mississippi delta blues hill country bluex

#Mississippi delta blues hill country bluex full#

In Louisiana, this gave rise to artists blending blues genres with local musical styles. People also moved in large numbers from rural areas to cities, both within their home states and out of state, after World War II. Some Key Artists:īuddy Guy, Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Howlin’ Wolf, Willie Dixon Songs:

#Mississippi delta blues hill country bluex full#

Chicago blues musicians also took the classic blues performance duos of guitar and harmonica and expanded them into full bands with bass drums, drums and sometimes a saxophone-and amplifiers! Their loud, full-bodied interpretation of the blues influenced musicians (like Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix) who would later adapt that sound into a brand new genre of music-rock ‘n’ roll. When he moved to Chicago in the 1940s, he plugged in that blues guitar and helped launch a whole new style of blues-Chicago blues, also known as electric blues. One such musician was Muddy Waters, who had mastered the Delta blues sound. They took the blues with them, but soon began adapting it to their new urban lives. When African Americans moved north for a better life, many settled in Midwestern cities like Chicago. “ Shake ‘Em On Down”–Mississippi Fred McDowell Hill Country Blues: Mississippi Fred McDowell, North Mississippi Allstars Songs: Some Key Artists:ĭelta Blues: John Lee Hooker, Son House, Robert Johnson (known as the “King of the Delta Blues Singers”) Then later, as African Americans migrated north, the true sweep of blues across the country began, leading to the creation of numerous other regional blues styles. People outside the region began learning of these early traditions when folklorist Alan Lomax came to research and record this music for the Library of Congress (and in the process making the only recordings that exist of some of these songs). Hill country, an area east of the delta, created its own sound that relied more on percussion and the foot-tapping beats that often reflected complex African polyrhythms.

Their Delta blues were performed with slide guitar (using a tube or object such as a bottleneck to press on the strings) and harmonica. They led extremely hard lives, and they expressed their conditions and sought to ease their worries through soulful, emotional singing. The farms there relied heavily on the labor of former African slaves who became poor farmers or farmhands. True to its name, Delta blues came to life in the fertile farmland (Delta) between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. Mississippi is considered the birthplace of the blues, and two distinct styles developed in the region-Delta blues and hill country blues.