) - JB reimagines Hall & Oates' R&B classic as a blues ballad. Where the original shimmered with smooth soul, this version aches with raw yearning. It's a testament to how the blues can reshape and reveal new facets of even the most familiar songs.
Lonesome Stranger (5:18) - This cover of Carey Bell's road-weary tale pays homage to one of Mississippi's great harmonica masters. By revisiting Bell's work, JB places himself squarely within the lineage of traveling bluesmen—musicians who lived the loneliness so their audiences could feel less alone.
Wild Horses (5:45) - The Rolling Stones classic is reborn here as a personal family anthem. For JB, the lyric captures his father's devotion once he found the love of his life. The arrangement is lush, heartfelt, and resolute—testimony that love, once found, can become unshakable.
Blues Falling Down Like Rain (5:55) - Originally penned by Bill Chinnock and influenced by Kenny Neal's version, this song swells with storm-cloud emotion. JB's take, layered with gospel-tinged vocal arrangements, transforms it into a declaration: the blues may fall heavy, but they also nourish and renew.
Brush with the Blues (7:26) - Written by Jeff Beck, this is both homage and challenge. Recorded live in the studio with producer Anthony Krizan and drummer Carmine Diorio, the performance bristles with immediacy—no overdubs, just raw exchange between musicians. It's a celebration of Beck's genius, and of the power that comes when musicians trust the moment.
Stand Up and Give Peace & Love a Chance (4:09) - The album closes on a note of hope. With echoes of 1970s Sly Stone funk, JB issues a call for unity, peace, and love. It's not naïve idealism—it's the blues speaking forward, insisting that even in struggle there is possibility. The vocal interplay between JB and Krizan underscores the message: change comes when voices rise together.
