LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to do the following:

Describe the musical landscape in which blues-derived music developed.
Describe various aspects of the Jim Crow laws and their impact on African American society.
Describe the antecedent musical genres that impacted the development of the blues.
Define the term blues.
Explain why W.C. Handy is affectionately referred to as the “Father of the Blues.”
Illustrate the textual and musical form—three-line structure—of the blues.
Name blues compositions/performers from the three broad stylistic categories—Country, Classic, and Urban blues—and their respective contributions.

Think About It: Where, When, Roots, and Social Influences of the Blues

Where, When, Roots, and Social Influence of Blues
Mississippi Delta, 1900 Towns like Memphis and New Orleans Alabama Black Belt Various towns in the Alabama Black Belt.	Maps of the Mississippi Delta Map of Alabama Black Belt towns
Roots African Rhythms Field Holler Jump Ups Spirituals Church Music
Social Influences Difficult lives of poor Black workers Sharecroppers’ living style Jim Crow Laws

The blues like spirituals were prayers. One was praying to God; the other was praying to man.

You can’t play the blues until you have paid your dues