When I was younger I would travel down to Jackson, Mississippi for the entire summer to visit my grandparents. There I would play with my cousin day in and day out just in the mud. We would make mud pies and pretend that we had a mud café that was the best in town, or sometimes we would be hairstylists and do each other’s hair with mud. Even though it was a pain to clean up I enjoyed it. Playing in the mud is something that I had in common with the artist Muddy Waters. Born McKinley Morganfield on April 4, 1915 to Ollie Morganfield and Bertha Jones, who later died when McKinley was three. After his mother died he was given to his maternal grandmother Delta Grant. As a child Waters would play and go fishing in muddy ponds and his grandmother …show more content…
Williams and recorded in 1981. In this piece starts off with an electric guitar that gets a mini solo in a high pitch tone. Then you begin to hear the drums and the piano which adds a fast paced tempo that imitate the feeling of excitement. But when you listen to the song the lyrics, they suggest that he has to stay a musician because his life depends on the income that it brings. The lyrics of this sing include “Well I broke down hungry, I got to go out to the well yard, I got to get myself a food stamp, So I can buy myself a cup of coffee, Well I can see I was born to lose, For me there ain't no escape from the blues.” The sound of his voice has become more clear over the course of his career. Also the overall feel for his songs have become less dark toned and a more upbeat. In a National Public Radio broadcasting they discussed how Muddy Waters audience had shifted from African American to Caucasian by the end of his career. It also mentioned how when he was on tour and went to England he found that he was more popular there than he was in America. “In England they changed the label of his genre from blues to folk and also turned down the amplification in his songs when he would perform in the hopes to please the hosts” (David Welna,
It highlights the luxurious lifestyle of the rich man and about the rich man’s lack of knowledge regarding the struggles of the poor man. “Washwoman’s Blues” is a parallel song, also performed by smith, speaks about the financial environments of many African American women. These are social protests because “Poor Man’s Blues” openly indicts and upper classes for the increasing manipulation and poverty of the poor and “Washwoman’s Blue” critiques the oppressive conditions that most African-American women were forced to work. Bessie smith wrote and recorded many songs that invoked the black experience in America, notably “Blackwater Blues”, “Workhouse Blues”, and “Send Me to The Lectric Chair” all were subtle protests against the treatment of blacks. They touched on topics ranging from black imprisonment to the disregarding of African Americans and
As time progressed, music had to continue to evolve to keep up with the ever-changing styles. Blues slowly began to morph into Rock and Roll to engage people of a new era. While many changes occurred in creating Rock and Roll, it continued to carry undertones of the Blues. This can be heard while comparing Son House’s, “Walking Blues” and Elvis Presley’s, “Blue Moon of Kentucky.” These two songs show many similarities, while also having their own identities.
Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe, more commonly known as Jelly Roll Morton, was born to a creole family in a poor neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. Morton lived with several family members in different areas of New Orleans, exposing him to different musical worlds including European and classical music, dance music, and the blues (Gushee, 394). Morton tried to play several different instruments including the guitar; however, unsatisfied with the teachers’ lack of training, he decided to teach himself how to play instruments without formal training (Lomax, 8). ...
Typically when they sing using sadness they sing about negative points in their life, negative subjects all workers relate to, or the pain that comes with their work. When they sang using a sad tone it was called a blue devil or sometimes just blues. They used these names to describe their blue mood. A quote describing why blues are sad by Joe louis: “The man says, why I sing the blues is because I lived it. I know how it feels. When your hurt you gotta tell somebody. Somebody must understand how you feel . The only way to do it is to say it loud and clear. Make sure that everyone will hear. Its the truth the way it is. That’s why I sing the blues. “ The reason people sing blues and sad songs during the time is to let off steam, and to get your emotions out of your system instead of letting steam build up to the point you explode.
In the song he states, “I can plow a field all day long/ I can catch catfish from dusk ‘till dawn/ We make our on whiskey and our own smoke, too/ Ain’t too many things these old boys can’t do.” In addition, He stated, “But he was killed by a man with a switchblade knife/ For 43 dollars my friend lost his life/ I’d love to spit some beech nut in that dude’s eyes/ And shoot him with my old 45.” The author is really trying to persuade everyone that they can do pretty much anything to live on their own because that is how they are raised and that if you mess with one of them; you got it coming your way.
The movie first introduces the main characters. Leonard Chess is portrayed to audience as an ambitious young man. His parents were polish immigrants, and he dreams of being successful and rich. As the movie progresses and he is shown to be a competent businessman; and he also seems to care for the musicians that he works with, especially Muddy. A few minutes later, Muddy Waters is shown. Muddy, whose real name was McKinley Morganfield, comes from a farm in Mississippi. An ethnomusicologist named Alan Lomax appears to record folk music for the Library of Congress, which is how Muddy was able to hear his sound for the first time. From this event, Muddy decides to leave Mississippi and go to Chicago to try and make it into the music business. It’s in Chicago that Muddy meets the angry and bitter, but talented harmonica player Little Walter. Muddy was able to first get recorded after he and Little Walter started a fight in Leonard Chess’s club. Leonard saw Muddy’s potential and wanted to record him. In order for Muddy to be a success, Leonard knew Muddy needed to be on the radio. They drove down to Mississippi because Leonard knew the music would be a hit there first. Once the two of them arrived to the radio station in Mississippi, Leonard had to bribe the radio station, a business tactic known...
Blues has played an extreme role in todays’ music. The music genre of blues, helps us express ourselves in which you can feel it from the ubiquitous in the jazz to the blues scale and the specific chord progressions. To start off, the blues is musically originated by African Americans in the deep South of the United States. Growing up in a southern household, I was used to listening to a variety music, but blues was always most listened to. Every time I listen to blues, the lyrics often deal with personal adversity, and it goes far beyond pity.
He starts of the song with the lyrics “Cold empty bed, springs hard as lead” this describes how Armstrong is living in a bad condition. This is an everyday lifestyle for Armstrong he sings “Feel like Old Ned, wish I was dead.” “All my life through, I’ve been so black and blue.” Old Ned is the slang term for the devil, which just like Armstrong is living in hell, but this has been they why he lived his whole life. This song may seem odd to his white audience because he was always seen as a happy Black person who can play jazz. The song continues, but it touches on the racism he has to deal with, because he is black.” My only sin...is in my skin” like African Americans today being black is considered something negative despite your behavior. The only bad act that Louis has ever did wrong is having black skin, which cannot be changed and is given to him from birth. The last stanza in the song is interesting because he says “How would it end...I aint got a friend …My only sin...is in my skin…What did I do...to be so black and blue?” This notes that oppression has Armstrong feeling helpless, and wondering how will this misery end. Louis Armstrong like many African Americans today live with the psychological and depression caused by racism in
The critical acclaimed “A Change Gonna Come” begins with Cooke’s smooth yet emotional vocals yelping “I was born by the river in a little tent”. The words are not very far from the truth. Cooke began his life on January 22, 1931 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Born Samuel Cook, he was the fifth child of Reverend Charles and Annie Mae Cook. Reverend Cook moved his family from the “up from the Mississippi Delta” (Krajicek) to Chicago in 1933. Cooke was raised in a God fearing household were his father instilled the importance of working hard for everything you want in life. At a very young age Cooke made it clear to his family that he intended on being a being a singer; he never planned to work a normal job (Krajicek). Cooke by no means desired to live the life of an average job, bec...
For Stanley, the blues tell the stories of the African-American community. Some of the stories talk about the harshness of their lives, but they also talk about the good times they had. [People] play the blues to get rid of the blues not to get them." (Lamb, 1). When people play or even listen to the blues, they are letting all of their worries go. They are not worrying about their job, the bills, or their kids. They are just trying to enjoy the moment when the blues are playing. The blues are some people's release from the stresses of their lives.
Blues as an art form gave Blacks a medium to manifest their feelings. Feelings ranging from humorous to silly to depressed. Fortunately for a entire genre of music, the only way for Mckinley Morganfield to express himself was through song. Morganfield better known as Muddy Waters became a legendary blues vocalist /guitarist. When the Blues industry saw commercial success many of its artists also saw rising fame. Muddy Waters enjoyed success in the industry up until and even after his death in 1983. Morganfield was born April 4, 1915 to Ollie Morganfield and Bertha Jones. He was born in Rollingfork, Mississippi. Near their two room shack in Rollingfork there was a creek, Deer Creek. As a youngster he used to play in the creek and get all dirty and muddy. It was at this point when his sisters gave him the nickname ‘Muddy Waters’. Bertha died when he was about three. After her death he had to move in with his grandmother in Clarksdale. Raised in Clarksdale, he also went to school there. He went to school until he was old enough to work in the fields. Much like all of the other field laborers Muddy Waters hollered in the fields to pass time or just to get things off of your chest. Waters would also teach himself to play instruments. When he was fifteen he knew how to play the harmonica and he would later teach himself the guitar. The young Waters followed in his fathers musician footsteps. He was part of a band at fifteen, with Scott Bowhandle on guitar and Sonny Simms playing the violin. They would play some Saturday nights in downtown Clarksdale and others he would sell fried fish on nights. And other nights he would watch the greats like Son House, Robert Johnson and Charlie Patton were great musical influences on Waters. The main influence on Waters was Son House, although Waters style of play was more similar to that of Robert Johnson. Muddy Waters was first recognized by word of mouth. Alan Lomax of The Library of Congress went to Clarksdale to record Robert Johnson. But to his dismay, he found out that Robert Johnson was dead and had been for two years. The word on the street at that time led Lomax to Muddy Waters. Waters would record two songs with them in 1941, far before he became famous.
As a son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave, Jesse Owens created History in 1936 when he achieved what no athlete had done before: four Olympic Gold Medals. (jesseowens.com). During this era, the United States had limited civil rights and was approaching a World War with Hitler rising into power in Germany. Although Owens was victorious on the track, because of the color of his skin, He was looked down upon and unrecognized by even his own country. Through the excessive racism, one may ask how Owens moved forward and dealt with such negativity in a situation that should have been celebrated.
Hiding under wooden floors, in attics, in basements, and hidden doorways. The Underground Railroad wasn't a actual railroad but a system of abolitionist helping escaped slaves. Harriet Tubman was an escaped slave, she started the railway. Helping starving wanted ex-slaves and risking her life for theirs. Harriet Tubman has helped so many African Americans escaped before slavery was outlawed.
Harriet Tubman is a lady of belief and dignity, who saved a great number of African American males and females through her determination and love for God. People might think that what would motivate anyone to take all that pain and misery to one’s self in order to help other people. Harriet Tubman was an African American lady that took upon several roles throughout her lifetime just like a protester, philanthropist, and a Union Spy in the time of the American civil war. Her actions, not just saved many lives during these horrible time’s but at the same time gave other African Americans the confidence and courage to get up for what they have faith in and accomplish same human rights for males and females in all over the world, regardless of what their skin color or sex was.
The Blues started in the late 1800's in levee camps or plantations in places like Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas were many African Americans lived. The blues of that time was called country blues. It was a mixture of African music, field hollers, work songs, religious music, and ragtime.