 | Telling it like it is - blues began in rural communities in the Deep South in America in places such as the Mississippi Delta |
THERE IS A great divide between gospel and blues. Gospel was music from the church; the blues was music from outside. Although these two genres were bound by the same important technique of call and response they had vastly different lyrics; gospel praised the lord whereas the blues spoke of heartache, having sex and having no money.
Some blues songs are rude and suggestive. And funny. And some are very sad.
One of the greatest blues singers of all time was Bessie Smith and she brought a larger than life character to songs in which she often spoke of her suffering at the hands of men. Or how much pleasure they could give her. Or how fond she was of a drink.
Another great singer was Bessie Jackson. She wasn’t shy about explaining why she appealed to men.
The blues began in rural communities in the Deep South in America, in places such as the Mississippi Delta and the raw country style inspired composers such as the pianist W.C Handy.
Many classic blues songs are sung by a musician who accompanies himself on guitar over a verse that lasts 12 bars. This is called a 12 bar blues. You can hear it in these two examples from Willie Walker and Big Joe Williams.
The idea is for the guitar to underline the voice and almost became an extension of it. Great blues singers such as Robert Johnson, John lee Hooker or Howlin’ Wolf are masters of this technique. Listen to Cool Drink Of Water Blues by Tommy Johnson, a legendary Delta bluesman and you can hear how expressive his combination of guitar and voice is.
