The Blues Graphically Organizing the Major Styles Blues Style Geographic Location Instruments Used (style) Characteristics/ Interesting Facts Important Artists _______________ Artists Influenced
The BluesGraphically
Organizing the
Major Styles
Blues Style
Geographic
Location
Instruments Used
(style)
Characteristics/
Interesting Facts
Important Artists
_______________
Artists Influenced
Delta Blues Mississippi River Delta
NW Mississippi
Louisiana
Clarksdale
Almost entirely guitar
Finger-picking with a
possible slide
12-Bar / AAB Lyrics
Harmonica &/or piano
Poor black sharecroppers and
former slaves
Virtually always a solo act
“original” blues format
1st “traditional” artists to be
recorded
Charlie Patton
Robert Johnson
Son House
Bukka White
Tommy Johnson
Influenced
Eric Clapton
Jimi Hendrix
The White Stripes
Rolling Stones
Led Zeppelin
Texas Blues• Texas
– Dallas and southeastward
– Houston
– Galveston
• Unaccompanied guitar
• Considered early “Country” today [with a
Swing Feel –remember Bob Wills]
• Suffered with lull from Great Depression
and lack of popular talent
• Blind Lemon
Jefferson
• Big Mama Thornton
• T-Bone Walker
INFLUENCED
• Johnny Winston
• ZZ Top
• Stevie Ray
Vaughan
“Classic” Blues Deep South
• Traveling music shows
• Medicine Shows
• Tent Shows
Traveling Minstrelsy
Horns
Pianos
Drums
1920s, Dawn of the Recording Industry
Female dominated like the Delta Blues were dominated by males
Created an interest to record more [traditional] blues artists
Mamie Smith
Ma Rainey
Bessie Smith
INFLUENCED
Janis Joplin
Susan Tedeschi
Piedmont Blues• Southeast [Coastal]
– Virginia
– Carolinas
– east Tennessee
• Collectively known as
Appalachia
• Mostly acoustic guitar
• Finger-picking multiple
strings simultaneously
• Alternating thumb-base
string in syncopated fashion
• Upbeat and danceable
• Popular from early 1920s to post-WWII
• Heavily influenced by Ragtime
– Lessened its impact on later electric blues bands
and Rock n Roll
– Directly influenced Rockabilly and Folk Revival
scene [banjo based]
• Rev. Gary Davis
• Blind Boy Fuller
• Blind Blake
• Willie Walker
• Buddy Moss
• Sonny Terry
• Brownie McGhee
• Josh White
Chicago Blues• Chicago
– Southside
– Maxwell St.
– 2120 S. Michigan Ave.
• Home to Chess Records
• Electric guitar [picks]
• Amplified voices
• Bass
• Drums
• Sometimes horns
• Great migration; when thousands of poor
southerners moved north in hopes of finding
better conditions and work.
• Development of Chess Records, one of the
greatest blues labels
– Played major role in ushering in Rock n’ Roll
• Muddy Waters
• Howlin’ Wolf
• Willie Dixon
• Little Walter
INFLUENCED
• Chuck Berry
• Bo Didley
• John Lee Hooker
• Rolling Stones
Soul Blues Memphis
– Less-regionally influenced
Electric guitars
Drums
Bass
Harmonica
Horns
Saxophone
Others…
Late 50s, 60s through 70s
Blues with other infused elements such as jazz and gospel
Heartfelt with soothing sounds
Spiritual music mixed with the urban contemporary
BB King
Ray Charles
Albert King
Bobby Bland
INFLUENCED
Otis Redding
Sam Cooke
Junior Kimbrough’s sons