These are the slides that went with a talk introducing my love of the Blues as music, culture, and dance see http://www.quests.bluedance.org.uk/2013/03/a-blues-primer/ I've inserted YouTubes for the audio and video samples. I had to swap Ella Fitzgerald "Fever" for Lisa Hindmarsh

2. Chorus of ‘Sweat’
You started to sweat.
Bullets from your soul.
Sweat.
Lost all means of self control.
Sweat.
Like a twenty dollar whore.
Sweat.
Lord, that's when she walked through the door.
Balletic grace meets the unashamedly urban vernacular!

3. West Africans enslaved in Americas 1619-1860
Cleansed of African culture, such as drums
Field work songs, church
spirituals, trained black
musicians, and stage minstrels
Mississippi Delta 1890s
+ Blues emerges fusing
elements of vernacular
African and classical
European music
1912 WC Handy publishes St Louis Blues

4. St Louis Blues First Verse
I hate to see that evening sun go down
I hate to see that evening sun go down
'Cause my baby, has left this town
• Poly-Rhythmic v Poly-Temporal
• Percussive use of instruments –
mimics banned talking drums
• Call & response, repetition and
answer (moaning lyrics v mocking
jazzy instruments)
• Blues chord progression v minor and
major chords (lights v darks) (tensions
v release) –syncopated down beats
• =A CONVERSATION

5. 1910+ Jazz (blues)
1930 Country/Western
swing (folk + jazz)
1930s Big band swing (jazz
+ blues)
1940s-1950 Rhythm and Blues
[R&B] (blues + Jazz)
Rock & Roll (blues + gospel)
Rockabilly (Country)
Funk (Jazz) , Soul (R&B + gospel+
funk)
1950s Rock (blues, jazz, classical, R&B)
1960s Folk Rock, Pop Rock, Blues Rock
1970s Punk Rock, Heartland Rock, Grunge, Metal
1970s Rap/Hip-Hop (funk, soul & poetry)
1980s Pop-Disco (funk, soul)
1912 WC Handy publishes St Louis Blues

6. Too poor to die 1st verse
Last night I had a dream
I dream I died
The undertaker came
To take me for my last ride
I couldn't afford a casket
Embalmin‘ was high
So I jumped off my death bed
Too poor to die
Affirmation
Percussive
incantation
Fertility rituals
Purification
rituals

7. Blind Willie Johnson, Dark was the night, Cold was the day, 1927
Voyager 1, 1977, currently on the edge of the solar system over 18 billion km away
THE BLUES IS UNIVERSAL

8. Earl Bostic
Harlem Nocturne
Lightnin’ Hopkins
Shake that thing
Tom Jones
St James Infirmary
Blues
Tennessee Ernie
Ford – 16 tons
Henry Mancini
Pink Panther theme
Lisa Hindmarsh
Fever