History of blues guitar books

The blues means a lot of things to a lot of people. Learn blues guitar book about the history of the styles of. A brief blues guitar history by griff hamlin in the 1920s and 1930s, blues guitar players like blind lemon jefferson, son house, robert johnson, and lonnie johnson were the influential performers of the day. Its origins and evolution a handbook for the guitar literature course. What are the best books about the history of blues music. Learn blues guitar book of history for insights to the. By then he lived in england, where he soaked up the music of everyone from eric clapton to john. In the initial years, that is, in the second and the third decade of the 20th century, the blues guitar was pioneered by the likes of robert johnson and blind lemon jefferson these blues men were solitary musicians who played as their heart desired. If the story of the blues is the story of a people, then the voice behind the story belongs to the guitar. Blues is a musical art form with its own distinct musical progressions and much more. The history, the greatsand how to play by lovato, andrew online on amazon. Near the beginning of the twentieth century, blues musicians in the mississippi delta popularized the bottleneck slide guitar style, and the first recording of slide guitar was by sylvester weaver in 1923.

The history of american country beyond nashville duration. Delta blues instruments include the guitar, harmonica, and cigarbox guitar. The big book of blues guitar is intended for anyone who loves the blues and the guitar and is enthralled with this. Blues guitar history, research blues guitar history. The best way to understand the blues is to visit our blues. Im looking to buy a few more guitar books, but most of the lists i find are of books i already own, chord chemistry by ted greene and the advancing guitarist by mick goodrick. He is the author of the acclaimed books outcats and history of.

From blind lemon jeffersons martin to tbone walkers gibson archtop, and from b. The first stars of blues guitar interweaves musical history. At the same time, the blues spilled over into memphis. Cigars were packed in boxes, crates, and barrels as early as 1800, but the small sized boxes that we are familiar with today did not exist prior to around 1840. Memphis minnie is the only one that comes to my mind, and i do not know any material devoted to her playing. If the complete technique book is good for quick starts, this would be the bullet train. Learn blues guitar book of history of the blues can be very enjoyable for you, if you can find a suitable course. Great books like deep blues by robert palmer, and the history of the blues by. Blues history blues is an american heritage, and it should be noted as such.

Francis davis is a contributing editor of the atlantic monthly and writes regularly for the new york times and the new yorker. This huge book 631 pages is a history of bluegrass music in the words of its pioneers. King eric clapton books and videos on blues guitar. An illustrated history looks at the instruments and the players, from the birth of the blues to the present day. List of books and articles about blues music online.

Lovatos system of blues guitar instruction, built on his lifetime of teaching, can bring musicians of any level to a rewarding and creative lifelong. Davis covers all grounds, offering historical, biographical, geographical, even speculative information on what seems like every person who ever sang a blue note or plucked out a blues song on guitar. It was a good book for a total novice because it really explained the basic struture of what blues is on guitar. This book tells the story of their pairing from the first reported sightings of blues musicians. Blue muse, a book, album and exhibit from photographer. Check now top 5 best beginner blues guitar books if youre going to delve into the blues.

Brazilian and latin jazz styles are rich with expression and history. This musical and cultural history traces the blues from its roots in west africa to the mississippi delta to urban. The men who made the music from the pages of guitar player magazine. Advances in technology amplifiers and guitar pickups had made it possible for this new breed of players to be heard.

Some of the greatest guitar players in history emerged during the 40s and 50s. If youre looking for a comprehensive book on the history of the blues, you might find this to be a little too comprehensive. However, by identifying specific techniques, notes, and patterns to follow, you can begin finding your own blues sound. He has more than a dozen method books to his name and is the author of guitar for dummies, 2nd edition, and rock guitar for dummies both published by wiley, blues rock riffs for guitar cherry. I have yet find any book that is really could teaching the blues. Online guitar books home online guitar books guitar. Hundreds of interviews are accented with 400 plus photos and 26 chapters, which cover every aspect of bluegrass music. From early jazz guitarists to the delta blues of americas deep south the greatest guitar players in history looks at some of the key players whos influence can still be heard today. Another hal leonard selection, this is a trim 48 pages for teaching you how to hold a guitar for the first.

In the initial years, that is, in the second and the third decade of the 20th century, the blues guitar was pioneered by the likes of robert johnson and blind lemon jefferson these blues men. Check out the scale library, arpeggios library as well as lessons on everything from chord construction to improvisation. In 1963, leroi jones, later known as amiri baraka, was the first to write a book on the social history of the blues in blues people. Sometimes even inter generational learners seek to discover blues. Another book edited by jas obrecht is blues guitar. Blue muse, a book, album and exhibit from photographer tim duffy tim duffy started music maker relief foundation to support blues musicians lost to time and poverty. He would soon combine this with ragtime he had learned from a parlor guitar teacher in nearby franklin to create some of the first solo records featuring the guitar. Since the early 1900s, blues and the guitar have traveled side by side. Robert johnson lonnie johnson big bill broonzy blind blake rev gary davis b. The history of the blues and the origin of the blues is really an evolution of the blues from the unaccompanied vocal music and oral traditions of africanamerican slaves and rural blacks into a. The one book i bought to get me started was by blues guitar by richard daniels. This book tells the story of their pairing from the first reported sightings of blues musicians, to the rise of nationally known stars, to the onset of the great depression, when blues recording virtually came to a halt. A musical and cultural history of the mississippi delta.

The term rhythm and blues came to define an era of contemporary blues in the 1950s. In the 1950s the blues had grown up from country music into something we call urban blues. We are in the post history of the blues, and at this point we might as well set some requirements, guards against benign nonsense, for new books on all blues, but especially delta blues. Playing slide guitar on the steel guitar is widely considered to be the hallmark of this style of blues.

And how to play by andrew lovato filed under inside sfcc santa fe city historian and associate professor andrew lovato, ph. The book covers the history of the guitar and of the blues, including a personal appreciation of the great musicians who have shaped the genre and created such an aweinspiring legacy. Even the repeat performances of the same artist varied from each other. African influences are apparent in the blues tonality, the callandresponse pattern of the repeated refrain structure of the blues stanza, the falsetto break in the vocal style, and the imitation of vocal idioms by instruments, especially the guitar and harmonica. Woven into the course of the book is a story of a boy and an old man that meet on the tracks on a fateful morning. The music had changed from solo, acoustic, country music to ensemble, electric city music. It will be even more enjoyable if you can find a colearner. Which is the best beginner blues guitar book to master your skill. You can learn about the first guitars that were often bought from a sears. A history of the evolution of the guitar in four and a half minutes, from its first appearance in the late 15th century to the present day, featuring guitar music from 1551 to 1970 played by ian pittaway, rolf. How you use the words will define how compelling your story is. Blues guitar can take many forms, which means that learning how to get the blues sound is an evolving process. Blues is the cornerstone of american popular music, the bedrock of rock and roll. Nonetheless, several books in which the origin of the guitar.

The greatest guitar players in history the 1920s 30s. My old colleague, jas obrecht, has written a definitive history of the first blues guitar stars who emerged in the 1920s or earlier, including sylvester weaver, papa charlie jackson, blind lemon jefferson, blind blake, blind willie mctell, blind willie johnson, lonnie johnson, mississippi john hurt, and tampa red. In this extraordinary musical and social history, robert palmer traces the odyssey of the blues from its rural beginnings, to the steamy bars of chicagos south side, to international popularity, recognition, and imitation. They used a slide which was often made out of a knife blade or the broken or sawed off neck from a bottle. It is on the rails that the boy finds the answer to.