- Hardcover: 342 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins; Har/Com edition (1 Mar 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0060524235
- ISBN-13: 978-0060524234
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 16 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,074,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Escaping the Delta
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"If you read only one book about blues...read this one."--Starred Booklist on Escaping the Delta
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Product Description
Robert Johnson's story presents a fascinating paradox: Why did this genius of the Delta blues excite so little interest when his records were first released in the 1930s? And how did this brilliant but obscure musician come to be hailed long after his death as the most important artist in early blues and a founding father of rock 'n' roll? Elijah Wald provides the first thorough examination of Johnson's work and makes it the centerpiece for a fresh look at the entire history of the blues. He traces the music's rural folk roots but focuses on its evolution as a hot, hip African-American pop style, placing the great blues stars in their proper place as innovative popular artists during one of the most exciting periods in American music. He then goes on to explore how the image of the blues was reshaped by a world of generally white fans, with very different standards and dreams. The result is a view of the blues from the inside, based not only on recordings but also on the recollections of the musicians themselves, the African-American press, and original research. Wald presents previously unpublished studies of what people on Delta plantations were actually listening to during the blues era, showing the larger world in which Johnson's music was conceived. What emerges is a new respect and appreciation for the creators of what many consider to be America's deepest and most influential music. Wald also discusses how later fans formed a new view of the blues as haunting Delta folklore. While trying to separate fantasy from reality, he accepts that neither the simple history nor the romantic legend is the whole story. Each has its own fascinating history, and it is these twinhistories that inform this book.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
THERE HAS PROBABLY BEEN MORE ROMANTIC FOOLISHNESS written about blues in general, and Robert Johnson in particular, than about any other genre or performer of the twentieth century. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
THERE HAS PROBABLY BEEN MORE ROMANTIC FOOLISHNESS written about blues in general, and Robert Johnson in particular, than about any other genre or performer of the twentieth century. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
79 of 79 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book looked interesting to me. It turned out to be compelling.
Like many others, I have always thought of the blues as a traditional, black musical style rooted in rural poverty, slavery, violence and dark bargains with the devil.
Escaping the Delta gently debunks these myths, and replaces them with an explanation that is both more interesting and more convincing. The book is intelligently structured, with an introductory section, a song-by-song treatment of Johnson's recordings (listen as you read!) and a rather understated wrap-up.
This is not a biography, and it leaves much of Johnson's life, relationships and death untouched. But Wald's point is that Johnson has been hijacked and turned into a modern phenomenon that would be unrecognizable to him and his peers, so he rightly focuses on the legend rather than the life.
If you are new to the blues, buy a copy of Escaping the Delta and a CD of the complete recordings of Robert Johnson, settle down with your favourite beverage and enjoy this book. If you are already into the blues, do all of the above, dig deeper into your record collection....and be ready for some surprises.
I have nothing but praise for this book, which is immaculately researched, fresh in its thinking, and always entertaining. I recommend it unreservedly.
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The American reviews inside the cover make it clear that this caused quite a stir in the States. This is a terrific book - and one which, for once, challenges the blues fan a little, rather than providing familiar stereotypes of lonesome Delta bluesmen developing their genius in rural isolation. For anyone who loves Robert Johnson, Son House, Skip James et al, this will be a treat - but a treat which will possibly change the way you regard their music. (It even comes with a CD!)
26 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Chuck away your romantic notions (if you had any). The blues wasn't the heart-aching voice of the opressed, but the down-home pop music of its time. The 'names' were professionally slick, and lived a good(-ish) life.
One could probably quibble with some of the interpretations of the music's history, but this is fascinating and valuable re-consideration of the story of the blues as we thought we knew it.
It's a shame in a way, because I always rather liked the more traditional take, but it's probably about time I grew up anyway.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Blues lovers
This is an interesting and well written book for anyone who loves and is interested in Robert Johnson and the blues generally.
Published 13 months ago by Mr. J. W. Cox
Debunking the Myths About the Blues
If you love the blues and haven't read this book, then you should read it right away. If you're already familiar with the myths about the blues propagated by the likes of Lomax and... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Mr. P. Sturdee
Very good, but...
I would concur with many of the reviews that have went before. This is a well-researched book written in an accessible way. Read more
Published 22 months ago by hunger
A novel take on a legend of the Blues
For a lifelong Blues fan, and lover of the of the Delta Blues, this book was a revelation and helped me to re-evaluate my opinion not only of Robert Johnson but also of many other... Read more
Published on 29 May 2010 by J. Ratcliff
Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the invention of the blues
A really great book, which has certainly changed by view of the origins of the Blues, and who were the famous originators of this great music. Read more
Published on 10 Sep 2009 by G. Wraith
an alternative but laborious take on the blues
A great concept for a book - take a subject which we all take for granted and turn it on its head then support it by a myriad soundbites and anecdotes. Read more
Published on 7 Mar 2006 by bigflat
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biography > Film, Television & Music > Music > Blues
- Books > Biography > Social & Health Issues > Cultural History > African-American & Black
- Books > History > Cultural History
- Books > Music, Stage & Screen > Music > Styles > Blues
- Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Social Sciences > Communication Studies > Media & Communication Industries > Television
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
