Rock and roll was not blues, but it was more than mere bluesinfluenced music, it was bluesdrenched music. Learn more about the history of blues, soul and rock and roll with music books and publications from bluescentric. Indesputeabley, its major contribution was charley patton. However, the poetic and musical form of the blues first crystallized around 1910 and gained popularity through the publication of handys. One of the most collectible of these is amiri barakas blues people 1963, written under the name leroi jones, the first modern blues book by an african american. An americanborn guitarist, singer, and songwriter who lived in france since 1980, luther allison was the man to book at blues festivals in the mid90s. The blues is a form of music that started in the united states during the start of the 20th century. The first original blues rock artists such as cream, the paul butterfield blues band and canned heat actually borrowed the idea of combining an instrumental combo with loud amplification. Blues is a musical art form with its own distinct musical progressions and much more. The borderline is really more temporal than stylistic. It was started by former african slaves from spirituals, praise songs, and chants.
However, blues rock soon backed away from hard rock, and there was a set number of acts that continued to play and rewrite blues standards as well as write their own songs in the same idiom. The negro experience in white america and the music that developed from it. Blues rock gospel blues hokum punk blues soul blues regional scenes british blues canadian blues chicago blues detroit blues hill country blues kansas city blues louisiana blues memphis blues new orleans blues piedmont blues st. It began in the mid 1960s in england and the united states with bands such as cream and the rolling stones, who experimented with music from the older bluesmen like elmore james, robert johnson, howlin wolf and bo diddley examples of artists. I have decided to read it slowly a chapter a night as to best savor it. But this book can also be used on its own as a stand alone reference guide to scale diagrams, lead guitar soloing strategies, modal playing, learning to play over chord changes, and much more. It explained the use of the pentatonic scales and chords and how to mix them up. A musical and cultural history of the mississippi delta by. Download your library of rock to one of the best ereaders. The story of the blues a concise history harvard university course syllabus, charles sawyer. The blues form was first popularized about 191114 by the black composer w. Francis daviss the history of the blues is a groundbreaki. The idea is that you should read this book first, then the history of jazz music and the history of rock music. While the blues often deal with personal adversity and sadness.
Jan 24, 2016 in an interview with chicago blues musician dave specter he recalls a recanting of a conversation, during this time in blues history, between bb king and buddy guy on how the blues has lost favor with the african american communities and it seems that their concerts were mainly white rock fans. A musical and cultural history of the mississippi delta. Bb king charles brown koko taylor buddy guy hubert sumlin robert lockwood and many, many more. However, bluesrock soon backed away from hard rock, and there was a set number of acts that continued to play and rewrite blues standards as well as write their own songs in the same idiom. It was a good book for a total novice because it really explained the basic struture of what blues is on guitar.
From its beginnings in the early to mid1960s, blues rock has gone through several. Bluesrock simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Oliver is one of the most respected and prolific writers on blues history and this is a very readable overview of the origins and evolution of blues in the 20th century. Blues was confined to the shadows, lurking behind racial barriers. A history from rock and jazz to blues and country, angela smith takes viola at her word, offering a comprehensive look at the world of professional drumming and the women who had the courage and chops to break the barriers of this alltoomale field.
History of british blues recommended books uk blues. Blues simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Author robert palmer, a little rock, arkansas native, served as the. A history of the events and people who defined the mississippi blues. It is speculated that the term may have come from the term blue devils, meaning melancholy and sadness. This musical and cultural history traces the blues from its roots in west. The book is more remarkable, however, as an incredible pictorial and documentary history of the blues with more than 300 illustrations including recording contracts, rap sheets, and historic photos of the performers themselves. It is, at heart, a way of making sense of two distinct. The blues have made a difference in newer american and western popular music, such as jazz, bluegrass, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, hiphop, and country music, as well as common pop songs. The history of the blues and the origin of the blues is really an evolution of the blues from the unaccompanied vocal music and oral traditions of africanamerican slaves and rural blacks into a wide variety of styles and subgenres, with regional variations across the united states and, later, europe and africa. The blues have had their greatest influence on rock music. The best way to understand the blues is to visit our blues videos page and watch and listen to the. Allisons comeback into the mainstream was ushered in by a recording contract with an american record company, chicagobased alligator records.
As baraka is a poet and black militant, this book is pursued by collectors of several categories. What are the best books about the history of blues music. The history of the blues download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl. The term rhythm and blues came to define an era of contemporary blues in the 1950s. The blues is a genre of music that has deep roots in american culture, particularly in the south. In an interview with chicago blues musician dave specter he recalls a recanting of a conversation, during this time in blues history, between bb king and buddy guy on how the blues has lost favor with the african american communities and it seems that their concerts were mainly white rock fans. Classic rock all of your favorite rock songs from the ages rock and roll that has truly stood the test of time classic hard rock the loud guitars, the heavy drum solos, and a classic sound that has upset parents for generations 60s rock take a trip back in time to the glorious sounds of 60s rock, blending country, blues and surf sounds. Feel like going home, which takes its name from a song by muddy waters, presents a series of major figures in the entwined history of blues and rock and roll in a way that illuminates both the subjects and the history of rock as it descended. Pioneering rock artists of the 1950s such as chuck berry leaned heavily on classic blues structures while demonstrating a flair as naturalborn entertainers.
Click download or read online button to get the history of the blues book now. Blues legend muddy waters said that blues had a baby, and they called it rock n roll. Guralnick is a music writer who is held in high esteem by both the academic world and the popular press writing for rolling stone on occasion. The top 50 greatest music books125 every record tells a. Blues history blues is an american heritage, and it should be noted as such. Louis blues swamp blues texas blues west coast blues derivative forms bluegrass jazz rhythm and blues rock and roll. This book, by contrast, may be an overcomplication, an informed fans dizzyingly comprehensive account of the intricate and reciprocal relationships of the two musical genres, coalescing during and after the blues revival of the 1960s. Blues is the cornerstone of american popular music, the bedrock of rock and roll.
Francis davis, the history of the blues if youre only going to read one book on the blues, make it this one. As more and more african americans migrated across the country and instruments were amplified, a more mainstream form of blues was heard all over america. Once i absorbed that fundemental knowledge by memorising all the positions and play them fluidly,i would jam along to all my. Combines my twovolume history of 1960s folk rock, turn. Another popular category of blues book is the history or survey. A musical and cultural history of the mississippi delta by robert palmer, escaping the delta. Many african americans were taken to the north esp. If you only ever read one rockstar biography in your life, make it this one. He is the author of the acclaimed books outcats and history of the blues and a biography of john coltrane knopf. It is mostly an electric ensemblestyle music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock. Gioia, the author of three books on jazz and two books on music as. Robert palmers book focuses on the deltachicago connection, loaded with fascinating stories and profiles about people and places. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, piano, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a tube guitar amplifier, giving it an overdriven. The newly formed band released their debut album, blue horizon, in 1968.
Tracing its origins from the mississippi delta to its amplification in chicago right after world war ii, davis argues for an examination of the blues in its own right, not just as a precursor to jazz and rock n roll. They were grateful for their newfound success, but. Francis daviss the history of the blues is a groundbreaking rethinking of the blues that fearlessly examines how race relations have altered perceptions of the music. After he signed with alligator in 1994, allisons popularity grew exponentially. Music book publishing has experienced a growth spurt over the last few years, with biographies, compendiums, wartsnall exposes and stunningly detailed histories filling the shelves of retailers the world over. In this extraordinary musical and social history, robert palmer traces the odyssey of the blues from its rural beginnings, to the steamy bars of chicagos south side, to international popularity, recognition, and imitation. Greatest blues rock songs of all time the best of blues. I could ramble on but a little research probing this vast wasteland of cyber space and a true quest of rock s history is somewhat void without exploring a few of these elements.
For a second generation american native with eastern european jewish ancestors, and knowing all the chicago and suburban spots from taverns to delis referred to here, this is more than the story of the most important label in blues and rock history. In the 80s and 90s, blues rock was more rootsoriented than in the 60s and 70s, even when artists like the fabulous thunderbirds and stevie ray. Rocks history of jfk death songs eminem, tori amos and the beach boys among many who have tackled john f. Blues rock is a type of music which mixes blues with rock and roll, and uses mostly electric guitar as a main instrument. It started in the nineteenth century and continued to make its way to the future. In the 80s and 90s, bluesrock was more rootsoriented than in the 60s and 70s, even when artists like the fabulous thunderbirds and stevie ray. Which is the best book to understand the history of rock.
Thus reggae and salsa are not in this book, nor is country music of the 1970s. Blues music is the name that given to both a musical form and genre that is primarily created by the africanamerican communities within the deep south of the united states. List of books and articles about blues music online. The dockery plantation contributed extensively to the develpment of the blues in mississipppi. Blues rock is a fusion genre combining elements of blues and rock. Early rock singers such as elvis presley often used blues material. And even more compelling, it gives an account of life as a black hitmaker who keeps bumping into the restrictions imposed on him through segregation and racism. These songs came from the area near the mouth of the mississippi river. The following is a list of blues rock musicians blues rock is a subgenre of rock which developed in the late1960s and which emphasizes the traditional, threechord blues song and instrumental improvisation. Not a single title of my humble assemblage of around 100 books on rock and rolls history is mentioned here. It began in the mid 1960s in england and the united states with bands such as cream and the rolling stones, who experimented with music from the older bluesmen like elmore james, robert johnson, howlin wolf and bo diddley. Along the way he hung out with everyone from the stones to the ramones and helped invent the history of rock music as we know it.
Mar 24, 2020 music book publishing has experienced a growth spurt over the last few years, with biographies, compendiums, wartsnall exposes and stunningly detailed histories filling the shelves of retailers the world over. Blues rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The book is more remarkable, however, as an incredible pictorial and documentary history of the blues with more than 300 illustrations including recording. Although i found this book called the art of shuffle that is really cheap to strengthen your rhythms chops.
One suggestion would be to start with a book like leroi jones. A short blues history the history of rock and roll. Jun 12, 2014 the story of the blues told through the eyes of the artists who lived it. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. The blues means a lot of things to a lot of people. The one book i bought to get me started was by blues guitar by richard daniels. I have yet find any book that is really could teaching the blues. At the time, rhythm and blues was basically a code phrase for music recorded and bought by black people. Feel like going home, which takes its name from a song by muddy waters, presents a series of major figures in the entwined history of blues and rock and roll in a way that illuminates both the subjects and the history of rock as it descended from the. British rock musicians in the 1960s, especially the rolling stones, eric clapton, and john mayall, were strongly influenced by the blues, as were such american rock musicians as mike bloomfield, paul butterfield. Rocks origins can be traced to the late 1940s, when the popular styles of the day, country music and blues, morphed into a new sound aided by electric guitars and a steady drumbeat. This book is about the blues and its impact in great britain, and it is also about the rock music made in the 1960s and 1970s by young, mostly male british musicians who were inspired by the blues. Charley patton was quite possibily the blues most talented allaround artist. Anything that happened after the 1960s is or will be in the book on rock music.
1087 611 637 172 1034 468 1089 1304 424 1109 1046 234 433 8 1299 1520 677 1392 1386 653 524 4 524 1114 124 793 1395 279 1181 860 748