Analysis Of Jim Crow 's Counterculture

The rise of Soul music was a product of the particular environment of that time in which the musicians who created it lived, a period much paralleled with the Civil Rights Movement (CRM) and Black Power Movement (BPM) (Maultsby, 1983, 54). The objective of this research was to examine any existence of political and social messages delivered in Soul music around the civil rights movement era in America, which would lead to a better understanding of the role of Soul music having served in the process of political and social changes in the country.

Looking back at the history of Blues music, one can see the influence of the African-American community, tradition, and culture very apparent in it. The Blues music genre came into being from the songs

African American influence in music has been an ever present and controversial subject in American history. Stemming from many different cultures, religions and backgrounds, large portions of American music was introduced by, and credited to African Americans. Although in many cases, this music was used for entertainment by the masses or majority, contrary to popular belief, black music served a greater purpose than just recreation. Dating all the way back to the beginning of slavery in the U.S. during the 17th century, music has been used to make a statement and send a message. As African American music progressed over the years, there were common themes expressed as the genres evolved. It has been an open letter to the world, documenting and protesting the ongoing oppression faced by blacks in the United States, as well as an outlet for frustration. For many African Americans, the music gave them the only voice that couldn’t be silenced by their oppressors.

The blues, a uniquely American art form, was born on the dusty street corners of the Deep South in the late 1800s. An evolution of West African music brought to the United States by slaves, created the blues which was a way for black people in the south

Throughout African American history, especially during slavery music has been used as a coping mechanism to assist one with enduring hardship and opposition. Music specifically jazz and the blues can have many boundless effects on one’s life. In this case, in Sonny’s life, music was his only source of hope and strength to redemption.

Blues started in the South, long ago, when slavery was still socially accepted. Slaves were severely oppressed because they were legally bound to their masters. One way they found emotional freedom was to sing songs, which were called “slave songs.” “It Makes a Long Time Man Feel Bad”, “Hammer, Ring”, “Cornfield Holler”, were just a few of the popular slave songs (“Slavery and the Making of America”, 2004). Slave songs were in various forms such as field hollers, work songs, spirituals, and country string ballads (“The Blues- A History”, 2003). As time passed, these types of songs were starting to become known as the blues. After slavery ended in 1865, blues was not only still present, but became more evident. In the beginning of the 20th century, blues music was on the

Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness goes into great detail on race related issues that were specific to black males, the mass incarceration, and how that lead to the development of institutionalized racism in the United States. She compares the Jim Crow with recent phenomenon of mass incarceration and points out that the mass incarceration is a network of laws, policies, customs and institutions that have been working together to warrant the subordinating status of black males. In this paper I will go into a brief examination of the range of issues that she mentions in her book that are surrounding the mass incarceration of black male populations.

The roots of modern american rock and roll music, are firmly planted in Africa. As the native Africans were torn apart from their family’s and brought to the new world their lives were immediately and drastically changed forever. Finding themselves immersed in a completely new environment with a foreign culture, they thankfully persevered and carried on with their own traditions and most importantly to this paper, musical ones. Most American slaves originated from Western and Central Africa. The West Africans carried a musical tradition rich with long melody lines, complicated rhythms (poly rhythmics) and stringed instruments CITATION. The West Africans music was also strongly integrated into their everyday lives. Songs were preformed for religious ceremonies and dances and music was often a

Much of what the author provides for his audience should be praised. The narrative style of how African-American genres of music, specifically “the Jump Blues, Vocal or Street doowap groups, and R&B shouters,” started the genre and even influenced the attractiveness of the music group among whites is well done in this book. Intriguingly, some of the more interesting chapters in All Shook Up connect rock ‘n’ roll to larger cultural and social phenomenon taking place at this time. One example of this is how the author explores the interrelationship of rock ‘n’ roll and race. Citing and detailing the rise of early blues artists like Chuck Berry, “Little Richard” Penniman, and even Elvis Presley, the author effectively showcases how racism during the Civil Rights Movement was tied to the development and popularity of rock ‘n’ roll. Another stimulating aspect of the book is how the author explores sexual innuendos present in rock ‘n’ roll. Southern segregationists, Altschuler writes, began to see how sexuality would corrupt the youth of the world and would increasingly copy and change rock ‘n’ roll with less sexual

On the other hand, Blues were basically from work songs of African Americans slaves at the time. “It is a native American music, the product of the black man in this country, or, to put it more exactly the way I have come to think about it, blues could not exist if the African captives had not become American captives”(pp.17), said Jones and Baraka. In Jazz – A History, Frank Tirro wisely analyzes and explains the relationship between the unique background and

Throughout the millennium, music has touched the lives of many people around the world. Music is the one force of nature that can touch one’s heart with the perfect rhythm. With its many genres, people can enjoy each genre of music given the time and place in specific ways. Rock ‘n’ roll, for example, has influenced many Americans from the mid-1950’s and became inspirational today. While listening to rock ‘n’ roll music, everyone can’t help but name one key musician, and his name is Elvis Presley. Because of the way Elvis took the stage with his flashy hair, he later took the title as ‘The King of rock ‘n’ roll’. But was that really the case for African Americans? One must wonder, was rock ‘n’ roll specifically for White Americans? Why many

This judgment began unexpectedly to spread as African American music, especially the blues and jazz, became a worldwide sensation. Black music provided the pulse of the Harlem Renaissance and of the Jazz Age more generally. The rise of the “race records” industry, beginning with OKeh’s recording of Mamie Smith’s

Rhythm and blues, also known today as “R & B”, has been one of the most influential genres of music within the African American Culture, and has evolved over many decades in style and sound. Emerging in the late 1940's rhythm and blues, sometimes called jump blues, became dominant black popular music during and after WWII. Rhythm and blues artists often sung about love, relationships, life troubles, and sometimes focused on segregation and race struggles. Rhythm and blues helped embody what was unique about black American culture and validate it as something distinctive and valuable.

Nowadays the blues revolve around the meaning of sadness but doesn’t have a true message of fighting for survival or deprivation of freedom. In the process of searching for the modern day blues, it was discovered that the music is compiled by mostly Caucasian artist compared to the past where it was conceived by blacks to prompt their practices and beliefs.

The origin of blues music dates back all the way to the late 19th century, eventually going on to gain more recognition and popularity in the post-Reconstruction Era of the United States and early 20th century. It is widely known that the blues have deep roots in African-American history, having been conceived on Southern plantations where slaves would sing of their misery and unjust lives as they were extremely mistreated and over-worked endlessly in the fields by their slave-owners. After the end of the Civil War and Reconstruction Era, blues music began making