Maxwell Street Blues (1981)

Electric blues sprang from the need for amplification to lure crowds to Chicago's now-gone neighborhood where Black and Jewish merchants pushed hot Polish sausage and cheap, sometimes hot goods in an open-air market, while blues and gospel musicians wailed on the streets. Shot in 1981 by a crew from the then-new University of Illinois at Chicago, which in concert with the Mayors Daley, was instrumental in wiping out the 80 year old culture and its neighborhood, which adjoined UIC's campus. Many blues legends got their start passing a hat on Maxwell Street. Documents the unique vibe of a rare multi-ethnic atmosphere in highly segregated Chicago.