watcha readin profcrispy?
some music books.
elijah wald, escaping the delta: robert johnson and the invention of the blues
this is a tremendously smart, knowledgeable, and good book. i could put the thesis like this: the idea of "authenticity" in the blues has led to massive misunderstandings. one is the idea that blues must have started on the mississippi delta, and that the people that emerged from the delta, especially in the sixties revival - son house and skip james, for example - are the most important artists. above all, robert johnson, who also emerged in the sixties revival, though as a hyper-authentic corpse. he's the most important artist in the history of the blues from the perspective of now, a minor artist from the perspective of then. the way white listeners sorted artists and valued them - really by their primitiveness - had almost nothing to do with the way they emerged and were understood in their own context. wald says he still loves these artists above all others, but is critical of his own assessments as a guide to telling blues history. indeed, there is no more reason to think that the blues emerged first in the delta than in georgia/florida, texas, or even, say missouri. the recording boom in blues of the late twenties and thirties was a commercial fad that drew artists who could play many styles to emphasize blues. blind willie mctell, ma rainey, tampa red, and barbecue bob, for example, were highly skilled and flexible stylists - professional touring musicians (and all originating in georgia). all of them, including the delta guys, learned off each others' records. (indeed, when i heard john hammond a couple of weeks ago he told a story about meeting howlin wolf, who was present as a young man at the golden era of delta blues (he was a year older than rj). wolf asked him: how do you know all these songs, white boy? and hammond said: i learned them off records. wolf's reply: me too.) at any rate,, wald's ideas are not of course entirely original, but he pursues them with amazing knowledge and passion. did you know that muddy waters' repertoire when he was "discovered" in mississippi in 1940 included five gene autry songs? obviously, he could not perform these for his audiences in the sixties and seventies, or at least they would not have wanted him to or understood why he was.
jeff chang, can't stop, won't stop: a history of the hip hop generation
i don't know how i missed this 2005 book up til now. it is surely the very best book on this subject, and i wish i could have seen it in time to order it for my current graffiti class. one move that chang makes beautifully, and which i thought was an almost-original insight with me: this stuff originates in jamaica. but the context that chang builds - urban "renewal" in the bronx etc - is incredibly rich, and the writing is amazingly sharp and lovely.