Re: [Harp-L] rural urban divides WAS Blues Birdhead

[philharpn@xxxxxxx]

I hate to spoil your premise, but it is faulty. Robert Johnson learned his blues pretty much like folks do today -- off recordings. Just about every song he recorded had been previously recorded. It has nothing to do with urban/rural roots but the ability to crank up a gramophone. 


Check out the CD Back to the Crossroads: The Roots of Robert Johnson (Yazoo 2070) which has 23 tracks. Mel Bay published The Roots of Robert Johnson by Stefan Grossman and Woody Mann--if you want to play the tunes on your guitar.


As far as urban/Delta roots --- they have much to do with his source material -- the 78 rpm records.


Also, in your research, check out the original recorded blues -- vaudeville bands led by women the Smiths and Ma Rainey etc.


Also, Big Bill Broonzy -- his name was not originally Broonzy, there was no Broonzy family, he was never in the Army, and he made up most of the stuff about his family background and his Uncle Jerry. 




Hope this helps. 
Nothing is ever simple or clear when it comes to the blues.


Phil














-----Original Message-----
From: John Kerkhoven <solo_danswer@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Harp-L L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wed, Jun 5, 2013 12:27 pm
Subject: [Harp-L] rural urban divides WAS Blues Birdhead


I'm preparing right now for a duo format tribute to Robert Johnson. Rick is 
correct about Johnson's Delta/rural roots. But Johnson also has a degree of 
sophistication that is quite urbane. Take his They're Red Hot, a popular form at 
the time, but more of a rag than a traditional blues. 

Think of Big Bill Broonzy playing Saint Louis Blues. 

Early blues, post-war blues seems to be distinguished mostly by the presence or 
absence of electricity, the Delta musicians having migrated to the city. Someone 
once said "Muddy Waters invented electricity". Muddy's first recording was by 
Lomax on the plantation.

Rick is pointing out another rural/urban divide which is completely pre-war, 
having to do with style and form. 

Yesterday, while searching online for sources of Robert Johnson's music, I found 
this Ida Cox recording from 1923....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCgTleB7DsM

(Part of my interest is in the words. She uses lines that come up in Robert 
Johnson's songs. "Early this morning, blues knocked on my door..." 
Which chimes with Johnson's "Early this morning when you knocked upon my door... 
"Me and the Devil". And "I stole my man from my best friend, but she got lucky 
and stole him back again" which totally chimes with both Johnson's "Woman I 
love, stole from my best friend..." from "Come on in my Kitchen" and the nearly 
identical line in Skip James' "Devil Got my Woman".)

But though distinctively a blues tune with echoes in the Delta repertoire, Cox's 
recording is very jazzy. 

I have no great illuminating conclusions to draw from all of this, only my 
fascination to share as I continue to delve into this material and discover more 
about it. I welcome further discussion, though, on or off-list.

Harmonica content: in my searches yesterday, I landed on one of Pat Missin's 
pages. Which brought up this gem. Eddie Mapp playing harp in 6th position, 1929.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDZdShifCFo

John



> Yeah...Jazz Gillum falls into this category too, or at least some of his
> stuff. It's a bit like the difference between cats like Blind Blake, Leroy
> Carr and Scrapper Blackwell, Casey Bill Weldon, and all those urban and
> 'urbane' blues guys and, on the other hand, Robert Johnson, Charlie Patton,
> Son House,et al, who represent a more primitive country sound. Rhythm
> Willie, Blues Birdhead and Jazz Gillum tended towards the jazzier, urban
> sound. That music seemed to disappear after the 'thirties, and the country
> sound took over, even when it moved to Chicago and got amplified. Since the
> white audience took over the blues, it has melded with rock, and most
> people tend towards the amplified rock/blues thing, which has it's roots in
> the 'primitive' country sound, rather than the slick city sounds.
> RD
>