A Real, Real Juke Joint Lives in North Memphis

That’s my favorite Memphis. Not the packed, trendy bar on the main drag everybody already knows. No, it’s the hidden gem you almost overlooked until you picked up a whisper, slipped into the backdoor and found the dopest party was going on without you this whole time, right underneath your nose.

That’s the same feeling I had when I pulled up on Vollentine Avenue, into a little strip next to the North Memphis Market, and walked through the doors of Wild Bill’s Juke Joint. I was greeted with music, dancing, and the kind of southern hospitality that leaves you feeling like they've been wondering what took you so long to get there.

Welcome to Memphis. 

Welcome to the party. 

A Real, Real Juke Joint 

The middle of Vollentine-Evergreen in North Memphis might not be the first place you’d expect to find a juke joint. It’s far from the bright lights of Beale Street. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, so you’d be forgiven for driving right on by. None of that really matters because that’s not why anyone comes to a place like Wild Bill’s. They come for the realness.

“This the juke joint,” says owner Mannie Williams. “Sawdust on the floor, you know what I’m sayin’. People love a juke joint. A real, real juke joint. This is one of the last surviving juke joints in Memphis.” Named after co-founder Willie “Wild Bill” Storey who passed away in 2007, Willams has kept the legacy of this iconic juke joint alive for the past seven years.

What is a juke joint, you might ask? For the uninitiated, you could say a juke joint is basically a bar but one with a certain culture. I like to think of it as the black, southern, and bluesy ying to the country music honky tonk’s yang. If you’ve seen the Memphis-connected movie Sinners, you know what I’m talking about.

 Juke joints, like Wild Bill’s, are places where people can come together, let their hair down, and feel free. You’ll meet regulars from the neighborhood who’ve been coming for years, perhaps decades. They’re the heart and soul of the joint, but they’ll make room for you if you can’t find an open table. It’s just that kind of place. Maybe it’s the fact that they don’t sell liquor, only beer. See, you’re allowed to bring your own bottle of the hard stuff. And pouring someone a shot is a great way to make a fast friend, whether they’re from around the corner or from around the world (and they do come from around the world).

And the food? The kitchen is open late, serving “anything from yardbird to cattle herd,” says Wild Bill’s day-to-day manager Tommy Cash Jr. Think catfish, burgers, shrimp and more with special soul food staples like oxtail on Sundays.

It’s hard to overstate how passionate and ambitious Mannie and Tommy are about Wild Bill’s. There’s the newly instituted “Lil’ Wild Bill” DJ sets that keep the party going until 5 a.m. They’ve recently started serving breakfast from 4 a.m. to 11 a.m., and they’ve even talked about being open 24/7. I asked them about a quote Mannie gave years ago about Wild Bill’s 2 and whether it would ever actually happen. Little did I know, it already opened in Clarksdale. They’ve moved on to talking about Wild Bill’s 3.
 

Listen and Learn with the All-Stars

Despite all the growth, one truth stands above all else, and they understand it well here. Any juke joint worth a damn has to have a hell of a band to keep the party going late. At Wild Bill’s, that’s the Juke Joint All-Stars, a rotating cast of characters with an endless supply of blues, soul, and rock. They’ll have you grooving to Otis Redding on the dance floor and stopping everything to marvel at All-Star Chloe Lavender shredding to Howlin’ Wolf with her guitar behind her head. And in my book, you haven’t had the full Memphis experience until you and you and your best friends sing and sway with the All-Stars to the most soulful version of “Tennessee Whiskey” you’ll ever hear.

They’re not just fun. These guys (and gals) can really play. 

“A lot of the great acts, this is where they come to steal the musicianry,” said Manny, who’s made a career behind the scenes of live Memphis music. “They come to listen and learn. You wonder where they get their licks from? Where they learn how to play? Coming to spots like this…that’s where they learn how to play the real blues.”

But just who are the Juke Joint All-Stars and how many are there? This is a question that seems hard to answer. As best as I can tell, some stalwarts have been All-Stars for years while some have rotated in for a short time. Some have never gotten the recognition they probably deserve but some have even been Grammy nominated. Tommy jokingly calls them the “Memphis Music Illuminati.” A secret society of sorts, with dozens of members who collectively help keep the music going in a little bluesy dot in North Memphis. 

While I’m trying to figure out what it all means, they just play. Elroy, a mostly self-taught guitar player in his 60s who works in a factory when he’s not on stage, put it simply:  “I don’t really have time to think about that. I get off work and come straight here.”

That’s the thing about Wild Bill’s. Sure, its stage has been graced by legends like B.B. King. That history matters. In fact, the walls are covered with photos of nights gone by, including some famous faces who have passed through like Samuel L. Jackson. But in its soul, it's decidedly down to earth. So often, it’s been a late night spot where musicians – some famous and some not – have come to commune with those who love the music the way they do.
 

"Everybody told me Wild Bill's"

Like pilgrims trekking to music’s hallowed grounds, the magnetic power of Memphis draws people from all over the country and the world. After all, it's the home of the blues, the cradle of soul music, the birthplace of rock and roll, and a landmark of rap. 

On a random weekday night at Wild Bill's, one of those travelers walked in, so I had to ask him, “How’d you find out about this place?

His first trip to the south, he’d flown from his home in San Francisco to Nashville for a wedding, rented a car, and headed to Memphis to continue his southern pilgrimage. Of course, he stopped by Beale Street. But, he was most excited to come to Wild Bill’s.

“I was searching online, everybody told me ‘Wild Bill’s’,” said Leland Jones, who was kind enough to let me interrupt his Memphis moment. To be clear, this was not a casual Google search, but instead a deep-dive, Reddit-crawling exploration to find the hidden gem, real taste of Memphis, wherever it might take him.

So what did he think?

“This is exactly what I wanted,” he told me as he soaked in the sounds of the Juke Joint All-Stars.

Those words and the smile on his face told me he felt “it.” Maybe something like how I felt my first time.

I’m not saying he’ll ever become a Memphian like me. But on nights like this at Wild Bill’s, everyone gets to feel like one. And for a moment, that’s all that really matters.

The need to know: 

Wild Bill's is open six days a week, Tuesday-Sunday from 7 p.m. - 5 a.m. Expect live music Thursday - Sunday from 9 p.m. until midnight Thursday/Sunday, and until 1 a.m. Friday & Saturday. Lil' Wild Bill DJs after the music until 5 a.m. There is a $10 cover when the music is going (paid cash or card). The bar serves only beer for for a $5 fee you can bring your own liquor. Check their social media accounts for occasional special events.  

For a detailed account of the Wild Bill’s history, check out Joshua Carlucci's excellent 2023 piece for Edible Memphis.