Lecture 3 The Blues What is the blues?! Origins of the Blues Blues Lyrics W.C. Handy ( ) Handy s Legacy Formative Years

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1 Lecture 3 The Blues What is the blues?! Wikipedia defines it as: A vocal and instrumental form of music based on the use of the blue notes and a repetitive pattern that most often follows a twelve-bar structure. It emerged in African-American communities of the United States from spirituals, praise songs, field hollers, rhymed English and Scots-Irish narrative ballads, shouts, and chants Origins of the Blues The phrase the blues is a reference to having a fit of the blue devils, meaning down spirits, depression and sadness 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 Blues Lyrics The original lyrical form of the blues was probably a single line, repeated three 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 These lines were often sung following a pattern closer to a rhythmic talk than to a melody W.C. Handy ( ) Born on November 16, 1873 in Florence, Alabama A blues composer and musician who is among the most influential of American songwriters Handy was an educated musician who used folk material in his compositions Handy s Legacy Known as The Father of the Blues Credited for giving blues its contemporary form Was able to notate music for publication and posterity Use of syncopated rhythms, a style unique to his music Took the blues from a not very well-known regional music style from the Delta to one of the dominant forces in American music Formative Years Handy joined a local blues band as a teenager, but he kept this fact a secret from his parents He purchased a cornet from a fellow band member and spent every free minute practicing it

2 During his off-time, he organized a small string orchestra and taught musicians how to read notes Early Career His musical endeavors were varied, and he sang first tenor in a minstrel show, moved from Alabama and worked as a band director, choral director, cornetist and trumpeter He played cornet in the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 In 1896, he was invited to join a minstrel group called Mahara's Minstrels. In their three year tour, they traveled to Chicago, throughout Texas and Oklahoma, through Tennessee, Georgia and Florida on to Cuba Blues Roots An important factor in his musical development and in music history, was his enthusiasm for the distinctive style of uniquely American music which was often considered inferior to European classical music In 1902 he traveled throughout Mississippi listening to various musical styles His remarkable memory served him well, and he was able to recall and transcribe the music he heard in his travels At that time, American society and culture was distinctively segregated Handy s observations of whites responses to native black music in conjunction with his own observations of his habits, attitudes and music of his ethnicity served as the foundation for what was later to become the style of music popularized as the Blues W.C. Handy the Composer The 1912 publication of his Memphis Blues sheet music introduced his style of 12-bar blues to many households Memphis Blues was credited as the inspiration for the invention of the foxtrot dance step by Vernon and Irene Castle, a New York-based dance team Some consider Memphis Blues to be the first blues song At age 40, his musical style was asserted, his popularity increased significantly, and he composed prolifically Handy initially had little fondness for the new jazz music, but jazz bands dove into the repertoire of W.C. Handy compositions with enthusiasm, making many of them jazz standards Mamie Smith ( ) Born May 26, 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio Entered blues history by being the first African American to make vocal blues recordings in 1920 Was an American vaudeville singer, dancer, pianist and actress, and appeared in several motion pictures late in her career Early Career

3 Toured with vaudeville and minstrel shows Settled in New York City in 1913, where she worked as a cabaret singer She appeared in Perry Bradford s musical Made in Harlem in 1918 Early Recording Career In early 1920, Okeh Records planned to record popular singer Sophie Tucker performing a pair of songs by Perry Bradford Tucker was ill and could not make it to the session, so Bradford persuaded Okeh to allow Mamie Smith to record in Tucker s place Smith recorded two sides (That Thing Called Love and You Can't Keep A Good Man Down) on February 14, 1920, backed by a white studio band Smith s record sold moderately well, so she and Bradford were invited back to make additional recordings Recording Success On August 10, 1920, Smith recorded the Bradford-penned Crazy Blues and It's Right Here For You, If You Don't Get It, 'Tain't No Fault of Mine These were the first recordings of vocal blues by an African-American singer, and the record became an explosive best seller, selling a million copies in one year The success of Smith s record prompted record companies to seek to record other female blues singers and started the era of what is now known as classic female blues Ma Rainey ( ) Born Gertrude Malissa Nix Pridgett on April 26, 1886 Billed as The Mother of the Blues One of the earliest known professional blues singers One of the first generation of blues singers to record Early Career First appeared on stage in Columbus, Georgia in A Bunch of Blackberries at 14 She then joined a traveling vaudeville troupe, the Rabbit Foot Minstrels She married fellow vaudeville singer William Pa Rainey in 1904, billing herself from that point as Ma Rainey The pair toured with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels as Rainey & Rainey, Assassinators of the Blues, singing a mix of blues and popular songs Rainey was outspoken on women's issues She was a role model for future women entertainers who took control of their own careers Rainey was bisexual and never shied away from those feelings in her music Recording Career Ma Rainey was already a veteran performer with decades of touring in the South when she made her first recordings in 1923

4 Rainey signed with Paramount Records Between 1923 and 1928, she recorded 100 songs, sometimes accompanied by jazz notables including Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, and Fletcher Henderson Bessie Smith ( ) Born April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee Orphaned by the age of 9 and was raised by her older sister Viola The most popular and successful female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s A strong influence on subsequent generations, including Billie Holiday, Mahalia Jackson, Nina Simone, and Janis Joplin Early Career As a way of earning money for their impoverished household, Bessie and her brother Andrew began performing on the streets of Chattanooga as a duo, she singing and dancing, he accompanying on guitar In 1912 she joined a traveling troupe owned by Moses Stokes She was hired as a dancer rather than a singer, because the company also included Ma Rainey Branching Off All contemporary accounts indicate that Ma Rainey did not teach Smith to sing, but she probably helped her develop a stage presence Smith began forming her own act around 1913 By 1920 she had gained a good reputation in the South and along the Eastern Seaboard Recording Career Signed with Columbia Records in 1923 Scoring a big hit with her first release, a coupling of Gulf Coast Blues and Down Hearted Blues, Bessie's career blossomed Smith became the highest-paid black entertainer of her day Columbia nicknamed her Queen of the Blues, but a PR-minded press soon elevated to Empress She would make some 160 recordings for Columbia, often accompanied by the finest musicians of the day including Louis Armstrong, James P. Johnson, Joe Smith, Charlie Green, and Fletcher Henderson Film & Broadway Smith s career was cut short by the Great Depression (which all but put the recording industry out of business) The advent of talkies spelled the end for vaudeville In 1929, she appeared in a Broadway flop called Pansy, a musical in which, the top white critics agreed, she was the only asset In 1929, Bessie Smith made her only film appearance, starring in a one-reeler based on W. C. Handy s St. Louis Blues

5 Country Blues and the Mississippi Delta The most fertile area for the development of country blues was the Mississippi Delta region, 250 miles of land stretching north to south from Memphis, Tennessee down to Vicksburg, Mississippi Life in the Delta was characterized by hard work, oppressive heat, poverty, and racial terror Some of the most legendary figures of the blues have emerged from the Delta The Delta Blues style often features slide guitar playing Delta Blues typically has haunting vocals, often speaking of superstition, jealousy, and trouble Early Delta Blues Musicians The first Delta bluesman to achieve fame was Charley Patton ( ) Son House ( ) was one of the main influences on both Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson The most famous and legendary Delta Blues musician was Robert Johnson ( ) Robert Johnson ( ) Among the most famous Delta Blues musicians Considered by some to be the Grandfather of Rock-and-Roll His landmark recordings from display a remarkable combination of singing, guitar skills, and tremendous songwriting talent that have influenced generations of musicians Johnson s shadowy, poorly documented life and violent death at age 27 have given rise to much legend Born in Hazlehurst, Mississippi on May 8, 1911 Began playing the guitar under the tutelage of his half-brother while living in Memphis Also played jaw harp and harmonica Marriages Virginia Travis (1929) died in childbirth the following year Calleta Callie Craft (1931) Recorded 29 songs in The Legend According to Blues folklore, Robert Johnson was a young black man living on a plantation in rural Mississippi Branded with a burning desire to become a great blues musician, he was instructed to take his guitar to a crossroad near Dockery s plantation at midnight There he was met by a large black man (the Devil) who took the guitar from Johnson, tuned it, and handed it back to him

6 Within less than a year s time, in exchange for his everlasting soul, Robert Johnson became the king of the Delta blues singers, able to play, sing, and create the greatest blues anyone had ever heard The Reality Johnson returned home to Hazlehurst and began absorbing influences from phonograph records made by other blues guitarists He came under the tutelage of local guitarist Ike Zinerman, who scholars believe was the most important influence on Johnson s revolutionary modern style Death at the Crossroads Johnson s death occurred on August 16, 1938, at the age of 27 at a little country crossroads near Greenwood, Mississippi There are a number of accounts and theories regarding the events preceding Johnson's death One of these is that one evening Johnson began flirting with a woman at a dance One version of this rumor says she was the wife of the juke joint owner Another suggests she was a married woman he had been secretly seeing Poisoning Researcher Mack McCormick claims to have interviewed Johnson s alleged poisoner in the 1970s, and obtained a tacit admission of guilt from the man When Johnson was offered an open bottle of whiskey, his friend and fellow blues legend Sonny Boy Williamson knocked the bottle out of his hand, informing him that he should never drink from an offered bottle that has already been opened Robert Johnson allegedly said, Don t ever knock a bottle out of my hand Soon after, he was offered another open bottle and accepted it. That bottle was laced with strychnine Johnson is said to have survived the initial poisoning only to succumb to pneumonia three days later, in his weakened state Texas Blues Texas bluesmen were known for their strong guitar playing Also known for a more relaxed manner than the Delta style Two of the greatest early Texas bluesmen Huddie Lead Belly Ledbetter ( ) Blind Lemon Jefferson ( ) Huddie Lead Belly Ledbetter ( ) Born January 23, 1888 on a plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana Known for his clear and forceful singing

7 Typically played 12-string guitar, but also played piano, violin, mandolin, harmonica, concertina, and accordion Trouble with the Law Lead Belly s boastful spirit and penchant for the occasional skirmish lead to his troubles with the law Imprisoned in January of 1918 for killing one of his relatives in a fight In 1930, Lead Belly was back in prison, this time in Louisiana for attempted homicide Both times was pardoned by the governor of the state in which he was imprisoned Ledbetter first acquired his famous nickname while he was in prison; his fellow inmates dubbed him Lead Belly as a play on his last name and a testament to his physical toughness Back in prison for assault in 1939 Lead Belly & Governor Pat Neff 2 years into a 35 year sentence for killing a relative, Lead Belly wrote a song appealing to Governor Neff for his freedom Supposedly Lead Belly swayed Neff by appealing to his strong religious values That, in combination with good behavior and entertaining the guards and fellow prisoners was Lead Belly s ticket out of jail The Lomaxes While in prison in 1933, he was discovered by musicologists John and Alan Lomax who were enamored with his talent, passion and singularity as a performer The Lomaxes recorded hundreds of Lead Belly s songs for the Library of Congress The Lomaxes petitioned for his second release from prison In 1934, Lead Belly migrated with Alan Lomax to New York where he achieved fame, but not fortune Later Years and Death After being released from prison in 1940, he returned to the surging New York folk scene Befriended Woodie Guthrie and Pete Seeger In 1949, he began his first European tour, but fell ill before its completion Was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig s Disease Died later that year in New York Some of the Hits C.C. Rider Governor Pat Neff Midnight Special Goodnight, Irene In New Orleans Pick a Bale o Cotton

8 Where Did You Sleep Last Night Blind Lemon Jefferson ( ) Believed to have been born in Coutchman, Texas in September of 1893 The most popular male blues recording artist of the 1920s His musical style was extremely intense and individualistic, bearing little resemblance to the typical Texas blues style of the 1930s Music & Influence Jefferson had an intricate and fast style of guitar playing and a particularly highpitched voice He was an important influence on the next generation of blues singers and guitarists His irregular vocal style and his freely structured field holler rhythms made the tension between his guitar and his voice wildly unpredictable As influential as Jefferson was, many of the details of his life remain shrouded in mystery Recording Career Jefferson s first two recordings were gospel songs released under the name Deacon L. J. Bates His first releases under his own name, Booster Blues and Dry Southern Blues, were hits Jefferson recorded almost exclusively for Paramount Records (42 of 43 recorded) Unfortunately, Paramount Records' studio techniques and quality were infamously bad, and the resulting recordings sound no better than if they had been recorded in a hotel room Death Jefferson died penniless in Chicago in 1929 Cause of death is unknown, though rumors abound Paramount Records paid for the return of his body to Texas by train He is buried at what is now known as Blind Lemon Memorial Cemetery According to his wishes, his gravesite is being kept clean by a cemetery committee in Wortham Texas Covers of Blind Lemon Jefferson He was the author of many tunes covered by later musicians Bob Dylan covered See That My Grave Is Kept Clean on his debut album Matchbox Blues, was recorded by the Beatles

9 Sources History and Tradition of Jazz by Thomas E. Larson Jazz for Dummies by Dirk Sutro Discography 1. Sweet Home Chicago by Robert Johnson from the album The High Price of Soul Primo PRMCD Gulf Coast Blues by W.C. Handy from the album W.C. Handy s Memphis Blues Band Memphis Archives 3. Crazy Blues by Mamie Smith from the album Crazy Blues: The Best of Mamie Smith Sony 4. It s Right Here for You by Mamie Smith from the album Complete Recorded Works, Volume 1 ( ) Document Records LTD 5. Prove It on Me Blues by Ma Rainey from the album The Essential Ma Rainey Classic Blues CBL Lost Your Head Blues by Bessie Smith from the album The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz, Volume 1 CBS RD St. Louis Blues by Bessie Smith from the album The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz, Volume 1 CBS RD Come On in My Kitchen by Robert Johnson from the album The High Price of Soul Primo PRMCD Cross Road Blues by Robert Johnson from the album The High Price of Soul Primo PRMCD Governor Pat Neff by Lead Belly from the album Gwine Dig a Hole to Put the Devil in Rounder CD C C Rider by Lead Belly from the album Gwine Dig a Hole to Put the Devil in Rounder CD See That My Grave Is Kept Clean by Blind Lemon Jefferson from the album Blind Lemon Jefferson: Complete Recordings Document Records LTD DOCD Match Box Blues by Blind Lemon Jefferson from the album The Best of Blind Lemon Jefferson Yazoo

10 14. In New Orleans by Lead Belly from the album The Best of Lead Belly Cleopatra