Escaping the Delta (48 page)

Holiday, Billie, 202, 203, 205, 226, 230, 237, 260

Holladay, Kenny, xvi, xvii

Holland, Justin, 46

Holman, Libby, 233

“Home on the Range” (black cowboy song) 57

“Honeymoon Blues” (RJ), 182–83

“Hoochie Coochie Man” (Waters), 204, 209, 212, 244

Van Ronk and, 177

hoodoo or mojo, 268–71

Hooker, John Lee, xix, xxiii, 76, 78, 90, 206–9, 212, 216, 217

revivalists and, 242–45, 257

Hopkins, Lightnin', xxiii, 136, 206–7, 242–44

Horowitz, Vladimir, 251, 255

Horton, Big Walter, 90

“Hound Dog” (Presley), 211

House, Son, xv, 9, 56, 79, 90, 118, 120, 209, 272–73

blues history and, 126, 127

Chicago bluesmen and, 213

“deep” blues and, 77–78

Delta sound and, 88, 156, 158

early recordings of, 158, 161

influence of, on RJ, 108–11, 130, 132, 133, 139, 150, 155, 158–59, 161–62, 172, 229

Lomax and, 96, 231

“Preachin' Blues” and, 161–63

on RJ and Devil, 275

on RJ death, 124

on RJ record, 121

recording method of, 176

rediscovery of, 240, 242

Howell, Peg Leg, 33, 61

Howlin' Wolf, xix, 63, 83, 208, 209

Delta and, 90, 113

popularity and style of, 210, 214–15

Rolling Stones and, 245, 246

vocal style of, 155, 217

white audience and, 214, 244–45

“How Long—How Long Blues” (Carr), 36–38, 58, 67, 93, 94, 196

Hughes, Langston, 224, 225

Humes, Helen, 196, 243

humor, 177–78, 214, 274

Hunter, Alberta, 21–23, 27, 42, 202

Hunter, Ivory Joe, 197, 212

Hurt, Mississippi John, xxiii, 9, 10, 161, 254

early black guitarists and, 157

range of material of, 55, 69

white audience and, 48, 80, 240, 242, 254–55

Hyatt, Harry Middleton, 266

hymns, 92

 

“I Believe I'll Dust My Broom” (RJ), 140, 147, 155

boogie shuffle on, 136–38

recorded, 135–38

as standard, 138, 139, 148, 188

Wolf sings at Newport, 214–15

“I Believe I'll Make a Change” (Carr), influence of, on RJ, 135

“If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day” (RJ), 163–65, 180, 274

“I Got the Blues” (first published blues), 16

“I Got You (I Feel Good)” (Brown), 218

“I'm a Steady Rollin' Man” (RJ), 170

Ink Spots, 37, 63, 96, 183

In Search of Robert Johnson
(documentary), 276

interracial music, 46–52

segregated by folklorists, 57

segregated by record companies, 52–53

“In the Evening” (Carr), 37, 96, 183.
See also
“When the Sun Goes Down”

Isley Brothers, 246

Italian favorites, 53, 137

“It Makes a Long Time Man Feel Bad,” 160

“It's Tight Like That” (Tampa Red/Georgia Tom), 36, 38, 67

“I Wonder” (hit of 1940s), 197

 

Jackson, Jim, 35, 40, 94

Jackson, John, 49, 96

Jackson, Lew, 34

Jackson, Mahalia, 38, 253

Jackson, Mississippi, 102, 152

Jackson, Papa Charlie, 27–28, 38, 42, 94

Jagger, Mick, 6, 215, 221, 239, 246

James, Elmore, xiv, xxiii, 79, 90, 209, 213, 239

covers RJ song, 138, 139, 148

James, Etta, 203, 216, 258

James, Skip, xv, xxiii, 67, 90, 120, 260, 263, 272

blues history and style of, 76–78, 126, 137, 150

Devil songs and, 274

influence of, on RJ, 142–44, 149–51, 171

rediscovery of, 240, 242, 254–55

wide repertoire of, 59–60, 69

Jaxon, Frankie “Half Pint,” 38

jazz, 26, 34, 45, 54

aesthetic of obscurity and, 241

blues and, 5, 6, 62–63, 98, 195

as category, 193–94

prewar Delta and, 88, 99

Lonnie Johnson and, 29

white fans and, 205, 226, 236

white pop music and, 96–97

Jefferson, Blind Lemon, xxv, 10, 26, 39, 78, 79, 94, 143, 198, 206, 210, 233, 253, 260

early success of, 29–35, 40, 42

field hollers and, 32–33, 76

influence of, 79–80

influence of, on RJ, 132, 136, 159, 183

white rediscovery of, 231, 237, 240

Jeffries, Herb, 97

“Jelly Jelly” (Eckstine), 100, 196

jigs and reels, 47

jive style, 63, 188, 200

Joel, Billy, xiv

John, Little Willie, 218

“John Henry,” 10, 224, 238

Johnson, Alec, 54–55

Johnson, Alonzo “Lonnie,” xxiii, xxv, 10, 26, 94, 116, 118, 196, 262

disappearance of, 221

early popularity of, 28–29, 34, 41, 61–62, 77

influence of, 79–80, 196, 200

influence of, on RJ, 174, 178

R&B vs. blues and, 204, 205

style and virtuosity of, 28, 54, 61, 127, 129, 174, 177

white revivalists and, 237, 238, 242, 244

Johnson, Big Jack, xxii

Johnson, Buddy, 100, 195

Johnson, James P., 227

Johnson, Larry, 246

Johnson, LeDell, 271–72

Johnson, Lil, 40

Johnson, Merline (“Yas Yas Girl”), 42, 62

Johnson, Noah (RJ's father), 107

Johnson, Pete, 204, 205, 227

Johnson, Robert (RJ), xiv, 98.
See also
specific songs

begins recording, 119–22

birth and early life of, 105–8

black vs. white audience and, xxiv–xxvi, 188–89, 220, 218

boogie shuffle and, 217

as bridge between Delta and commercial world, xv–xvi

Chicago bluesmen and, 213, 215

commercial aspirations of, xiv–xv

Complete Recordings
of, xxiv, xxv–xxvi

contemporaries of, in 1940s, 198

as cream of large crop, 261

death of, 123–25, 194–95, 274

Delta during time of, 90, 91

Delta “jukes” and, 93, 94, 115–16

direction might have been pursued by, 186–88

disproportionate focus on, 40

evolution of black music and, xv, xxiv–xxvi

first sessions, hits attempted, 131–48

first sessions, reaching back to older influences, 149–65, 173

folk blues revival and focus on, 247–49

grave marker ceremony of 1991

and, xvi–xvii

guitar playing and slide playing of, 113–14, 118, 119

hip-hoppers and, 219

House and, 158

influence of, 79, 187–88

legacy of music of, 186–89

looks of, 9, 111–12

magnetism of, 117–18

marries Callie Craft, 110

meets House and Brown, 108–11

modern blues audience vs. peers and, 253, 254

modern writers on guitar playing of, 256

musical world of, 101, 102

myth of, xvi–xvii, xxv–xxvi, 8–9, 106, 188, 237–38, 258, 262–63

myth of Devil and, 266–67, 269, 270, 272, 274–76

original signature pieces of, 119

other musicians and, 154

personality of, 112–14

professionalism of, 7–8

record success and, 166–67

rediscovery of, xxiv, 228–32, 241–42

Rolling Stones and, 246

second session, 122, 166–85

Skip James and, 150–51

songwriting by, 118–19

stock arrangements of, 148

travels of, 111–17

understanding, in context of his world, 126–30

unknown until “blues revival” of 1960s, xxiv

variety of music played by, 59, 60, 118

versatility of, 127

women and, 122–24

Johnson, Tommy, xx, 63, 108, 110, 119

Delta style and, 76, 90, 126, 158

Devil and, 271–75

test pressing, 56–57

Jolson, Al, 39, 46

Jones, Brian, 239

Jones, Curtis, 42

Jones, Lewis, 86–91, 101

Jones, Ruth.
See
Washington, Dinah

Joplin, Janis, 6, 257

Joplin, Scott, 10

Jordan, Louis, 63, 88, 100, 101, 188, 194, 198–200, 201, 208, 218, 219, 236

jug bands, 96, 129, 238

jukeboxes, 88–89, 90, 95, 99–101

juke joints, 67, 268–70

“Juke” (Little Walter), 204, 210

“jump” combos, 197, 261

 

Kansas City style, 195, 196, 198–99, 204–5

Kaye, Sammy, 100, 101

Kentucky, 48, 83

Kentucky Boys, 48

Kerouac, Jack, 241

Khan, Ali Akbar, 260

Khulthoum, Oum, 5

“Kind Hearted Woman Blues” (RJ), 140, 147, 173, 175, 182

first release of, 166

recorded, 131–35

Kind of Blue
(Davis), 143

King, Albert, 90, 217, 254, 262

King, B. B., xiii, 5, 90, 254, 259, 264

hits, 211, 216, 219

improvisation and, 176

influences on, 28, 79–80, 200, 201

R&B vs. blues and, 204, 208

white vs. black audience and, 216, 217, 219

King, Freddie, 254, 259

King, Martin Luther, Jr., xx

King and Anderson Plantation, 91

King Cole Trio, 198

“King of Spades” (Wheatstraw), 173

King of the Delta Blues Singers
(RJ album reissue 1961), xxiv, 163, 247–48

Kings of Rhythm, xix

Kingston Trio, 238, 239

Kirkland, Eddie, 258–59

Koerner, Spider John, 246

Korner, Alexis, 238–39

 

LaBelle, Patti, 25

Lacey, Rube, 126, 272

Lang, Eddie, 29

LaSalle, Denise, 189, 219

“Last Fair Deal Gone Down” (RJ), 160–61

Latimore, 219

LaVere, Steven, 275

Law, Don, 120–21, 122

Leadbelly, 215, 230, 232–34, 237, 238, 239, 248, 257, 261, 263

“Lead Pencil Blues” (Temple), 137

Lee, Peggy, 63, 202

Lehmann, Lilli, 225, 226

Lewis, Furry, 10, 157

Lewis, Homer, 59

Lewis, Jerry Lee, 211, 213

Lewis, Meade Lux, 227

Library of Congress.
See also
Fisk University–Library of Congress field team

Josh White concert at, 235–36

recordings of House, 158

recordings of Waters, 57–58

Life
, 232

“Life Saver Blues” (Lonnie Johnson), 174–175

Liggins, Jimmie, 198

Liggins, Joe, 198

Limelighters, 239

Lippmann, Horst, 243

Lipscomb, Mance, 43, 55, 242, 261

Little Milton, 9, 66, 215–16, 217, 219

“Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane, The,” 31, 49–50

“Little Queen of Spades” (RJ), 173–75

Little Richard, 25, 211, 243, 246

Little Walter, 204, 209–10, 211

live performance, 43–69

barbershop, 43–44

blues as black, southern style and, 21–22

hillbilly styles and, 47–50, 52

interracial, 46–52

minstrel shows and, 50–52

recorded vs., 61, 67

variety of musical styles in, 44–45, 52–59

Locke, Alain, 236

Lockwood, Robert, 112–13, 122, 261

Lomax, Alan, 73, 86, 239, 252

field hollers and, 74–76

House interviews, 111

Mississippi field trip of, 57–59, 97, 231, 270

rediscovery of rural blues and, 230–36, 241

Lomax, John A., 57, 73, 224, 230, 232, 233, 235

Lombardo, Guy, xiv, 96, 196

Los Angeles, 198

Louisville, 83

Louisville Jug Band, 27, 63

“Love in Vain” (RJ), 163

recorded, 183–84

Rolling Stones cover, 246

lullabies, 92

 

Mabon, Willie, 209, 210

McCartney, Paul, 245

McClennan, Tommy, 93, 100, 139

McCormick, Mack, 106, 124–25, 276

McCoy, Charlie, 54–55, 63, 77, 137, 152

McCoy, Kansas Joe, 42, 54–55, 63, 77, 152, 202, 274

McDowell, Fred, 246

McGee, Sam, 96, 157

McGhee, Brownie, xiii, 48, 238, 239, 243

on going “white,” 233, 234

McGhee, Kirk, 47

McGhee, Stick, 234

Macon, Uncle Dave, 49–50

McShann, Jay, 59, 93, 100, 195, 196

McTell, Blind Willie, 33, 63, 67, 118, 157

Maggio, Antonio, 16

Mahal, Taj, 246

Maid of Harlem
(musical revue), 20

male performers, 27–38

“Malted Milk,” (RJ), 175