Nelson Street was once the epicenter of African American business and entertainment in the Delta, where nightclubs, cafes, churches, groceries, fish markets, barbershops, laundries, record shops, and other enterprises did a bustling trade. Greenville fostered a flourishing nightlife, especially during the 1940s and 1950s, and blues artists and audiences from throughout the area gathered at Nelson Street’s cafes, pool halls, and nightclubs, where the music ranged from raw Delta blues to big band jump blues and jazz. Famous clubs included the Casablanca, the Flowing Fountain, and the Playboy Club. In 1928, before he became America’s top black recording artist, Louis Jordan performed here with local bandleader and music educator Winchester Davis. In the early 1950s, as southern blues reached a commercial peak in rhythm and blues, record companies came to Nelson Street seeking talent. Leading local performers included Willie Love and Sonny Boy Williamson II, who recorded for the Jackson-based Trumpet label, and in 1952 Charlie Booker and others recorded for rival Modem Records at the Casablanca, an upscale restaurant and lounge at 1102 Nelson that advertised its services "For Colored Only." During one session, the local sheriff stopped the recording when artists under contract to Trumpet tried to record for Modem, and the resulting lawsuit made headlines in national trade papers. Charlie Booker’s "No Ridin’ Blues" and Willie Love’s 1951 recording "Nelson Street Blues" became local anthems, while Booker, Love, and Little Milton Campbell were among the blues artists who had their own radio shows on WGVM or WJPR. Disc jockey Rocking Eddie Williams later operated a record store on Nelson Street, and 1950s venues included Henry T’s Pool Room, the Silver Dollar Cafe, and the Blue Note. Nelson Street alumni included Oliver Sain, Eddie Shaw, J.W. "Big Moose" Walker, Burgess Gardner, Lil’ Bill Wallace, Roosevelt "Booba" Barnes, Willie Foster, T-Model Ford, John Horton, Lil’ Dave Thompson, and Greenville’s first black policeman, guitarist Willie "Burl" Carson. The most successful of them, Little Milton, later paid tribute to the Flowing Fountain in his 1987 hit "Annie Mae’s Cafe."
