Blues 3352 226114540 2008-07-16T21:50:09Z Iridescent 937705 Cleanup/[[WP:AWB/T|typo fixing]], typos fixed: resembelence → resemblance using [[Project:AutoWikiBrowser|AWB]] {{redirect|Blues music|other uses|Blues (disambiguation)}} {{Infobox Music genre <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Music_genres --> | name = [[Blues]] |bgcolor = #0000E1 |color = white | stylistic_origins = African American [[folk music]]<br />[[Work songs]]<br />[[Folk music|Folk]]<br />[[Country music|Country]] | cultural_origins = late 19th century southern [[United States]] | instruments = {{nowrap begin}}[[Guitar]]{{·wrap}} [[Piano]]{{·wrap}} [[Harmonica]]{{·wrap}} [[Bass guitar]]{{·wrap}} [[Drum]]s{{·wrap}} [[Saxophone]]{{·wrap}} [[Vocal music|Vocals]]{{·wrap}} [[Trumpet]]{{·wrap}} [[Trombone]]{{nowrap end}} | popularity = The blues chord progressions and blue notes are widely used in most popular music styles of the 20th century United States; a highly influential music genre | derivatives = {{nowrap begin}}[[Bluegrass music|Bluegrass]]{{·wrap}} [[Jazz]]{{·wrap}} [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]]{{·wrap}} [[Rock and roll]]{{nowrap end}} | subgenrelist = List of genres of the blues | subgenres = {{nowrap begin}} [[Boogie-woogie]]{{·wrap}} [[Classic female blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Country blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Delta blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Electric blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Fife and drum blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Jump blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Piano blues]]{{nowrap end}} | fusiongenres = {{nowrap begin}} [[Blues-rock]]{{·wrap}} [[Jazz blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Punk blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Soul blues]]{{nowrap end}} | regional_scenes = {{nowrap begin}} [[African blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Atlanta blues]]{{·wrap}} [[British blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Canadian blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Chicago blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Detroit blues]]{{·wrap}} [[East Coast blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Kansas City blues (music)|Kansas City blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Louisiana blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Memphis blues]]{{·wrap}} [[New Orleans blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Piedmont blues]]{{·wrap}} [[St. Louis blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Swamp blues]]{{·wrap}} [[Texas blues]]{{·wrap}} [[West Coast blues]]{{nowrap end}} | local_scenes = | other_topics = {{nowrap begin}} [[List of genres of the blues|Blues genres]]{{·wrap}} [[List of blues musicians|Blues musicians]]{{·wrap}} [[Blues scale]]{{·wrap}} [[Jug band]]{{·wrap}} [[Origins of the blues|Origins]]{{nowrap end}} }} '''Blues''' is a [[vocal music|vocal]] and instrumental form of [[music]] based on the use of the [[blue note]]s. It emerged in [[African-American]] communities of the [[music of the United States|United States]] from [[spiritual (music)|spirituals]], work songs, [[field holler]]s, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative [[ballad]]s. The use of blue notes and the prominence of [[call and response (music)|call-and-response]] patterns in the music and lyrics are indicative of [[Africa]]n influence. The blues influenced later American and Western [[popular music]], as it became the roots of [[jazz]], [[rhythm and blues]], and [[bluegrass]]. In the 1960s and 1970s, a hybrid form called [[blues rock]] developed from the combining of blues with various [[rock and roll]] forms. ==Etymology== The phrase "the blues" is a reference to the ''the blue devils'', meaning "down" spirits, melancholy, and sadness. An early reference to "the blues" can be found in [[George Colman the Younger|George Colman's]] one act [[farce]] ''Blue devils'' (1798).<ref>The "Trésor de la Langue Française informatisé" provides this etymology to the word blues and George Colman's farce as the first appearance of this term in the English language, see http://atilf.atilf.fr/dendien/scripts/fast.exe?mot=blues</ref> Later during the 19th century, the phrase was used as a [[euphemism]] for [[delirium tremens]] and the [[police]], and it has been found used in these contexts in letters from Civil War soldiers. Though the use of the phrase in [[African American music]] may be older, it has been attested to since 1912, when Hart Wand's "[[Dallas Blues]]" became the first copyrighted Blues composition.<ref>Davis, Francis. ''The History of the Blues''. New York: Hyperion, 1995.</ref><ref>Eric Partridge, ''A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English'', 2002, Routledge (UK), ISBN 0-415-29189-5</ref> In lyrics the phrase is often used to describe a [[Depression (mood)|depressed mood]].<ref>Tony Bolden, ''Afro-Blue: Improvisations in African American Poetry and Culture'', 2004, [[University of Illinois Press]], ISBN 0-252-02874-0</ref> ==Stylistic and cultural origins== {{main|Origins of the blues}} There are few characteristics common to all blues, because the genre takes its shape from the idiosyncrasies of individual performances.<ref>Southern, pg. 333</ref> However, there are some characteristics that were present long before the creation of the modern blues. An early form of blues-like music were call-and-response shouts, which were a "functional expression... style without accompaniment or harmony and unbounded by the formality of any particular musical structure."<ref>Garofalo, pg. 44</ref> A form of this pre-blues was heard in [[slave]] field shouts and hollers, expanded into "simple solo songs laden with emotional content".<ref>Ferris, pg. 229</ref> The blues, as it is now known, can be seen as a musical style based on both European [[harmony|harmonic structure]] and the African call-and-response tradition, transformed into an interplay of voice and guitar.<ref>Morales, pg. 276 Morales attributes this claim to John Storm Roberts in ''Black Music of Two Worlds'', beginning his discussion with a quote from Roberts ''There does not seem to be the same African quality in blues forms as there clearly is in much Caribbean music''.</ref> Many blues elements, such as the call-and-response format and the use of blue notes, can be traced back to the [[music of Africa]]. The [[Diddley bow]], a homemade one-stringed instrument found in parts of the [[American South]] in the early twentieth century, and the [[banjo]], are African-derived instruments that may have helped in the transfer of African performance techniques into the early blues instrumental vocabulary.[[Image:RobertJohson.png|thumb|left|175px|[[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]], an influential [[Delta blues]] musician]] Blues music later adopted elements from the "Ethiopian airs", [[minstrel show]]s and [[Negro spiritual]]s, including instrumental and harmonic accompaniment.<ref>Garofalo, pg. 44 ''Gradually, instrumental and harmonic accompaniment were added, reflecting increasing cross-cultural contact.'' Garofalo cites other authors that also mention the "Ethiopian airs" and "Negro spirituals".</ref> The style also was closely related to [[ragtime]], which developed at about the same time, though the blues better preserved "the original melodic patterns of African music".<ref>Schuller, cited in Garofalo, pg. 27</ref> The blues form itself bears no resemblance to the melodic styles of the West African griots, and the influences are faint and tenuous.<ref>Nothing But the Blues: The Music and the Musicians by Lawrence Cohn (Author), Mary Katherine Aldin (Author), Bruce Bastin (Contributor) Abbeville Press. 1993. ISBN 1558592717 page 25</ref> And no specific African musical form can be identified as the single direct ancestor of the blues.<ref>The Curious Listener's Guide to the Blues. Barbara Vierwo, Andy Trudeau. Stone Press ISBn 0-399-53072-X page 15 </ref> Blues songs from this period, such as [[Lead Belly]]'s or [[Henry Thomas (blues musician)|Henry Thomas's]] recordings, show many different structures. The [[twelve bar blues|twelve-]], [[eight-bar blues|eight-]], or [[16 bar blues|sixteen-bar]] structure based on [[tonic chord|tonic]] (I), [[subdominant chord|subdominant]] (IV) and [[dominant chord]]s (V) became the most common forms.<ref>Garofalo, pgs. 46–47</ref> What is now recognizable as the standard [[12-bar blues]] form is documented from [[oral history]] and [[sheet music]] appearing in African American communities throughout the region along the lower [[Mississippi River]], in [[Memphis, Tennessee]]'s [[Beale Street]], and by white bands in [[New Orleans]]. ==Lyrics== {{sample box start|blues music}} {{multi-listen start}} {{multi-listen item| filename=Crossroads.ogg|title="Cross Road Blues"| description=Performed in 1937 by [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]], a Delta blues guitarist (see also "[[Cross Road Blues]]"'s own article)| format=[[Ogg]]}} {{multi-listen item| filename=Po'Gal.ogg| title="Po’ Gal"| description=East Coast blues, performed by [[Zora Neale Hurston]] in 1939| format=[[Ogg]]}}{{multi-listen item| filename=| title="Caldonia"|description=Jump blues performed by [[Louis Jordan]] in 1945|format=[[Ogg]]}} {{multi-listen item|filename=HowlinWolf_MoaninAtMidnight.ogg|title=Moanin' At Midnight|description=Recorded at [[Memphis Recording Service]], [[14 May]] [[1951]] with [[Willie Johnson]] (guitar) and [[Willie Steele]] (drums).|format=[[Ogg]]}} {{multi-listen item|filename=1 Steppin' Out.ogg|title="Steppin' Out"|description=Rock blues on the album ''[[Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton]]'', 1966.|format=[[Ogg]]}} {{multi-listen end}} {{sample box end}} The [[traditional blues verses|original lyrical form of the blues]] was probably a single line, repeated four times. It was only later that the current, most common structure of a line, repeated once and then followed by a single line conclusion, became standard.<ref>Ferris, pg. 230</ref> Two of the first published blues songs, however, [[Dallas Blues]] (1912) and [[St Louis Blues]] (1914) both featured lines repeated twice, followed by an "answer" line, over 12 bars of music. [[W.C. Handy]] wrote that he adopted this convention to avoid the monotony of lines repeated three times.<ref>Father of the Blues: An Autobiography. by W.C. Handy, edited by Arna Bontemps: foreword by Abbe Niles. Macmillan Company, New York; (1941) page 143. no ISBN in this first printing</ref> These lines were often sung following a pattern closer to a [[talking blues|rhythmic talk]] than to a melody. Early blues frequently took the form of a loose narrative. The singer voiced often his or her "personal woes in a world of harsh reality: a lost love, the cruelty of police officers, oppression at the hands of white folk, [and] hard times".<ref>Ewen, pgs. 142–143</ref> Author Ed Morales has claimed that [[Yoruba mythology]] played a part in early blues, citing [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]]'s "[[Cross Road Blues]]" as a "thinly veiled reference to [[Eleggua]], the [[orisha]] in charge of the crossroads".<ref name = "cgkmik">Morales, pg. 277</ref> However, many seminal blues artists such as [[Son House]], or [[Skip James]] had in their repertoire several religious songs or spirituals. [[Reverend Gary Davis]] and [[Blind Willie Johnson]] are examples of artists often categorized as blues musicians for their music but whose lyrics clearly belong to the spirituals. Although the blues gained an association with misery and oppression, the blues could also be humorous and raunchy as well: :"Rebecca, Rebecca, get your big legs off of me, :Rebecca, Rebecca, get your big legs off of me, :It may be sending you baby, but it's worrying the hell out of me." ::From [[Big Joe Turner]]'s "Rebecca", a compilation of [[traditional blues lyrics]] [[Hokum]] blues celebrated both comedic lyrical content and a boisterous, farcical performance style. [[Tampa Red]]'s classic "Tight Like That" is a sly wordplay with the double meaning of being "tight" with someone coupled with a more salacious physical familiarity. Lyrical content of music became slightly simpler in post war-blues in which focus was often almost exclusively on singer's relationship woes or sexual worries. Many lyrical themes that frequently appeared in pre-war blues such as economic depression, farming, devils, gambling, magic, floods and dry periods were less common post war blues. ==Musical style== During the first decades of the twentieth century blues music was not clearly defined in terms of a chord progression. There were many blues in [[8-bar blues|8-bar]] form, such as "[[How Long Blues]]", "[[Trouble in Mind]]", and [[Big Bill Broonzy]]'s "[[Key to the Highway]]". Idiosyncratic numbers of bars are also encountered occasionally, as with the 9-bar progression in [[Howlin' Wolf]]'s "[[Sitting on Top of the World]]". The basic twelve-bar lyric framework of a blues composition is reflected by a standard [[harmonic progression]] of [[12-bar blues|twelve bars]], in 4/4 or (rarely) 2/4 time. [[Slow blues]] are often played in 12/8 (4 beats per measure with 3 subdivisions per beat), that is, 4/4 time with [[triplet]]s. By the 1930s, twelve-bar blues became the standard. There would also be [[16 bar blues]], as in [[Ray Charles]]'s instrumental "Sweet 16 Bars", and in [[Herbie Hancock]]'s "Watermelon Man". The blues [[Chord (music)|chords]] associated to a [[twelve-bar blues]] are typically a set of three different chords played over a twelve-bar scheme: {| border=1 cellspacing=0 class=wikitable |align="center" width="50px"| I |align="center" width="50px" | I or IV |align="center" width="50px" | I |align="center" width="50px" | I7 |- |align="center" width="50px" | IV |align="center" width="50px" | IV |align="center" width="50px" | I |align="center" width="50px" | I7 |- |align="center" width="50px" | V |align="center" width="50px" | IV |align="center" width="50px" | I |align="center" width="50px" | I or V |} where the [[Roman number]]s refer to the [[degree (music)|degrees]] of the progression. That would mean, if played in the [[tonality]] of C, the chords would be as follows: {| border=1 cellspacing=0 class=wikitable |align="center" width="50px" | C |align="center" width="50px" | C or F |align="center" width="50px" | C |align="center" width="50px" | C |- |align="center" width="50px" | F |align="center" width="50px" | F |align="center" width="50px" | C |align="center" width="50px" | C |- |align="center" width="50px" | G |align="center" width="50px" | F |align="center" width="50px" | C |align="center" width="50px" | C or G |} (When the IV chord is played in bar 2, the blues is called a "Quick-Change" blues). In this example, C is the [[tonic chord]], F the [[subdominant chord|subdominant]]. Much of the time, some or all of these chords are played in the [[harmonic seventh]] (7th) form. Frequently, the last chord is the dominant (V or in this case G) [[turnaround (music)|turnaround]] making the transition to the beginning of the next progression. The use of the [[harmonic seventh]] interval is a characteristic of blues, and is popularly called the "blues seven" <ref>{{cite web | title=Ellen Fullman, "The Long String Instrument", ''MusicWorks'', Issue #37 Fall 1987 | url=http://www.deepmedia.org/ellenfullman/mw85/fullman_article.pdf}}</ref>. At a 7:4 ratio, it is not close to any interval, minor ''or'' major, on the conventional Western diatonic scale <ref>{{cite web | title=A Jazz Improvisation Almanac, Outside Shore Music Online School | url=http://www.outsideshore.com/school/music/almanac/html/Music_Theory/Jazz_Scales/Blues_And_Bebop_Scales/Blues_Scale.htm}} </ref>. However, through convenience or necessity it is often approximated by a [[minor seventh]] interval, or in terms of chords, a [[dominant seventh]] chord. [[Image:A minor pentatonic scale.svg|thumb|350px|A minor [[pentatonic scale]]; {{Audio|PentMinor.mid|play}}]] The lyrics generally end on the last beat of the tenth bar or the first beat of the eleventh bar, and the final two bars are given to the instrumentalist as a break; the harmony of this two-bar break, the turnaround, can be extremely complex, sometimes consisting of single notes that defy analysis in terms of chords. The final beat, however, is almost always strongly grounded in the dominant seventh (V7), to provide tension for the next verse. [[Image:Partitura.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Sheet music from "[[St. Louis Blues (song)|St. Louis Blues]]" (1914)]] [[Melody|Melodically]], blues is marked by the use of the [[Flat (music)|flat]]ted [[minor third|third]], [[tritone|fifth]] and [[minor seventh|seventh]] (the so-called [[blue note|''blue'' or ''bent notes'']]) of the associated [[major scale]].<ref>Ewen, pg. 143</ref> These scale tones can replace the natural scale tones or be added to the scale, as in the case of the minor [[pentatonic]] blues scale, where the flatted third replaces the natural third, the flatted seventh replaces the natural seventh and the flatted fifth is added in between the natural fourth and natural fifth. While the twelve-bar harmonic progression had been intermittently used for centuries, the revolutionary aspect of blues was the frequent use of the flatted third, flatted seventh, and even flatted fifth in the melody, together with ''crushing''—playing directly adjacent notes at the same time, i.e., diminished second—and ''sliding''—similar to using [[grace note]]s.<ref> Grace notes were common in the [[Baroque music|Baroque]] and [[Classical music era|Classical]] periods, but they acted as ornamentation rather than as part of the harmonic structure. [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]]'s ''[[Piano Concerto No. 21 (Mozart)|Piano Concerto No. 21]]'' has a flatted fifth in the dominant. However, this was a technique for building tension for resolution into the perfect fifth, while a blues melody uses the flatted fifth as part of the scale.</ref> The blue notes allow for key moments of expression particularly during the cadences, melodies, and embellishments of the blues. Where the three line verses end, for example, there is a falling cadence that approaches just shy of the tonic, merely suggesting it, and combining the falling of a speaking voice with the shape of the blues scale in a unique, expressive way. This melodic fall, placed at the [[turnaround]] (end of the verse), is employed most clearly in the modern, Chicago blues sound. A similar sound occurs in gospel and R&B but not to the same effect, where it is usually termed a melisma. Whereas a classical musician will generally play a grace note distinctly, a blues singer or harmonica player will [[glissando]], "crushing" the two notes and then releasing the grace note. In blues chord progressions, the tonic, subdominant and dominant chords are often played as [[harmonic seventh]] chords, the harmonic seventh being an important component of the blues scale. ('''NB''': While the harmonic seventh may be voiced easily, on equally tempered instruments like the guitar, it is approximated by means of a minor seventh, which is a third of a semitone higher.) Blues is also occasionally played in a [[minor scale|minor key]], such as in the style of [[Paul Butterfield]]. The scale differs little from the traditional minor, except for the occasional use of a flatted fifth in the tonic, often sung or played by the singer or lead instrument with the [[perfect fifth]] in the harmony. * [[Janis Joplin]]'s rendition of "Ball and Chain", accompanied by [[Big Brother and the Holding Company]], provides an example of this technique. *Minor-key blues is often structured in sixteen bars rather than twelve, in the style of [[gospel music]], as in "[[St. James Infirmary Blues]]" and [[Trixie Smith]]'s "My Man Rocks Me." Blues [[shuffle rhythm|shuffles]] reinforce the trance-like rhythm and call-and-response, and form a repetitive effect called a "[[groove (popular music)|groove]]". The simplest shuffles commonly used in many postwar [[electric blues]], [[rock-and-roll]]s, or early [[bebop]]s were a three-note [[riff]] on the bass strings of the guitar. When this riff was played over the bass and the drums, the groove "feel" is created. The [[walking bass]] is another device that helps to create a "groove" . The last bar of the chord progression is usually accompanied by a turnaround that makes the transition to the beginning of the next progression. [[Shuffle rhythm]] is often vocalized as "''dow'', da ''dow'', da ''dow'', da" or "''dump'', da ''dump'', da ''dump'', da"<ref>David Hamburger, ''Acoustic Guitar Slide Basics'', 2001, ISBN 1-890490-38-5.</ref> as it consists of uneven, or "swung", eighth notes. On a guitar this may be done as a simple steady bass or may add to that stepwise quarter note motion from the fifth to the sixth of the chord and back. An example is provided by the following guitar [[tablature]] for the first four bars of a blues progression in E:<ref>{{cite web | title=Lesson 72: Basic Blues Shuffle by Jim Burger | url=http://www.wholenote.com/default.asp?src=l&l=72&p=1 | accessmonthday = November 25 | accessyear=2005 }} </ref><ref>Wilbur M. Savidge, Randy L. Vradenburg, ''Everything About Playing the Blues'', 2002, Music Sales Distributed, ISBN 1-884848-09-5, pg. 35</ref> <div style="font-size: 75%"> E7 A7 E7 E7 E |-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------| B |-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------| G |-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------| D |-------------------|2--2--4--2--5--2--4|-------------------|-------------------| A |2--2--4--2--5--2--4|0--0--0--0--0--0--0|2--2--4--2--5--2--4|2--2--4--2--5--2--4| E |0--0--0--0--0--0--0|-------------------|0--0--0--0--0--0--0|0--0--0--0--0--0--0| </div> Blues in jazz is much different from blues in other types of music (such as Rock, R&B, Soul, Funk, and Blues in its own category). [[Jazz blues]] normally stays on the V chord through bars 9 and 10, emphasizing the dominant - tonic resolution over the subdominant - tonic structure of traditional blues. This final V-I cadence lends itself to many variations, the most basic of which is the ii-V-I progression in bars 9, 10 and 11. From that point, both the dominant approach (ii-V) and the resolution (I) can be altered and "substituted" nearly endlessly, including, for instance, doing away with the I chord altogether (bars 9–12: ii | V | iii, vi | ii, V |) In this case, bars 11 and 12 function as an extended turn-around to the next chorus. ==History of the blues genres== ===Origins=== {{main|Origins of the blues}} [[Image:Okahumkee-On-The-Ockl.jpg|right|thumb|Okahumkee On The Ocklawaha, 1890s photo of the tourist steamer out of Palatka in Florida with black musicians playing guitar]] Blues has evolved from an unaccompanied vocal music and oral traditions of African-American slaves (imported from West Africa; principally [[Mali]], [[Senegal]]; the [[Gambia]] and [[Ghana]]<ref>The rough guide to African Blues CD booklet</ref><ref>[http://www.livinblues.com/roots.asp Blues imported from West-Africa]</ref>) and rural blacks into a wide variety of styles and subgenres, with regional variations across the United States and, later, Europe and Africa. The musical forms and styles that are now considered the "blues" as well as modern "[[country music]]" arose in the same regions during the nineteenth century in the southern United States. Recorded blues and country can be found from as far back as the 1920s, when the popular record industry developed and created marketing categories called "[[race music]]" and "[[hillbilly music]]" to sell music by blacks for blacks and by whites for whites, respectively. At the time, there was no clear musical division between "blues" and "country," except for the ethnicity of the performer, and even that was sometimes documented incorrectly by record companies.<ref>Garofalo, pgs. 44–47 ''As marketing categories, designations like race and hillbilly intentionally separated artists along racial lines and conveyed the impression that their music came from mutually exclusive sources. Nothing could have been further from the truth... In cultural terms, blues and country were more equal than they were separate.'' Garofalo claims that ''artists were sometimes listed in the wrong racial category in record company catalogues.''</ref> Studies have situated the origin of black spirituals inside slaves' exposure to their white [[Hebrides|Hebridean]]-originated gospels. African-American economist and historian [[Thomas Sowell]] also notes that the southern, black, ex-slave population was acculturated to a considerable degree by and among their Scots-Irish neighbours. However, the findings of Kubik and others also clearly attest to the essential Africanness of many essential aspects of blues expression. The social and economic reasons for the appearance of the blues are not fully known.<ref>Philip V. Bohlman, "Immigrant, folk, and regional music in the twentieth century", in ''The Cambridge History of American Music'', ed. David Nicholls, 1999, [[Cambridge University Press]], ISBN 0-521-45429-8, pg. 285</ref> The first appearance of the blues is not well defined and is often dated between 1870 and 1900, a period that coincides with [[Abolitionism|Emancipation]], the development of [[juke joint]]s as a refuge for blacks separate from the white society,<ref name=bluescommentary>{{cite book| last = Oliver| first = Paul | title = Blues Off the Record:Thirty Years of Blues Commentary | publisher =Da Capo Press | date = 1984 | location = New York | pages = pp. 45&ndash;47 | isbn = 0-306-80321-6}}</ref> and the transition from slavery to sharecropping, small-scale agricultural production and the expansion of railroads in the southern United States. Several scholars characterize the early 1900s development of blues music as a move from group performances to a more individualized style. They argue that the development of the blues is associated with the newly acquired freedom of the enslaved people. According to [[Lawrence Levine]],<ref>Lawrence W. Levine, ''Black Culture and Black Consciousness: Afro-American Folk Thought from Slavery to Freedom'', [[Oxford University Press]], 1977, ISBN 0-19-502374-9, pg. 223 </ref> "there was a direct relationship between the national ideological emphasis upon the individual, the popularity of [[Booker T. Washington]]'s teachings, and the rise of the blues." Levine states that "psychologically, socially, and economically, Negroes were being acculturated in a way that would have been impossible during slavery, and it is hardly surprising that their secular music reflected this as much as their religious music did." === Prewar blues === The American [[sheet music]] publishing industry produced a great deal of [[ragtime]] music. By 1912, the sheet music industry published three popular blues-like compositions, precipitating the [[Tin Pan Alley]] adoption of blues elements: "Baby Seals' Blues" by [["Baby" F. Seals]] (arranged by [[Artie Matthews]]), "Dallas Blues" by [[Hart Wand]] and "[[The Memphis Blues]]" by [[W. C. Handy]].<ref>Garofalo, pg. 27; Garofalo cites Barlow in ''Handy's sudden success demonstrated [the] commercial potential of [the blues], which in turn made the genre attractive to the Tin Pan Alley acks, who wasted little time in turning out a deluge of imitations''. {parentheticals in Garofalo)</ref> Handy was a formally trained musician, composer and arranger who helped to popularize the blues by transcribing and orchestrating blues in an almost symphonic style, with bands and singers. He became a popular and prolific composer, and billed himself as the "Father of the Blues"; however, his compositions can be described as a fusion of blues with ragtime and jazz, a merger facilitated using the Cuban [[habanera (music)|habanera]] rhythm that had long been a part of ragtime;<ref name = "trkeja">Garofalo, pg. 27</ref><ref name = "cgkmik"/> Handy's signature work was the "[[St. Louis Blues (song)|St. Louis Blues]]". In the 1920s, the blues became a major element of African American and American popular music, reaching white audiences via Handy's arrangements and the classic female blues performers. The blues evolved from informal performances in bars to entertainment in theaters. Blues performances were organized by the [[Theater Owners Bookers Association]] in [[nightclub]]s such as the [[Cotton Club]], and [[juke joint]]s, such as the bars along [[Beale Street]] in Memphis. This evolution led to a notable diversification of the styles and to a clearer division between blues and jazz. Several record companies, such as the [[American Record Corporation]], [[Okeh Records]], and [[Paramount Records]], began to record African American music. As the recording industry grew, country blues performers like [[Bo Carter]], [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]], [[Lonnie Johnson]], [[Tampa Red]] and [[Blind Blake]] became more popular in the African American community. [[Sylvester Weaver]] was the first to record the [[slide guitar]] style, in which a guitar is fretted with a knife blade or the sawed-off neck of a bottle. The slide guitar became an important part of the [[Delta blues]].<ref name = "bkihns">Clarke, pg. 138</ref> The first blues recordings from the 1920s were in two categories: a traditional, rural [[country blues]] and more polished 'city' or urban blues. Country blues performers often improvised, either without accompaniment or with only a banjo or guitar. There were many regional styles of country blues in the early 20th century. The (Mississippi) Delta blues was a rootsy sparse style with passionate vocals accompanied by [[slide guitar]]. [[Robert Johnson (musician)|Robert Johnson]],<ref>Clarke, pg. 141</ref> who was little-recorded, combined elements of both urban and rural blues. Along with Robert Johnson, influential performers of this style were his predecessors [[Charley Patton]] and [[Son House]]. Singers such as [[Blind Willie McTell]] and [[Blind Boy Fuller]] performed in the southeastern "delicate and lyrical" [[Piedmont blues]] tradition, which used an elaborate [[fingerpicking]] guitar technique. Georgia also had an early slide tradition.<ref>Clarke, pg. 139</ref> ===1920s and forward=== The lively [[Memphis blues]] style, which developed in the 1920s and 1930s around [[Memphis, Tennessee]], was influenced by [[jug band]]s, such as the [[Memphis Jug Band]] or the [[Gus Cannon|Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers]]. Performers such as [[Frank Stokes]], [[Blind Old Tom Anderson]], [[Sleepy John Estes]], [[Robert Wilkins]], [[Big Boy Brazier]], [[Joe McCoy]] and [[Memphis Minnie]] used a variety of unusual instruments such as [[washboard]], [[Musical styles (violin)#Fiddle|fiddle]], [[kazoo]] or [[mandolin]]. Memphis Minnie was famous for her virtuoso guitar style. Pianist [[Memphis Slim]] began his career in Memphis, but his quite distinct style was smoother and contained some swing elements. Many blues musicians based in Memphis moved to Chicago in the late 1930s or early 1940s and became part of the urban blues movement which blended country music and electric blues. [[Image:Bessiesmith.jpg|thumb|right|175px|[[Bessie Smith]], an early blues singer, was known for her powerful voice.]] City or urban blues styles were more codified and elaborate.<ref name = "qzdblv">Garofalo, pg. 47</ref> [[classic female blues|Classic female urban]] or [[vaudeville]] blues singers were popular in the 1920s, among them [[Mamie Smith]], [[Gertrude Ma Rainey|Gertrude "Ma" Rainey]], [[Bessie Smith]], and [[Victoria Spivey]]. Mamie Smith, more a vaudeville performer than a blues artist, was the first African- American to record a blues in 1920; her "Crazy Blues" sold 75,000 copies in its first month.<ref>Hawkeye Herman, General background on African American Music, Blues Foundation, Essays: What is the blues?http://www.blues.org/blues/essays.php4?Id=3</ref> Ma Rainey, called the "Mother of Blues", and Bessie Smith sang "... each song around centre tones, perhaps in order to project her voice more easily to the back of a room." Smith would "...sing a song in an unusual key, and her artistry in bending and stretching notes with her beautiful, powerful contralto to accommodate her own interpretation was unsurpassed".<ref>Clarke, pg. 137</ref> Urban male performers included popular black musicians of the era, such [[Tampa Red]], [[Big Bill Broonzy]] and [[Leroy Carr]]. Before WWII, Tampa Red was sometimes referred to as "The Guitar Wizard." Carr made the then-unusual choice of accompanying himself on the piano.<ref name = "bkihns"/> Another development in this period was [[big band]] blues. The "[[territory band]]s" operating out of [[Kansas City]], the [[Benny Moten]] orchestra, [[Jay McShann]], and the [[Count Basie Orchestra]] were also concentrating on the blues, with 12-bar blues instrumentals such as Basie's "[[One O'Clock Jump]]" and "[[Jumpin' at the Woodside]]" and boisterous "blues shouting" by [[Jimmy Rushing]] on songs like "[[Going to Chicago]]" and "[[Sent for You Yesterday]]." A well-known big band blues tune is [[Glenn Miller]]'s "[[In the Mood]]". [[Image:Boogie-woogie-bassline.svg|thumb|left|A typical boogie-woogie bassline]] [[boogie-woogie (music)|Boogie-woogie]] was another important style of 1930s and early 1940s urban blues. While the style is often associated with solo piano, boogie-woogie was also used to accompany singers and, as a solo part, in bands and small combos. Boogie-Woogie style was characterized by a regular bass figure, an [[ostinato]] or [[riff]] and [[shift of level|shifts of level]] in the left hand, elaborating each chord and trills and decorations in the right hand. Boogie-woogie was pioneered by the Chicago-based [[Jimmy Yancey]] and the Boogie-Woogie Trio ([[Albert Ammons]], [[Pete Johnson]] and [[Meade Lux Lewis]]). Chicago boogie-woogie performers included [[Pinetop Smith|Clarence "Pine Top" Smith]] and [[Earl Hines]], who "linked the propulsive left-hand rhythms of the ragtime pianists with melodic figures similar to those of Armstrong's trumpet in the right hand".<ref name = "qzdblv"/> In the 1940s, the [[jump blues]] style developed. Jump blues is influenced by [[big band]] music and uses [[saxophone]] or other [[brass instrument]]s and the guitar in the rhythm section to create a jazzy, up-tempo sound with declamatory vocals. Jump blues tunes by [[Louis Jordan]] and [[Big Joe Turner]], based in [[Kansas City, Missouri]], influenced the development of later styles such as [[rock and roll]] and [[rhythm and blues]].<ref>Garofalo, pg. 76</ref> The smooth Louisiana style of [[Professor Longhair]] and, more recently, [[Dr. John]] blends classic rhythm and blues with blues styles. === Early post-war blues === After [[World War II]] and in the 1950s, new styles of [[electric blues]] music became popular in cities such as [[Chicago]], [[Detroit, Michigan|Detroit]] and [[St. Louis]]. Electric blues used amplified electric guitars, electric bass, drums, and harmonica played through a microphone. Chicago became a center for electric blues in the early 1950s. [[Chicago blues]] is influenced to a large extent by the [[Delta blues|Mississippi blues]] style, because many performers had migrated from the [[Mississippi]] region. [[Howlin' Wolf]], [[Muddy Waters]], [[Willie Dixon]], and [[Jimmy Reed]] were all born in Mississippi and moved to Chicago during the [[Great Migration (African American)|Great Migration]]. Their style is characterized by the use of electric guitar, sometimes slide guitar, [[harmonica]], and a rhythm section of bass and drums. [[J. T. Brown]] who played in [[Elmore James]]'s or [[J. B. Lenoir]]'s bands, also used saxophones, but these were used more as "backing" or rhythmic support than as solo instruments. [[Image:Muddy1.png|thumb|right|175px|[[Muddy Waters]], described as "the guiding light of the modern blues school"<ref>Dicaire (1999), p. 79</ref>]] [[Little Walter]] and [[Sonny Boy Williamson II|Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller)]] are well known harmonica (called "[[Harmonica techniques#Blues harp (2nd position)|harp]]" by blues musicians) players of the early Chicago blues scene. Other harp players such as [[Big Walter Horton]] were also influential. Muddy Waters and Elmore James were known for their innovative use of slide electric guitar. [[B. B. King]] and [[Freddie King]] (no relation), who did not use slide guitar, were influential guitarists of the Electric blues style, even though they weren't from Chicago. Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters were known for their deep, "gravelly" voices. Bassist and composer [[Willie Dixon]] played a major role on the Chicago blues scene. He composed and wrote many [[blues standard|standard blues]] songs of the period, such as "[[Hoochie Coochie Man]]", "[[I Just Want to Make Love to You]]" (both penned for Muddy Waters) and, "[[Wang Dang Doodle]]" and "[[Back Door Man]]" for Howlin' Wolf. Most artists of the Chicago blues style recorded for the Chicago-based [[Chess Records]] label. Other prominent blues labels of this era included [[J.O.B. Records]] and [[Vee-Jay Records]]. In the 1950s, blues had a huge influence on mainstream American popular music and in particular on the development of [[rockabilly]]. While popular musicians like [[Bo Diddley]] and [[Chuck Berry]] were influenced by the Chicago blues, their enthusiastic playing styles departed from the melancholy aspects of blues. Diddley and Berry's approach to performance was one of the factors that influenced the [[Origins of rock and roll|transition from the blues to rock 'n' roll]]. [[Elvis Presley]] and [[Bill Haley]] were more influenced by the jump blues and boogie-woogie styles. They popularized rock and roll within the white segment of the population. Chicago blues also influenced [[Louisiana]]'s [[zydeco]] music, with [[Clifton Chenier]] using blues accents. Zydeco musicians used electric solo guitar and [[cajun]] arrangements of blues standards. Other blues artists, such as [[T-Bone Walker]], [[Michael Walton]] and [[John Lee Hooker]], had influences not directly related to the Chicago style. [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas]]-born T-Bone Walker is often associated with the [[West Coast blues|California blues]] style, which is smoother than Chicago blues and is a transition between the Chicago blues, the jump blues and [[Swing (genre)|swing]] with some [[jazz guitar|jazz-guitar]] influence. John Lee Hooker's blues is more "personal", based on Hooker's deep rough voice accompanied by a single electric guitar. Though not directly influenced by boogie woogie, his "groovy" style is sometimes called "guitar boogie". His first hit "[[Boogie Chillen]]" reached #1 on the R&B charts in 1949.<ref>Lars Bjorn, ''Before Motown'', 2001, [[University of Michigan]] Press, ISBN 0-472-06765-6, pg. 175</ref> By the late 1950s, the [[swamp blues]] genre developed near [[Baton Rouge]], with performers such as [[Slim Harpo]], [[Sam Myers]] and [[Jerry McCain]]. Swamp blues has a slower pace and a simpler use of the harmonica than the Chicago blues style performers such as Little Walter or Muddy Waters. Songs from this genre include "Scratch my Back", "She's Tough" and "[[I'm a King Bee]]". ===Blues in the 1960s and 1970s=== By the beginning of the 1960s, genres influenced by [[African American music]] such as [[rock and roll]] and [[soul music|soul]] were part of mainstream popular music. White performers had brought African-American music to new audiences, both within the US and abroad. In the UK, bands emulated US blues legends, and UK blues-rock-based bands had an influential role throughout the 1960s. [[Image:B. B. King.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Blues legend [[B.B. King]] with his guitar, "Lucille"]] Blues performers such as [[John Lee Hooker]] and [[Muddy Waters]] continued to perform to enthusiastic audiences, inspiring new artists steeped in traditional blues, such as New York-born [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]]. [[John Lee Hooker]] blended his blues style with rock elements and playing with younger white musicians, creating a musical style that can be heard on the 1971 album ''Endless Boogie''. [[B. B. King]]'s virtuoso guitar technique earned him the eponymous title "king of the blues". In contrast to the Chicago style, King's band used strong brass support from a saxophone, trumpet, and trombone, instead of using slide guitar or harp. [[Tennessee]]-born [[Bobby Bland|Bobby "Blue" Bland]], like B. B. King, also straddled the blues and R&B genres. During this period, Freddie King and Albert King often played with rock and soul musicians (Eric Clapton, Booker T & the MGs)and had a major influence on those styles of music. The music of the [[African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)|Civil Rights]] and [[Free Speech Movement|Free Speech]] movements in the US prompted a [[American folk music revival|resurgence of interest in American roots music and early African American music]]. As well as Jimmi Bass Music festivals such as the [[Newport Folk Festival]] brought traditional blues to a new audience, which helped to revive interest in prewar acoustic blues and performers such as [[Son House]], [[Mississippi John Hurt]], [[Skip James]], and [[Reverend Gary Davis]]. Many compilations of classic prewar blues were republished by the [[Yazoo Records]]. [[J. B. Lenoir]] from the Chicago blues movement in the 1950s recorded several LPs using acoustic guitar, sometimes accompanied by [[Willie Dixon]] on the acoustic bass or drums. His songs commented on political issues such as [[racism]] or [[Vietnam War]] issues, which was unusual for this period. His ''Alabama Blues'' recording had a song that stated: <blockquote> I never will go back to Alabama, that is not the place for me (2x)</br> You know they killed my sister and my brother,</br> and the whole world let them peoples go down there free </blockquote> <!-- Commented out because image was deleted: [[Image:bluesbreakers.jpg|thumb|left|[[John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers]] with [[Eric Clapton]] album cover]] --> White audiences' interest in the blues during the 1960s increased due to the Chicago-based [[Paul Butterfield|Paul Butterfield Blues Band]] and the [[British blues]] movement. The style of [[British blues]] developed in the UK, when bands such as [[Fleetwood Mac]], [[John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers]], [[The Rolling Stones]], [[The Yardbirds]], and [[Cream (band)|Cream]] performed classic blues songs from the [[Delta blues|Delta]] or [[Chicago blues]] traditions. The British blues musicians of the early 1960s inspired a number of American [[blues-rock]] fusion performers, including [[Canned Heat]], [[Janis Joplin]], [[Johnny Winter]], [[The J. Geils Band]], [[Ry Cooder]] and The [[Allman Brothers Band]]. Many of [[Led Zeppelin]]'s earlier hits were renditions of traditional blues songs. One [[blues-rock]] performer, [[Jimi Hendrix]], was a rarity in his field at the time: a black man who played [[psychedelic rock]]. Hendrix was a skilled guitarist, and a pioneer in the innovative use of [[distortion]] and [[feedback]] in his music.<ref>Garofalo, pgs. 224–225</ref> Through these artists and others, blues music influenced the development of [[rock (music)|rock music]]. In the late 1960s, the [[Chicago#West Side|West Side]] style blues emerged in Chicago with [[Magic Sam]], [[Magic Slim]] and [[Otis Rush]]. West Side style has strong rhythmic support from a rhythm guitar, bass electric guitar, and drums. [[Albert King]], [[Buddy Guy]], and [[Luther Allison]] had a West Side style that was dominated by amplified electric lead guitar. Since the early 1970s, The [[Texas blues|Texas rock-blues style ]] emerged which used guitars in both solo and rhythm roles. In contrast with the West Side blues, the Texas style is strongly influenced by the British rock-blues movement. Major artists of the Texas style are [[Johnny Winter]], [[Stevie Ray Vaughan]], [[The Fabulous Thunderbirds]], and [[ZZ Top]]. These artists all began their musical journey in the 1970s, but they did not achieve major international success until the next decade. ===1980s to the present === Since the 1980s, there has been a resurgence of interest in the blues among a certain part of the African-American population, particularly around [[Jackson, MS]] and other [[deep South]] regions. Often termed "[[soul blues]]" or "[[Southern Soul]]," the music at the heart of this movement was given new life by the unexpected success of two particular recordings on the Jackson-based [[Malaco]] label: [[Z. Z. Hill]]'s ''Down Home Blues'' (1982) and [[Little Milton]]'s ''The Blues is Alright'' (1984). Contemporary African-American performers who work this vein of the blues include [[Bobby Rush (musician)|Bobby Rush]], [[Denise LaSalle]], [[Sir Charles Jones]], [[Bettye LaVette]], [[Marvin Sease]] and [[Peggy Scott-Adams]]. [[Image:Svaughan.jpg|thumb|left|175px|Texas blues guitarist, [[Stevie Ray Vaughan]]]] During the 1980s, blues also continued in both traditional and new forms. In 1982, the album ''[[Strong Persuader]]'' revealed [[Robert Cray]] as a major blues artist. The first [[Stevie Ray Vaughan]] recording ''[[Texas Flood]]'' was released in 1983, and the Texas based guitarist exploded onto the international stage. 1989 saw a revival of [[John Lee Hooker]]'s popularity with the album ''[[The Healer (album)|The Healer]]''. [[Eric Clapton]] known for his performances with [[John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers|the Blues Breakers]] and [[Cream (band)|Cream]], made a comeback in the 1990s with his album ''[[Unplugged (Eric Clapton album)|Unplugged]]'', in which he played some standard blues numbers on acoustic guitar. In the 1980s and 1990s, blues publications such as ''[[Living Blues]]'' and ''Blues Revue'' began to be distributed, major cities began forming blues societies, outdoor blues festivals became more common, and<ref>A directory of the most significant blues festivals can be found at http://blues.about.com/od/bluesfestivals/</ref> more [[nightclub]]s and venues for blues emerged.<ref>A list of important blues venues in the U.S. can be found at http://blues.about.com/cs/venues/</ref> In the 1990s, blues performers explored a range of musical genres, as can be seen, for example, from the broad array of nominees of the yearly [[Blues Music Awards]], previously named W. C. Handy Awards<ref>{{cite web | title=Blues Music Awards information | url=http://www.blues.org/bluesmusicawards/ | accessmonthday = November 25 |accessyear=2005 }}</ref> or of the [[Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album|Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary]] and [[Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album|Traditional Blues Album]]. Contemporary blues music is nurtured by several blues labels such as: [[Alligator Records]], [[Ruf Records]], [[Chess Records]] ([[Music Corporation of America|MCA]]), [[Delmark Records]], [[NorthernBlues Music]], and [[Vanguard Records]] ([[Artemis Records]]). Some labels are famous for their rediscovering and remastering of blues rarities such as [[Arhoolie Records]], [[Smithsonian Folkways Recordings]] (heir of [[Folkways Records]]) and [[Yazoo Records]] ([[Shanachie Records]]).<ref>A complete directory of contemporary blues labels can be found at http://blues.about.com/cs/recordlabels/</ref> Young blues artists today are exploring all aspects of the blues, from classic delta to more rock-oriented blues, artists born after 1970 such as [[Sean Costello]],[[John Mayer]], [[Anthony Gomes]], [[Shemekia Copeland]], [[Jonny Lang]], [[Corey Harris]], [[Susan Tedeschi]],[[Joe Bonamassa]],[[The White Stripes]], [[North Mississippi Allstars]], [[The Black Keys]], [[Bob Log III]], Jose P and [[Hillstomp]] developing their own styles.<ref>[http://www.bluesbabies.741.com Blues Babies.741.com]</ref> [[Memphis, Texas]]-based William Daniel McFalls, also known as "[[Blues Boy Willie]]" is a performer of traditional blues. == Musical impact == [[Image:Rhapsody in Blue cover.png|thumb|left|175px|Cover of the original sheet music of the two piano version of ''[[Rhapsody in Blue]]''.]] Blues musical styles, forms (12-bar blues), melodies, and the blues scale have influenced many other genres of music, such as rock and roll, jazz, and popular music. Prominent jazz, folk or rock performers, such as [[Louis Armstrong]], [[Duke Ellington]], [[Miles Davis]], [[Bob Dylan]] and [[the White Stripes]] have performed significant blues recordings. The blues scale is often used in [[popular song]]s like [[Harold Arlen]]'s "Blues in the Night", [[blues ballad]]s like "Since I Fell for You" and "Please Send Me Someone to Love", and even in orchestral works such as [[George Gershwin]]'s "[[Rhapsody in Blue]]" and "Concerto in F". The blues scale is ubiquitous in modern popular music and informs many [[modal frame (music)|modal frames]], especially the [[ladder of thirds]] used in rock music (e.g., in "[[A Hard Day's Night (song)|A Hard Day's Night]]"). Blues forms are used in the theme to the televised ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'', [[teen idol]] [[Fabian (entertainer)|Fabian's]] hit, "Turn Me Loose", [[country music]] star [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]]' music, and guitarist/vocalist [[Tracy Chapman]]'s hit "Give Me One Reason". [[R&B]] music can be traced back to [[Spiritual (music)|spirituals]] and blues. Musically, spirituals were a descendant of [[New England]] choral traditions, and in particular of [[Isaac Watts]]'s [[hymn]]s, mixed with African rhythms and call-and-response forms. Spirituals or religious chants in the African-American community are much better documented than the "low-down" blues. Spiritual singing developed because African-American communities could gather for mass or worship gatherings, which were called [[camp meeting]]s. Early country bluesmen such as [[Skip James]], [[Charley Patton]], [[Georgia Tom Dorsey]] played country and urban blues and had influences from spiritual singing. Dorsey helped to popularize [[Gospel music]]. Gospel music developed in the 1930s, with the [[Golden Gate Quartet]]. In the 1950s, [[soul music]] by [[Sam Cooke]], [[Ray Charles]] and [[James Brown]] used gospel and blues music elements. In the 1960s and 1970s, gospel and blues were these merged in [[soul blues]] music. [[Funk]] music of the 1970s was influenced by soul; funk can be seen as an antecedent of hip-hop and contemporary R&B. [[Image:Duke Ellington at the Hurricane Club 1943.jpg|thumb|[[Duke Ellington]] straddled the [[big band]] and [[bebop]] genres. Though Ellington was a jazz artist, he used the blues form extensively.]] Before [[World War II]], the boundaries between blues and [[jazz]] were less clear. Usually jazz had harmonic structures stemming from [[brass band]]s, whereas blues had blues forms such as the 12-bar blues. However, the jump blues of the 1940s mixed both styles. After WWII, blues had a substantial influence on jazz. [[Bebop]] classics, such as [[Charlie Parker]]'s "Now's the Time", used the blues form with the pentatonic scale and blue notes. Bebop marked a major shift in the role of jazz, from a popular style of music for dancing, to a "high-art," less-accessible, cerebral "musician's music". The audience for both blues and jazz split, and the border between blues and jazz became more defined. Artists straddling the boundary between jazz and blues are categorized into the [[jazz blues|jazz-blues]] sub-genre. The blues' twelve-bar structure and the blues scale was a major influence on [[rock-and-roll]] music. Rock-and-roll has been called "blues with a [[back beat]]". [[Carl Perkins]] called [[rockabilly]] "blues with a [[country music|country]] beat". Rockabillies were also said to be twelve-bar blues played with a [[bluegrass music|bluegrass]] beat. "[[Hound Dog (song)|Hound Dog]]", with its unmodified twelve-bar structure (in both harmony and lyrics) and a melody centered on flatted third of the tonic (and flatted seventh of the subdominant), is a blues song transformed into a rock-and-roll song. [[Jerry Lee Lewis]]'s style of rock 'n' roll was heavily influenced by the blues and its derivative boogie woogie. His style of music was not exactly rockabilly but it has been often called real rock 'n' roll (this is a label he shares with several African American rock 'n' roll singers). Early [[country music]] was infused with the blues. [[Jimmie Rodgers]], [[Moon Mullican]], [[Bob Wills]], [[Bill Monroe]] and [[Hank Williams]] have all described themselves as blues singers and their music has a blues feel that is different to the country pop of [[Eddy Arnold]]. A lot of the 1970s-era "outlaw" country music by [[Willie Nelson]] and [[Waylon Jennings]] also borrowed from the blues. When [[Jerry Lee Lewis]] returned to country after the decline of 1950s style [[rock 'n' roll]], he sang his country with a blues feel and often included blues standards on his albums. Many early rock-and-roll songs are based on blues: "[[That's All Right Mama]]", "[[Johnny B. Goode]]", "[[Blue Suede Shoes]]", "[[Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On]]", "[[Shake, Rattle, and Roll]]", and "[[Long Tall Sally]]". The early African American rock musicians retained the sexual themes and innuendos of blues music: "Got a gal named Sue, knows just what to do" ("[[Tutti Frutti (song)|Tutti Frutti]]", [[Little Richard]]) or "See the girl with the red dress on, She can do the Birdland all night long" ("[[What'd I Say (song)|What'd I Say]]", [[Ray Charles]]). Even the subject matter of "[[Hound Dog (song)|Hound Dog]]" contains well-hidden sexual [[double entendre]]s. More sanitized early "white" rock borrowed the structure and harmonics of blues, although there was less harmonic creativity and sexual frankness (e.g., Bill Haley's "[[Rock Around the Clock]]"). Many white musicians who performed black songs changed the words; [[Pat Boone]]'s performance of "Tutti Frutti" changed the original lyrics ("Tutti frutti, loose booty . . . a wop bop a lu bop, a good Goddamn") to a tamer version. ==In popular culture== [[Image:Tajmahalblues.jpg|thumb|right|175 px|The music of Taj Mahal for the 1972 movie ''Sounder'' marked a revival of interest in acoustic blues.]] Like [[jazz]], [[rock and roll]], [[heavy metal music]], [[hip hop music]], [[reggae]], [[country music]], and [[pop music]], blues has been accused of being the "[[Satan|devil]]'s music" and of inciting violence and other poor behavior.<ref>SFGate</ref> In the early 20th century, the blues was considered disreputable, especially as white audiences began listening to the blues during the 1920s.<ref name = "trkeja"/> In the early twentieth century, [[W. C. Handy|W.C. Handy]] was the first to popularize blues-influenced music among non-black Americans. During the blues revival of the 1960s and '70s, acoustic blues artist [[Taj Mahal (musician)|Taj Mahal]] and legendary Texas bluesman [[Lightnin' Hopkins]] wrote and performed music that figured prominently in the popularly and critically acclaimed film ''[[Sounder (film)|Sounder]]'' (1972). The film earned Mahal a [[Grammy]] nomination for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture and a [[BAFTA]] nomination.<ref>"Sounder"[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069303/awards|The Internet Movie Database]. Retrieved 11-02-2007.</ref> Almost 30 years later, Mahal wrote blues for, and performed a banjo composition, claw-hammer style, in, the 2001 movie release "[[Song Catcher]]," which focused on the story of the preservation of the roots music of Appalachia. In 2003, [[Martin Scorsese]] made significant efforts to promote the blues to a larger audience. He asked several famous directors such as [[Clint Eastwood]] and [[Wim Wenders]] to participate in a series of documentary films for [[PBS]] called ''The Blues''.<ref>{{imdb title | title="The Blues" (2003) (mini) | id = 0287198 }}</ref> He also participated in the rendition of compilations of major blues artists in a series of high-quality CDs. Grammy-winning blues guitarist and vocalist [[Keb' Mo']] performed his blues rendition of "[[America, the Beautiful]]" in 2006 to close out the final season of the television series "[[The West Wing]]." {{see also|List of films based on blues music}} ==References== * {{cite journal | author = William Barlow | title = Cashing In | journal = Split Image: African Americans in the Mass Media | year = 1993 | pages = 31}} *Bransford, Steve. [http://www.southernspaces.org/contents/2004/bransford/1a.htm "Blues in the Lower Chattahoochee Valley"] ''Southern Spaces'' 2004 * {{cite book | author = Clarke, Donald | title = The Rise and Fall of Popular Music | publisher = St. Martin's Press | year = 1995 | id = ISBN 0-312-11573-3}} * {{cite book | author = Dicaire, David | title = Blues Singers: Biographies of 50 Legendary Artists of the Early 20th Century | publisher = McFarland | year = 1999 | id = ISBN 0-7864-0606-2}} * {{cite book | author = Ewen, David | title = Panorama of American Popular Music | publisher = Prentice Hall | year = 1957 | id = ISBN 0-13-648360-7 }} * {{cite book | author = Ferris, Jean | title = America's Musical Landscape | publisher = Brown & Benchmark | year = 1993 | id = ISBN 0-697-12516-5}} * {{cite book | author = Garofalo, Reebee | title = Rockin' Out: Popular Music in the USA | publisher = Allyn & Bacon | year = 1997 | id = ISBN 0-205-13703-2}} * {{cite book | author = Morales, Ed | title = The Latin Beat | publisher = Da Capo Press | year = 2003 | id = ISBN 0-306-81018-2}} * {{cite book | author = Schuller, Gunther | title = Early Jazz: Its Roots and Musical Development | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1968 | id = ISBN 0-19-504043-0}} * {{cite book | author = Southern, Eileen | title = The Music of Black Americans | publisher = W. W. Norton & Company, Inc | year = 1997 | id = ISBN 0-393-03843-2}} * {{cite web | url = http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/08/15/INGMC85SSK1.DTL | title = Muslim Roots of the Blues | work = SFGate | accessmonthday = [[August 24]] | accessyear = 2005}} ==Further reading== *Brown, Luther. "[http://www.southernspaces.org/contents/2006/brown/1a.htm Inside Poor Monkey's]" ''Southern Spaces'' June 22 2006. * {{cite book | first = Giles | last = Oakley | title = The Devil's Music: a History of the Blues | publisher = BBC | year = 1976 | pages = 287 pages | id = ISBN 0-563-16012-8 }} * {{cite book | first = Paul | last = Oliver | title = The Story Of The Blues | edition = new edition | publisher = Northeastern University Press | year = 1998 | pages = 212 pages | id = ISBN 1-55553-355-8 }} * {{cite book | first = Robert | last = Palmer | authorlink = Robert Palmer (author/producer) | title = Deep Blues | publisher = Viking | year = 1981 | pages = 310 pages | id = ISBN 0-670-49511-5 }} * {{cite book | first = Mike | last = Rowe | title = Chicago Breakdown | publisher = Eddison Press | year = 1973 | pages = 226 pages | id = ISBN 0-85649-015-6 }} * {{cite book | first = Jeff Todd | last = Titon | title = Early Downhome Blues: a Musical and Cultural Analysis | edition = 2nd edition | publisher = University of North Carolina Press | year = 1994 | pages = 318 pages | id = ISBN 0-8078-4482-9 }} ==Notes== {{reflist|2}} <!-- No longer referenced: # {{note|BessieSmith}} Ewen, pg. 146--> <!-- No longer referenced: # {{note|tracy}} Introduction of ''Write Me a Few of Your Lines'', ed. Steven Tracy, 1999, [[University of Massachusetts]] Press, pg. 3--> ==See also== *[[African American culture]] *[[All Music Guide to the Blues]] *[[Blues Hall of Fame]] *[[Blues in New Zealand]] *[[Blues Matters]] Magazine *[[List of blues musicians|Blues musicians, List of]] *[[Blues standard]] *[[List of British blues musicians|British blues musicians, List of]] *[[Canadian blues]] *[[Mississippi Blues Trail]] *[[20th century music]] *[[Blues dance]] ==External links== <!-- Please do not add fansites, non-notable websites, or websites not relating directly to the blues to this article. Chances are, there are already plenty of links here, and adding more would just degrade the quality of the article. It is advised that you discuss any additions on the talk page, or at least provide reasoning for a new link's inclusion in your edit summary. For the Wikipedia External Links policy, see [[WP:EL]]-->{{sisterlinks|Blues music}} * [http://www.yearoftheblues.org/radio/index.asp The Blues Radio Series] * [http://www.blueslinks.nl/ Your guide to the blues] * [http://www.BlueShoeProject.org/ The Blue Shoe Project - Nationwide (U.S.) Blues Education Programming] * [http://www.pbs.org/theblues/ "The Blues"], documentary series by [[Martin Scorsese]], aired on [[PBS]] * [http://www.americanbluesnetwork.com/ American Blues Network, a Blues and R&B radio service.] * [http://www.blues.org/ The Blues Foundation] * [http://blues.media.pl/ Blues.media.pl] * [http://www.memphisbluessociety.com/ The Memphis Blues Society] * [http://www.deltabluesmuseum.org/ The Delta Blues Museum] * [http://www.floridamemory.com/Collections/folklife/audio.cfm The Florida Memory Project, Blues Music from the Florida Folklife Collection], available free for public use from the State Archives of [[Florida]] * [http://www.riverfrontbluesfest.org/ The Fort Smith Arkansas Riverfront Blues Society]- Blues in the Schools, Barry Ratliff Memorial Scholarship * [http://www.mississippideltablues.org/ Mississippi Delta Blues Society of Indianola] * [http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/educators/lesson_plans/music_in_poetry/index.html The Music in Poetry] &mdash; [[Smithsonian Institution]] lesson plan on the blues, for teachers * [http://www.lamusicagency.com/ Los Angeles MusicAgency] * [http://www.festivalbluesbarcelona.com/en/ Barcelona Blues Festival] <!-- Categorization --> <!-- blues is a sub-category of radio formats--> <!-- Localization --> {{featured article}} {{Americanrootsmusic}} {{blues}} [[Category:African American art]] [[Category:Culture of Chicago, Illinois]] [[Category:African American culture]] [[Category:American styles of music]] [[Category:Blues| ]] [[Category:Blues styles]] [[Category:Music genres]] [[Category:Radio formats]] {{Link FA|es}} {{Link FA|hr}} [[ar:بلوز]] [[be-x-old:Блюз]] [[bs:Blues]] [[bg:Блус]] [[ca:Blues]] [[cs:Blues]] [[cy:Y felan]] [[da:Blues]] [[de:Blues]] [[et:Bluus]] [[el:Μπλουζ]] [[es:Blues]] [[eo:Bluso]] [[eu:Blues]] [[fa:بلوز]] [[fr:Blues]] [[fy:Blues]] [[gl:Blues]] [[hr:Blues]] [[id:Blues]] [[it:Blues]] [[he:בלוז]] [[ka:ბლუზი]] [[lv:Blūzs]] [[lt:Bliuzas]] [[hu:Blues]] [[ms:Blues]] [[nah:Blues]] [[nl:Blues]] [[ja:ブルース]] [[no:Blues]] [[nn:Blues]] [[oc:Blues]] [[nds:Blues]] [[pl:Blues]] [[pt:Blues]] [[ro:Blues]] [[ru:Блюз]] [[scn:Blues]] [[simple:Blues]] [[sk:Blues]] [[sl:Blues]] [[sr:Bluz]] [[fi:Blues]] [[sv:Blues]] [[th:บลูส์]] [[vi:Nhạc blues]] [[tr:Blues]] [[uk:Блюз]] [[wa:Blouze]] [[zh:藍調]]