This is an outline to Chapter 2 in "Looking Up At Down," by William Barlow.

1. Chapter 2 “Everyday Seems Like Murder Here”

2. Telling It Like It Was The nature of the blues stems from experiences in Mississippi Delta Becoming a male adult in a social environment that denied manhood

3. Mississippi Delta Fertile farmland on either side of the Mississippi River Memphis, TN south (200 miles) to Vicksburg, MS 1840s land was cleared for farming 2 cash crops: cotton and lumber Railroads connect to the outside

4. The region was: Backwards Almost feudal Agrarian Dominated by a few wealthy white plantation owners/merchants Blacks outnumbered whites 4 to 1

5. African – Americans were still: Lowest social stratum Denied basic civil/legal rights Limited access to public education/health care Living conditions were crude/unsanitary Homes lacked plumbing/electricity Diets lack nourishing food

6. Whitesupremacywas maintained by repressivesocial practices: Curfews Cross burnings Beatings Lynchings

7. Blues players were living/playing in the midst of this and thus were affected by this.

8. Working conditions were also difficult/dangerous After Civil War (1865) the South was forced to free slaves Yet it did not abandon plantation economy

9. Sharecropping 92% of the black population lived in rural south (1862) By 1900 per capita income of the South was 51% of the national average.

10. Result: they owed more than they earned Similar to sharecropping on plantations They performed back- breaking labor from sunup to sundown Lived in unsanitary facilities Were perpetually in debt to the contractor No School

11. Levee contract labor system After the Civil War the Federal Govt. hired white contractors who leased convicts After the turn of the century this convict system gave way to Levee Camps

12. Discipline enforced by “strawbosses” and “shack bullies” Workers were charged exorbitant fees for food, water, clothing, shelter, and recreation.

13. Many Delta blues musicians worked in or performed in levee camps This helped shape their musical repertoire

14. Delta Blues Origins The blues evolved from agrarian poverty and racial segregation A folk music indigenous to the cotton belt Mostly African-American population Developed in isolation from dominant white culture

15. First Delta blues similar to worksongs/field hollers Earliest written description of the blues by Charles Peabody, 1901 By 1903 a slide was being used Subject matter focused on description of hardships/injustices – no overt protest

16. Music soon gravitated toward recreation Saturday night social gatherings – dated to slave era Dances held in homes, outdoors, juke joints (later)

17. Originally, fiddle was main instrument Repertoire included many Anglo-American fiddle tunes – suggesting that black and white musicians shared ideas.

18. Main break with old traditions was the use of the guitar and harmonica (harp) Self-taught Delta guitarists were most traditional/original Descended from 1 string instruments – diddley bow/berimbau

19. Berimbau

20. Diddley bows check it

21. Famous account given by W.C. Handy Slide technique allowed for approximation of arhoolies

22. Delta Blues Pioneers

23. Heart and soul of early Delta tradition Most famous blues artist in the region Youngest of 1stgeneration Delta bluesmen

24. Learned music from the Chatmon family 3 generations of string band music Example: “Sittin’ On Top of the World” Chatmons

26. Charley Patton came under the influence of Henry Sloan Sloan never recorded Considered one of the “founding fathers” of Delta blues

27. Patton and his cohorts spanned the gap between the songster tradition and newly emerging blues. Disciples included Willie Brown, Son House, and Tommy Johnson Songster – performed folksongs, popular songs, minstrel songs, and blues

28. Charley the Man Huck Finn features Flashy dresser Rambler, rowdy, fun-loving prankster Loved to drink and socialize

29. Charley the Performer Flamboyant/charismatic Also danced, told tales, bantered Played guitar behind his head, between his legs, lying on his back

30. Patton’s playing emphasized rhythm over melody Similar to West African drumming Stacking rhythms in layers Used voice as an instrument – rhythmic effects Example: “Spoonful” "Will you kill my man?"

31. Patton was schooled in entire spectrum of black folk music Re-worked 3 basic “tune families” Lyrically he fused vignettes of Delta life with black oral tradition

32. Examples: “High Water Everywhere” and “Pony Blues” Saddle up my black mare

33. Delta Blues Networks Evidence suggest numerous networks, extended families, schools Patton & Co. were most popular

34. 3 Most Influential Bluesmen Who Played With Charley Patton Willie Brown Tommy Johnson Son House

35. Willie Brown (ca. 1911 – ca. 1940s) Spent most of his life in the Delta Expanded rhythmic possibilities of guitar Composed few songs Prominently mentioned in lyrics by Patton and Robert Johnson

36. Prevailing Social Conditions Made it Difficult for Women to Perform Blues Very dangerous lifestyle Women more likely joined church choir or minstrel troupe The few exceptions were: Josie Bush Louise Johnson Lucille Davis Mattie Delaney

37. Tommy Johnson (1896 – 1956) Spent most of his life in the Delta – Crystal Springs, MS Sold his soul to the devil Flamboyant guitar style – behind head/between legs Sold his soul to the devil

38. Crossroads is traditional domain ofLegba Yorubantrickster god identifiedwith Satan

39. Jackson, MS Hub of blues activity Only record talent scout in Deep South – aH. C. Spiers

40. Example: “Canned Heat Blues” Sterno

41. Son House (1902 – 1973) Perfected slide guitar technique Spent time on Parchman Farm Associated with Patton and Brown early 1930s “Rediscovered” by folkies in early 1960s

42. Example: “Death Letter Blues” Check the coolin' board Preach it, Brother Son

43. Robert Johnson (1911 – 1938) Key transitional figure between rural beginnings and modern urban blues Born in Hazelhurst, MS – south of the Delta Married by age 19 – wife and child died in childbirth

44. Restless spirit indicative of changing social consciousness among rural black population “Travel on, poor Bob, just can’t turn you ‘round”

45. Johnson’s Musical tastes Ventured Beyond the Delta Kokomo Arnold Scrapper Blackwell Lonnie Johnson

46. 2 Recording Sessions 1st – San Antonio, TX 1936 2nd – Dallas, TX – 1937 Total of 29 blues tunes

47. Johnson’s Guitar Style was Far – Reaching Tightening of rhythmic line was basis for urban blues to follow Made guitar sound like a band Shuffle rhythms

48. Many of Johnson’s Tunes Borrowed From Others “Walking Blues” from Son House’s “My Black Mama” “Sweet Home Chicago” from Kokomo Arnold’s “Old Original Kokomo Blues” “32 – 20 Blues” from Skip James’ “20 -20 Blues” “If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day” and “Travelling Riverside Blues” from traditional “rolling and tumbling” theme

49. Johnson’s Most Original Tune “Hellhound On My Trail” “I got to keep on moving, got to keep on moving, Blues falling down like hail, blues falling down like hail, Ummm blues falling down like hail, blues falling down like hail, And the day keeps on reminding me there’s a hellhound on my trail, Hellhound on my trail, hellhound on my trail.”

50. Themes in Johnson’s Music Social themes/images that dominate Johnson’s music are representative of the early Delta Mixture of personal observation and folklore updated black oral tradition Mobility = personal freedom – “Rambling On My Mind” Fatalism regarding forces against him – social/supernatural – “Crossroad Blues”

51. Dealings with the Devil Implicit in Johnson’s philosophy Encouraged the legend of selling his soul to the Devil “Me and the Devil Blues” “Early this morning when you knocked on my door, Early this morning when you knocked on my door, I said, “Hello Satan, I believe it’s time to go.”

52. Johnson’s Fatalism Implies a Capitulation to Overwhelming Social Constraints He has nothing to lose Element of defiance toward white culture Manifest in an African icon, disguised as Satan