Category Archives: Chicago Blues

Howlin’ Wolf,1910-1976: His Life, His Times, His Blues (Blues Stories, 28)

Posted on April 1, 2018 by georgelamplugh

A Review of James Segrest and Mark Hoffman, Moanin’ at Midnight: The Life and Times of Howlin’ Wolf. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004. Howlin’ Wolf was born Chester Arthur Burnett, June 10, 1910, near West Point, Mississippi. (His grandfather nicknamed … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, American History, Chicago Blues, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Robert Johnson, Skip James, Son House, Southern History, The "Great Migration", The Blues, Uncategorized, Urban Blues, WP Long Form | Tagged Age of Jim Crow, American History, American History and Culture, American Popular Culture, Blues, Blues Revival of the 1960s, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Howlin' Wolf biography, James Segrest and Mark Hoffman, Robert Johnson, Southern History, The Blues, The Great Migration, WP Longform | 2 Comments

Blues Masters from the Delta (Blues Stories, 21)

Posted on April 1, 2016 by georgelamplugh

A Review of Ted Gioia, Delta Blues: The Life and Times of the Mississippi Masters Who Revolutionized American Music. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008. [NOTE: Once upon a time, I hoped to write a book on the origins … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, Alan Lomax, American History, B.B. King, Bessie Smith, Books, Chicago Blues, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Delta Blues, History, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Retirement, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern History, The "Great Migration", The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged "race records", Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blues Revival of the 1960s, Chitlin' Circuit, Henry Speir, John and Alan Lomax, Mississippi Delta Blues, Skip James, Ted Gioia | 2 Comments

Early Blues Divas (Blues Stories, 19)

Posted on June 15, 2015 by georgelamplugh

[NOTE: A different take on an earlier post, “20th –Century Blues Women,” this time emphasizing the decade of the 1920s.] * * * * * 2003 was designated by Congress as “The Year of the Blues” to commemorate W.C. Handy’s first encounter with that music, … Continue reading →

Posted in American History, Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, Blues Women, Books, Chicago Blues, Historical Reflection, History, Interdisciplinary Work, Ma Rainey, Mamie Smith, Memphis Minnie, Memphis Minnie, Popular Culture, Research, Retirement, Sippie Wallace and Bonnie Raitt, Southern History, Teaching, The Blues, Uncategorized, WP Long Form, WP Long Read | Tagged American History, American Popular Culture, Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, Blues Divas of the 1920s, Blues Stories, Blues Women of the 1920s, Bonnie Raitt, Ida Cox, Janis Joplin, Mamie Smith, Memphis Minnie, Sippie Wallace, Southern History, The Blues | 2 Comments

“The Blues Had a Baby” (Blues Stories, 18)

Posted on November 3, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of John Milward, Crossroads: How the Blues Shaped Rock ‘n’ Roll (And Rock Saved the Blues). Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2013. “’The blues had a baby,’ Muddy Waters sang, ‘and they called it rock and roll.’ Yeah, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Alan Lomax, American History, B.B. King, Big Bill Broonzy, Books, Chicago Blues, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Delta Blues, Historical Reflection, History, History of Rock and Roll, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Leadbelly, Mississippi John Hurt, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Research, Retirement, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern History, Teaching, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged American History, Crossroads: How the Blues Shaped Rock 'n' Roll (and Rock Saved the Blues", History of the Blues, John Milward, Southern History | Leave a comment

Early Blues–Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Everything (Blues Stories, 17)

Posted on June 1, 2014 by georgelamplugh

A Review of R.A. Lawson, Jim Crow’s Counterculture: The Blues and Black Southerners, 1890-1945. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2010. [NOTE: As I’ve explained elsewhere, my initial interest in the Blues developed because my older son and I were … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Jim Crow, Alan Lomax, American History, Big Bill Broonzy, Chicago Blues, Civil Rights Movement, Delta Blues, Historical Reflection, History, History Curriculum, History of Rock and Roll, Interdisciplinary Work, Leadbelly, Popular Culture, Robert Johnson, Southern History, Teaching, The Blues, Uncategorized, Urban Blues | Tagged Big Bill Broonzy, Blues Music as "Countercultural, Great Depression, Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927, Leadbelly, Modern Civil Rights Movement, Peetie Wheatstraw, Robert Johnson, The Blues, The Great Migration | 5 Comments

Big Bill Broonzy–The Blues Man as Pragmatist (Blues Stories, 9)

Posted on September 3, 2013 by georgelamplugh

A Review of Robert Riesman, I Feel So Good: The Life and Times of Big Bill Broonzy. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 2011. [NOTE: 2011 was a very good year for Blues biographies: three reputable university presses … Continue reading →

Posted in Alan Lomax, Big Bill Broonzy, Books, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, History, Muddy Waters, Research, Retirement, Southern History, The Blues | Tagged Alan Lomax, Big Bill Broonzy, Blues, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Robert Riesman, WP Longform | 2 Comments

Electric Mud–The Life and Music of Muddy Waters,1915-1983 (Blues Stories, 7)

Posted on July 1, 2013 by georgelamplugh

Muddy Waters (April 14, 1915-April 30, 1983) was born McKinley A. Morganfield in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. His family moved farther north, to the Stovall Plantation near Clarksdale, when he was about three, and it was there that he eventually taught … Continue reading →

Posted in Alan Lomax, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Muddy Waters, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged Blues, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Muddy Waters | 2 Comments

20th-Century Blues Men (Blues Stories, 5)

Posted on June 1, 2012 by georgelamplugh

[Note: This post is the companion piece to “20th-Century Blues Women.” A slightly different format this time, without an introductory essay (for those interested in one, go here.); instead, I offer biographical sketches of some favorite 20th-century Blues men and a song or two that capture the essence … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Alan Lomax, American History, Blind Willie McTell, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, History, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Piedmont Blues, Research, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, The Blues | Tagged American History, B.B. King, entertainment, music, Southern History, The Blues, WP Longform | 1 Comment

20th-Century Blues Women (Blues Stories, 4)

Posted on April 1, 2012 by georgelamplugh

A funny thing happened when I researched the role of women in developing the Blues in the twentieth century: I found an alternative narrative that contained a few surprises. For example, the year 2003 was designated by Congress as “The … Continue reading →

Posted in American History, Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday, Blues Women, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Francine Reed, History, Ma Rainey, Mamie Smith, Memphis Minnie, Memphis Minnie, Ruth Brown, Sippie Wallace and Bonnie Raitt, Southern History, The Blues | 3 Comments

Blues Geography (Blues Stories, 3)

Posted on March 10, 2012 by georgelamplugh

Any discussion of geographical variations in the Blues, while important in developing some understanding of the music, is also problematic, because those labels can be slippery. As Francis Davis points out, “the widespread availability of country blues records quickly blurred … Continue reading →

Posted in "Charley Patton", Alan Lomax, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie McTell, Brownie McGee, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Howlin' Wolf, Memphis Minnie, Memphis Minnie, Muddy Waters, Piedmont Blues, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, TBone Walker, Texas Blues, The Blues, Uncategorized | Tagged delta blues men | 3 Comments