In Search of the Blues : The White Invention of Black Music

by Hamilton, Marybeth

• ISBN13: 9780465028580
• ISBN10: 0465028586
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-01-28
• Publisher: Perseus Books Group

Summary

Leadbelly, Robert Johnson, Charley Patton-we are all familiar with the story of the Delta blues. Fierce, raw voices; tormented drifters; deals with the devil at the crossroads at midnight. In this extraordinary reconstruction of the origins of the Delta blues, historian Marybeth Hamilton demonstrates that the story as we know it is largely a myth. The idea of something called Delta blues only emerged in the mid-twentieth century, the culmination of a longstanding white fascination with the exotic mysteries of black music. Hamilton shows that the Delta blues was effectively invented by white pilgrims, seekers, and propagandists who headed deep into Americars"s south in search of an authentic black voice of rage and redemption. In their quest, and in the immense popularity of the music they championed, we confront Americars"s ongoing love affair with racial difference.

Author Biography

Marybeth Hamilton teaches American history at Birkbeck College, University of London.

Table of Contents

The Delta Revisited	p. 1
Impartial Testimony	p. 25
On the Trail of Negro Folk Songs	p. 53
Sound Photographs of Negro Songs	p. 91
Been Here and Gone	p. 157
The Real Negro Blues	p. 201
Acknowledgments	p. 247
Notes	p. 251
Index	p. 295
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