Cover: Make a deal with the Devil at an intersection, and all your wishes will come true... the "Crossroads Legend." Finally, a serious story manga based on the life of the legendary bluesman! After appearing in Afternoon in late '03, this manga received lots of attention on various fronts, and took even people unfamiliar with the blues back to a time they had never been, a special work celebrating the 100th year of the blues. The Mississippi Delta in the American South, late 1920s. An age when most blacks had no choice but to sharecrop on white-owned plantations. What is the stunning fate that awaits RJ, a plain old farmer who can't play guitar but dreams of the blues?
Inside Flap: There was a bluesman who disappeared from the world nearly 70 years ago, after leaving only 29 songs behind. In the decades since, his name has become a legend, and his blues have become the roots of all kinds of pop music. All who knew this bluesman called him thus...
"The man who sold his soul to the devil"!
Characters
RJ............... Young farmer. Protagonist.
Virginia............... RJ's wife. Pregnant.
Bessie............... RJ's sister. A farm woman who lives with RJ and Virginia.
Granville............... Bessie's husband (RJ's brother-in-law). A farmer who lives with RJ and Virginia.
Mitch............... RJ's friend.
Willie............... Bluesman.
Son House............... Famed bluesman. Willie's old friend.
Contents
Hoodoo
1/Cross Road Blues (1)
2/Cross Road Blues (2)
3/Cross Road Blues (3)
4/Cross Road Blues (4)
5/32-20 Blues (1)
Afterword - Takashi "Hotoke" Nagai