The Blues, an American Musical Tradition, from Life in the USA: The Complete Guide for Immigrants and Americans

Life in the USA is a complete guide to American life for immigrants and Americans. All materials on this site Copyright © Elliot Essman 2010. All rights reserved.    Home    Back    Next

Life in the USA
American Culture
American Music

The Blues
Even more influential than jazz is the highly poetic music called “the blues.” The blues began in the fields of the American south, and for fifty years was performed primarily by black musicians. The work of black blues artists like Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Muddy Waters and B.B. King is legendary. As black people moved from southern farms to northern cities, the blues moved too. Black music genres such as “Rhythm and Blues” and “Soul” would evolve out of both rural and urban blues. White musicians would adopt and adapt all these musical genres and create their own varieties.



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