Spring break...

Almost over, folks, enjoy it while it lasts... (not in reference to previous--yes, approved--video)...

since nobody's posting anything...

here's my old band, madam i'm adam, playing our blusiest song live at Stebbins Hall (a co-op) last semester. it's called "all the hot bitches want to get in my britches." you can't see me, but i'm off to the right playing guitar. watch at your own risk (i'm serious, especially if you decide to watch the other videos-"dont' know which part of me" is pretty safe because i wrote it, but i can't vouch for the others).




p.s. tony, feel free to tell me to take it down if you deem it innapropriate. i'm not trying to self-promote, this band isn't even together anymore. i mostly wanted everyone to see my friend ben's rockin' harmonica playing, in light of the great harmonica playing in the videos we watched on thursday.

Big Mama Thornton

Big Mama Thornton doing Hound Dog before Elvis covered it:
(I hope I pasted it in properly...)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2aHVING6XQ

From the field...

This just in, from a photographer friend, Lewis Watts (formerly at Berkeley, now teaching at U.C. Santa Cruz)--one of his shots from Mardi Gras. Lewis LIVES Songs & Places. Here's a line from his e-mail: "I went to Mardi Gras for the first time last month. Very interesting. It answered and raised many questions about the culture of New Orleans."

Answered and raised... the picture says it all.

More sources...

These come on good recommendation ((Thanks to Loren Madsen!):

www.prewarblues.org

www.bluebeatmusic.com

Photo, by the way, is Tommy Johnson--from the 1920s.

Prince Heathen

...
"O lady, will you weep for me?
Lady, tell me true."
"Ah never yet, you heathen dog,
I never shall for you."
















From "Prince Heathen," as performed by Martin Carthy, Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley, March 17, 2007
Photo from http://www.tradmusic.com/artistinfo.asp?artistID=256

SONG SYLLABUS / WEEKS 9 & 10

Photo: Marion Post Walcott (FSA), just outside Clarksdale, Mississippi, late 1930s. Library of Congress.

Week 9: Thursday, March 15
Blues I: DELTA ROAD, CITY LIGHTS

Week 10: Thursday, March 22
Blues II: Chicago

"SWEET HOME CHICAGO"
Robert Johnson
Compare Kokomo Arnold, “Old Original Kokomo Blues,” in AAS

"CORINNA, CORINNA" (Alan Lomax 577/588)
S&P Muddy Waters
MH Ollie Gilbert #0961

“CARELESS LOVE” (Alan Lomax 574/585, J&A Lomax 39/64)
Lonnie Johnson
We chose the Lonnie Johnson version, but compare Skip James’ version

MH Max Hunter #0686 ***
MH Bill Greer #1424
MH Kris Ann Parker #1521

This is a sea of music—let’s concentrate on the Mississippi Delta Blues first, then work our way up the Mississippi (or more accurately, the Illinois Central, departing from New Orleans, with a stop in Memphis. The fare—in 1940, from Memphis—$11.10). Here we go!

DELTA BLUES (MISSISSIPPI)
Charley Patton (the source)
Son House
Robert Johnson
Skip James
Muddy Waters (his early recordings!)
Mississippi Fred McDowell (Northern Mississippi blues style)

CHICAGO:
Muddy Waters
Johnny Shines
Howlin’ Wolf
Little Walter
Elmore James
plus
Big Joe Turner (Kansas City)
Bobby Blue Bland (Memphis)




And of course, all the rest (just scratching the surface):

KING BISQUIT TIME (Helena, Arkansas Radio)
Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller)
Robert Lockwood Jr.

TEXAS:
Blind Lemon Jefferson
Mance Lipscomb
Lightin’ Hopkins
T-Bone Walker

ALSO:
Leroy Carr (How Long, How Long Blues—one of the first songs everyone learned))
Blind Blake
Blind Willie McTell
Lonnie Johnson (we have him on “Careless Love”)
Kokomo Arnold
Bukka White
Big Joe Williams
Roosevelt Sykes

BLUES WOMEN:
Bessie Smith
Ma Rainey
Ida Cox
Memphis Minnie
Louise Johnson
Victoria Spivey
Big Mamma Thornton
Sister Rosetta Tharpe (gospel singer--in a category of her own!)

SONGSTER TRADITION:
Henry Thomas (takes us back into the 19th century)
Mississippi John Hurt
Rev. Gary Davis
Furry Lewis (Memphis, sonster tradition)
and of course,
Elizabeth Cotton

JUG BANDS:
Mississippi Sheiks
Memphis Jug Band

Examples from most of these artists are available on the African American Song Archive. This list just scratches the surface, of course. The archive does NOT feature better-known (and more commercially popular) artists such as Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson or Howlin’ Wolf. You’ll have to use iTunes or other resources to find them. (A friend just recommended the following site--I haven'tdone more than take a peek, but it looks good: www.prewarblues.org)

This is a sea of music—let’s concentrate on the Mississippi Delta Blues first, then work our way up the Mississippi (or more accurately, the Illinois Central, departing from New Orleans, with a stop in Memphis. The fare—in 1940, from Memphis—$11.10.


Dorothea Lange photo, FSA, Mississippi, 1930s. Library of Congress.

SOME KEY YouTube SELECTIONS:
Son House: Dead Letter Blues
Mississippi Fred McDowell
Furry Lewis: When I Lay My Burden Down
Skip James: I'm So Glad, and Crow Jane
Roosevelt Sykes: Sweet Home Chicago
AND
Sister Rosetta Tharpe: I Hear Music in the Air
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeaBNAXfHfQ

Persona

. . .

Reginal Marsh does Harlem...

This Reginald Marsh painting form the '30s--"High Yaller" (here from an eBay print sale) presents all the problems of working from a source that's not one's own. Compare William H. Johnson's Harlem girls, on Song&Places post--at once more innocent and more engaging. The spirit behind the Reginald Marsh paintings (and he remains one of our key "social realists"--the artists who worked with city themes in the 1930s) always seems to have an element of the voyeur. That is, he's looking in from the outside. This shows in particular in his treatment of women (black, white or otherwise). Something important to consider here: how can we enter into another world--someone else's world--with the right measure of honesty? Humility? Understanding? The question never goes away...

It's true in the music, too. (I think Fredrik did a good job with this in his Woodie Guthrie video...)

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot...

CHORUS:
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

I looked over Jordan and what did I see
Coming for to carry me home
A band of angels coming after me
Coming for to carry me home

* * * * *

Here are the verses from second Kings 2, 1-15. The key verse is 2:11,
but the others will give you a better sense of the setting. Is this where the song comes from? A vision of transcendence, certainly. "If you get to heaven before I do..." Also, consider the line from Amazing Grace: "He will my shield and portion be..."

1 And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
2 And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
3 And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.
4 And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.
5 And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.
6 And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.
7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.
8 And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground.
9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.
10 And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;
14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.
15 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

SONG SYLLABUS / WEEK 8

Week 8: Thursday, March 8
Spirituals: HEAVEN & EARTH


"Negro boys and girls humming spiritual at UCPAPWA (United Cannery, Agricultural, Packing, and Allied Workers of America) meeting, Bristow, Oklahoma. The union meeting has become a main social gathering in these sections and has taken on some of the spirit of the old time revival. Spirituals vie with the union songs for popularity." Russell Lee, FSA, 1940, Library of Congress

"AMAZING GRACE" (J&A Lomax 328/344)
S&P Doc Watson & Jean Ritchie (also on SGS) +++
SGS Horton Barker +++

AMAZING GRACE, on SGS: Doc Watson & Jean Ritchie, Buell Kazee, Horton Barker, Clarence Ashley (+). Check these individually.

Also on SGS: Paul Robeson’s version of Amazing Grace:
http://internal.ucberkeley2.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221316777/

MH Ollie Gilbert #1256
MH Rev. Harold Hunter #0261 (midi file only?)

Old Baptist Church, Mountain Music of Kentucky:
http://internal.ucberkeley2.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221315155/
Old Harp Singers:
http://internal.ucberkeley2.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221291732 /

"SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOT" (in Johnson ANS; AFS 115)
Paul Robeson (from “The Power and the Glory”) +++

Additional versions on AAS:
Sister O.M. Terrell (On AAS). See where Sister Rosetta Tharp comes from…
http://internal.ucberkeley4.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221336789/
Apollo Male Quarter:
http://internal.ucberkeley4.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221334532/

Paul Robeson
SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT
Amazing Grace (see above)
Balm in Gilead
No More Auction Block for Me
No More Auction Block for Me (DYLAN, for comparison)

Ol’ Man River
Go Down Moses
Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child
Joshua Fit de Battle of Jericho (compare the Southernaires in AAS)
http://internal.ucberkeley4.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221345627/

Marian Anderson
Let Us Break Bread Together ++
Deep River

AND DON'T MISS! The following two recordings are from an old Folkways record--very simply sung, quite beautiful. From southeastern Georgia:

Beverly Green, Black American Religious Music from Southeast Georgia (Folkways/SGS)
There Is a A Balm in Gilead
http://internal.ucberkeley2.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221308928/

Mallard, Ruth, Black American Religious Music from Southeast Georgia (Folkways/SGS)
Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child
http://internal.ucberkeley2.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221308927/

Mississippi John Hurt
Beulah Land
Blessed Be the Name
Farther Along
Praying on the Old Campground

Blind Willie Johnson
Blind Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground
John the Revelator

Thelonious Monk
This Is My Song, This Is My Story


Negro Religious Field recordings (AAS Archive): compare these FIELD RECORDINGS—quite different in character, with any of the above:

I’m Coming Home on the Morning Train
http://internal.ucberkeley4.classical.com/permalink/recording/3221338725/
I’m Gonna Lift Up A Standard for My King
I’m Running for My Life (Rev. McGhee)
I’m A Soldier In The Army Of The Lord
Ain’t No Grave Can Hold My Body Down (Silent Grove Baptist Church with Bozie Sturdivant)

Turner Junior Johnson selections (4 songs). See desciption of Turner Johnson in Alan Lomax: The Land Where The Blues Began. His voice and Harmonica. These available on AAS:
Meet Me In Jerusalem
When I Lay My Burden Down
In New Jerusalem
Steal Away

And a painting by Harlem Renaissance painter William H. Johnson (1901-1970):


YouTube:

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot:
Beyonce
Dolly Parton
Young solo singer

Mahalia Jackson / Joshua Fit de Battle of Jericho
In a way, this is where many people started with Spirituals. You can sense that there’s a world underneath these songs—even if they’re arranged for mainstream television. Compare all the early recordings on AAS—as well as Max Hunter (for white Southern song tradition).

You’re Going to Need a Friend. Group harmony, old-style, in a black church. See Alan Lomax writing about this (handout)

Old Man River / The Temptations (1993)
Old Man River / Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Put A Spell on You / Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Stranger Than Paradise / Trailer in Japanese (Screamin’ Jay)

Aretha Franklin / Nessun Dorma (Pavarotti becasme ill-asked Aretha Franklin to stand in for him—and this is what followed. Thanks to C.!)

"Oh hard is the fortune of all womankind..."

Our discussion of "Barbara Allen" also, for me, harks back to a favorite song (more sympathetic perhaps to a "hard-hearted Barbara Allen"-like character) from the collection of that Berkeley bohemian of the late 1940s and 50s, Harry Smith, in his "Anthology of American Folk Music (Folkways 1952)," performed by Buell Kazee:















The Wagoner's Lad

Oh hard is the fortune of all womankind,
They're always controlled, they're always confined.
Controlled by their parents until they're a bride,
Then slaves to their husbands the rest of their lives.

Oh I am a poor girl, my fortune is sad,
I have always been courted by the wagoner's lad.
He courted me daily by night and by day,
And now he is loaded and going away.

Your parents don't like me because I am poor,
They say I'm not worthy of entering your door.
I work for my living, my money's my own,
And if they don't like me they can leave me alone.

Your horses are hungry, go feed them some hay,
Come sit down beside me as long as you may.
My horses ain't hungry, they won't eat your hay,
So fare thee well, darling, I'll be on my way.

Your wagon needs greasing, your whip's for to mend,
Come sit down here by me as long as you can.
My wagon is greasy, my whip's in my hand,
So fare thee well, darling, no longer to stand.

Digital Tradition link:
http://sniff.numachi.com/pages/tiWAGONLAD;ttWAGONLAD.html

Down by the Salley Gardens

Down by the Salley Gardens

Down by the salley gardens my love and I did meet;
She passed the salley gardens with little snow-white feet.
She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree;
But I, being young and foolish, with her would not agree.

In a field by the river my love and I did stand,
And on my leaning shoulder she laid her snow-white hand.
She bid me take life easy, as the grass grows on the weirs.
But I was young and foolish, and now am full of tears.

W.B.Yeats

Published in Crossways, 1889; the poet was 24.

Salley is an old word for willows...

I'm posting this because it's from an authoritative published version of the poem, not the hit-or-miss internet. Note the long lines--think about how they can be sung. Also, that "tree" is in the singular ("a man is like a tree", as from Psalms), and "I being young and foolish" (the word "being," as Anthony noted in class). Also, in line four, the "would" rather than "did," which was incorrect in the version I gave you. The differences are subtle--but important as to the meaning (they also show how songs can wander and change...) Finally, there's no "It was" at the very beginning--the song starts as above--which makes the first line of the initial verse parallel to the first line of the second. The simplicity here is water-clear--and hard-won...

I do like singing it with a repeat of the first verse...

triple trinity

photos from father urs, fredrik son, and the holy bello's triple trinity birthday bash..

when we reached the top the clouds parted like a crucifix. i'm not religious or anything (though my parents raised me as a catholic and i'd say i'm a spritual person), but it was an absolutely breathtaking moment. i hope others who participated in the journey up the hills noticed

Blowin' Down the Road

Love Henry

...

"Hush up, hush up, my parrot," she cried,
"And light on my right knee.
The doors to your cage shall be decked with gold
And hung on a willow tree."

"I won't fly down, I can't fly down
And light on your right knee.
A girl who would murder her own true love
Would kill a little bird like me."

from "Love Henry," Traditional

Child Ballads in Max Hunter Collection

CHILD BALLADS: Max Hunter Collection. Here are some of the individual recordings of the ballads we're listening to--all from Max Hunter. Note that the collection includes several variants of each. And, of course, there are all the many other Child Ballads as well.

Child No. 4 Lady Isabel And the Elf Knight_Hunter #47 Lovin' Polly_Hunter #160 Little Billy_Hunter #317 Willie Came Over the Main Wide Ocean_Hunter #398 Pretty Polly_Hunter #826 Pretty Polly

Child No. 10 The Twa Sisters_Hunter #166 The Miller's Daughter_Hunter #282 The Old Woman Lived on a Seashore_Hunter #361 Two Sisters_Hunter #903 Two Sisters

Child No. 84 Barbra Allen_Hunter #148 Barbra Allen_Hunter #492 Barbra Allen_Hunter #586 Barbra Allen_Hunter #688 Barbra Allen_Hunter #740 Barbry Allen_Hunter #796 Barbry Allen_Hunter #833 Barbry Allen_Hunter #835 Barbra Allen_Hunter #1176 Barbra Allen

Child No. 200 The Gypsie Laddie_Hunter #118 Black Jack Davey_Hunter #136 Black Jack Davy_Hunter #423 Gypsy Davy_Hunter #831 Black Jack Davy_Hunter #1000 Gypsy Davy_Hunter #1022 Black Jack Boy_Hunter #1463 Black Jack Davey