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TAMU MUSC 200 - Rhythm and Blues: Chicago Blues and Gospel Influenced
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Musc 200 1st Edition Lecture 10 Outline of Last Lecture I. TestOutline of Current Lecture II. Chicago Blues instrumentationA. Slide guitar III. Chicago blues historyIV. Listening segments from Muddy Waters and Howlin’ WolfV. Gospel influenced Rhythm and Bluesa. A Capella male quartetsb. Virtuoso female singer accompanied by band or choirCurrent LectureChicago Blues instrumentation- Specific style of rhythm and blues- Emphasis on electric guitar, but not as a solo virtuoso like in jump blues- Borrows from rural blues Mississippi Delta style- Little or no big band influenceo No brass or reeds- Slide guitar: place a hard, non-porous (metal or glass) tube over finger and when touched to the string, it stops the string which allows for more pitches availableo Slide continuously to all notes in-between noteso Physical gesture also shapes the sound differently from bending the strings like in the fretted styleo Slide guitar allows for sliding long distances that you can’t get from bending the stringso Creates a brighter and glassier timbre (tone color or tone quality) - Fretted style: frets stop the stringso Bend strings to change pitchThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.o Not as much variability as with the slide guitar method- Harmonica: play right up against the microphone which changed the tone quality to a more electric and modern sound- Songs were built around one chord or a riffo This was about as far as you could get from TPA as TPA songs generally had complicated chordso Riff: short melodic theme that is repeated several timeso This style was straight out of the Mississippi Delta blues- Vocals: rough, influenced by Mississippi Delta blues- Chicago blues took a lot from Mississippi Delta blues, but also had new elementso Smaller ensemble of electric guitar, drums, piano, harmonicao Heterophony: 2 or more variations of the same melody played at the same timeo Polyphony: more than 1 independent melody going on at the same timeo Changing ensemble textures: intense and busy heterophony began to approach polyphonyo Using the microphone for an amplification tone of the harmonicaChicago Blues history- Late 40s and early 50s: large migration of African Americans from the South into Chicago- Independent labels emerging who would record new artists for this new market- Chess Records: started by two Jewish brothers from Polando Recorded primarily African American Chicago Blueso The brothers could somewhat identify and understand what the African Americans had been and still were going througho Most famous recordings they did were Chuck Barry and Muddy Waters Muddy Waters started the sound which defined the blues- Chicago blues was the most influential on rock in the 60s and 70sListening: “I Just Want to Make Love to You” by Muddy Waters- One riff throughout- The lack of changing chords puts the emphasis on the singer- The first chord change isn’t until over a minute into the song- Harmonica is played so that you can hear the notes separatelyo Harmonica solo has reverb- Rhythmic feel: lots of empty space, then strangely busyo Paradoxicalo Is emphatic and heavy but at the same time full of empty space- Simple harmony- Arrangement and rhythm produces a complicated effect- Rough vocal timbre achieved by singing directly into the microphone and also singing raspy- The riff adds interesto Starts with piano, then harmonica, then bass drum This is the callo Then bass player comes in with the response- TPA didn’t understand this music because they didn’t know what to look for. They were looking for elements of their music in this, but didn’t see it.- Lyrics: Chicago Blues was more up front and assertive with sexualityListening: “Long Distance Call” by Muddy Waters- Slide guitar gives bright and glassy effecto Smoothly links pitches- Less vocal roughness than the previous song- 12 bar blues chord progression- Relationship between slide guitar and harmonica: shifts between heterophony and polyphony o Melodies interweave with each other, creating a dense and heavy effectListening: “I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man” by Muddy Waters- Several different parts accent the riff- This may seem light to us today, but this was the heaviest music of the time- Lyrics: references to African American supernatural beliefso Spoke to cultural identity, unlike the previous TPA Big Band musicListening: “Smokestack Lightin’” by Howlin’ Wolf- Howlin’ Wolf had a huge impact on 60s rock, he was idolized- Vocal roughness at a higher level- No elaborate guitar as Wolf was primarily a singer- Lots of variety in vocalso Goes into falsetto with a clear timbre- Vocal rhythms: speech-like or declamatory- Wolf said his falsetto was influenced by Jimmie RogersListening: “Spoonful” by Howlin’ Wolf- Built around a riff- Drums provide a consistent rhythmic texture- Polyphonic- Wolf would conduct chord changes so he could go as he wanted to- Lyrics: title reference to heroino Song is about dependency, each verse explores a different dimension of what you’re dependent on Love, drugs, diamonds, coffee, teao Chicago blues lyrics explored intense and serious topics which was inspiring to 60s rockers Chicago blues was in direct contrast with the recent light TPA pop (“There’s a bluebird on your windowsill” vs. heroin)Gospel Influenced Rhythm and Blues- Before WWII, there were two main types of African American music: sacred church music and secular blues- After WWII, rhythm and blues borrowed from gospel music and some gospel singers shifted overto sing R&Bo This upset many people and many ended up alienated due to the music they performed- Late 40s: 2 main styles of Gospelo A Capella male quartets Very creative, no instruments Only 4 singers, but would cover full vocal range Smooth tone quality with smooth blends Complex vocal arrangements Would sing in harmony or separate into bass, 2 middle singers with chords, and the higher melody to break up the textureo Virtuoso female singers accompanied by a choir or bandListening: “Golden Gate Gospel Train” by the Golden Gate Jubilee- A Capella male quartet- Smooth blends- Imitate train soundsListening: “How I Got Over” by Clara Ward- Virtuoso female singer accompanied by a choir and a piano- Call and response between the singer and the choir- Clear vocal timbres- Melisma: sing more than 1


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TAMU MUSC 200 - Rhythm and Blues: Chicago Blues and Gospel Influenced

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