Blues music and classification

Blues music began in the United States at the beginning of this century. It was originally a short song shouted by poor black people while working, and it also mixed the rhythm and rhyme similar to the recital form in the church.

Blues is the originator of jazz, rock and gospel songs. It was originally just a 12-bar musical form sung by early black slaves in the United States to express their moods. The application of a large number of blue notes (Blue Notes) during performance makes the music full of depression and disharmony. The phrases will initially make people feel nervous and crying. The feeling of helplessness, and then the following phrases seem to comfort and relieve the suffering people. Just like a suffering person crying to God, and then receiving comfort and response from God, this kind of music sounds very melancholy.

Blues expresses inner thoughts directly in songs, which is completely different from the music of the white society at that time. The main body of the music is played in the form of I, IV, and V chords, in the most commonly used 12-bar format, but also in 8- and 16-bar forms, and its scale is Flat thirds and flat sevenths are used to imitate the Western scale. Early musicians used

fiddles or banjos to play, and some even used Slide to make the notes go out of tune,

to make the guitar sound. A sound like a human crying, used to express one's emotions.

Blues music places great emphasis on the catharsis of self-emotions and originality or improvisation. This improvisational playing method later

slowly evolved into various types of Music, such as Rock and Roll, Swing, Jazz... So blues is also the root of modern pop music.

The main classification of blues:

Modern Blues (Modern Blues)

Modern blues is a broad concept that includes all modern blues artists. Although they Didn't get to

meet the legendary masters of old-school blues, but followed in their footsteps. Modern blues uses both acoustic and electric guitars, combining elements from rock to pop to folk. Some blues purists or closed-minded music critics will say that modern blues is just a simple imitation; but they are actually respecting the artists of the past. A blend of creativity, flair and a more modern sense. Stevie Ray Vaugan was considered a unique blues revivalist during his lifetime (he died in a helicopter crash in 1990), followed by Robert Cray and Keb' Mo '.

Jump Blues

During the swing era, big band jazz, blues, gospel and "Boogie-Woogie"

) Piano” all combined to become “Jump Blues”. Cab Calloway puts an emphasis on melody as he sings fresh and interesting songs

. Slim Gaillard "speaks" and sings hilariously surreal songs (usually about food), while his band shouts in response. Louis Jordan also mastered this high-energy jump blues, while Louis Prima combined Louis Armstrong's vocal changes and trumpet skills. The West Coast version of jump blues was heavily influenced by the more relaxed Nat Cole Jazz Trio, replacing high energy with sophisticated music and lyrics. Charles Brown, a singer and pianist with formal classical training, is the best representative of the West Coast.

Jump blues influenced rhythm and blues (Ramp; B) and rock and roll, which became mainstream American party music, and later became a major element of the swing revival in the 1990s.

Harmonica Blues

Initiated by Sonny Boy Williamson II, Lazy Lester and Jimmy Reed - then introduced by Little Walter and Junior Wells

Late 20th Century - Harmonica Blues centers around the blues harmonica

. Little Walter developed the electronic version of the style in Chicago, while Slim Harpo played harmonica in Road

Isiana. In later years, Paul Butterfield and Bob Dylan incorporated the harmonica into folk, rock and blues retro.

Electric Blues

As long as it is plugged in, it is electronic. While electric blues is marked by the use of the electric guitar, it is also marked by the electric bass - a pickup (a device used to amplify an acoustic instrument) attached to a double bass

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And acoustic guitar. From post-war tragic master Little Walter to electric guitarists Smokey Wilson

and Eddie Kirkland, they are all spokespersons for the electric blues tradition.

Delta Blues

Delta Blues is mostly played with an acoustic guitar and is a prototype of blues. Its representatives include the legendary Robert Johnson, the founder of Chicago blues Muddy Waters, the harmonica player Sonny Boy Wilson II and the king of blues John Lee Hooker. Delta Blues music has passionate lyrics and vocals, usually solo, but there are also some small groups, such as Williamson's various combinations, which have also been recorded.

Classic Female Blues

Women were introduced to the blues in the 1920s. There are singers like Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith, who create sharp and confident works. Later musicians such as Billie Holiday were less edgy but still reflected their lives and relationships.

Country Blues

Is a blues style mostly played on acoustic guitar that originated in the South and Midwest of the United States. Country Blues

Uses solos, duos, and string ensembles from early slide guitar to fingerpicking. Pioneers Skip James, Brownie McGhee, Lead Belly and Lightnin' Hopkins pioneered this now defunct style. Later electric guitars transitioned smoothly into electronic and modern country blues.

Variety Blues (Vandeville)

In the early days of variety shows, many theaters favored white plays and ignored black performances (ironically

Yes, they actually often staged parodies that imitated stereotypes of black people). Because of the rejection of the mainstream, black artists formed their own circles and performed plays exclusively for black audiences in a few venues in the United States.

These variety shows often included burlesque, magic, dancing, etc., but the most notable were the blues singing performances - featuring singers such as Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Variety shows require performers to go beyond singing to please the audience, so drama and dance elements are added to make black variety shows more attractive to the audience. Variety show leaders Butterbeans and Susie are renowned for their idiosyncratic comedy and virtuoso blues duets. Variety blues was at its peak in the 1920s.

Urban Blues

The lyrics of Urban Blues fully reflect urban life. The term "urban blues" was originally used to distinguish it from country blues. By the 1940s, it gradually formed its own style. Urban Blues encompasses Louis Jordan's latest moves from blues to jazz, including the urban-feeling crooning of Percy Mayfield and Ray Charles.

Texas Blues

Texas Blues developed in the 1920s and largely evolved from country music, but

The nasal sounds are filtered out. It has a loose rhythm, also known as "Texas drag", which drags a little behind the beat. Lyrics

In terms of lyrics, it gets rid of the theme of "forced sorrow". Texas blues often uses traditional melodies and a guitar rather than a guitar ensemble. However, Texas blues became more electronic after World War II, largely influenced by Clarence

"Gotamonth" Brown, who performed solo with electric guitar in the wind section. Later, T-

Bone Walker and Stevie Ray Vanghan continued to maintain the drag rhythm and relaxed Texas tradition

Swamp Blues

Named for the swamps in Louisiana. Swamp blues is slow and slow, played with harmonica and guitar, and appeared by the great Slim Harpo. It has been mixed with New Orleans rhythm and blues rhythms, plus echo and delay

With its electric guitar effects, swamp blues can be melodious like Lonesome Sundown and Lightnin' Slim, and lively like Lazy Lester's harmonica.

Soul Blues

A fusion of traditional blues and the fast melodies of 1960s soul music, soul blues encompasses both traditions. artist. Based on a standard blues band—piano, guitar, bass, harmonica, and percussion

—and sometimes adding wind instruments with rhythm and blues tunes, soul blues musicians stretched the boundaries of tradition and

Maintaining the foundation of soul music. Etta James, Bobby "Blues" Bland and Jonnie Taylor

were all leaders in soul blues.

Piano Blues

Jazz and blues music of various periods, improvisational performances, as long as it is blues played on the piano,

That's piano blues.

Piano blues ranges from Count Basie and Rossevelt Sykes to

Ray Charles, Dr. John and even Thomas A. Dorsey, the founder of gospel music.

NY Blues

Mature New York blues absorbed the essence of jump blues, swing, bebop and early rhythm and blues

. It bloomed during the swing era of the 1940s, when Lionel Hampton's big bands featured blues singers and driving rhythms. Right Scream's Big Joe Turner influenced rock music, and Erskine Hawkins

and Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson connected the popular blues to the highly respected swing jazz

.

New Orleans Blues

As the name suggests, blues is by no means about having fun (English "blues" blues has worries

meaning of injury). But this - and not uniquely - New Orleans blues is a little different. It has Caribbean rhythms (especially rumba) and some American Southern music, and is only useful at parties.

This category can be relaxed and casual, or it can be heart-pounding and bold, with outstanding artists such as Fats Domino and Professor

Longhair using horns and improvised piano accompaniment.

Memphis Blues

When W.C. Handy wrote "Memphis Blues", he had no idea of ??the far-reaching impact of the word

. The first of the two major factions of Memphis blues was born on Beale Street in the 1920s, and was derived from the numerous "jug bands" and variety shows.

The Memphis Jug Band is popular for its string style and Memphis Minnie and Frank Stokes' rough and

often comical style. This early form of Memphis blues invented a method in which the lead guitar had a special "section" in a song - a method that has become standard today. Later Memphis blues was an electronic style that began in the early 1950s and was a louder, more aggressive blues. The players adopted expanded, distorted guitars and heavier drum sounds, which had a more direct influence on most blues artists today

Jazz Blues

Jazz Blues has a solid blues foundation, but also absorbs the varied and slightly faster jazz music. Musicians in this category often incorporate jazz improvisational features into the classic three-chord structure of blues music. Jazz Blues

Jazz Blues includes pianist Mose Allison’s jazz-based works, guitarist Lonnie

Johnson’s solid blues, and Ray Charles’ rippling and eclectic music. Baifeng's piano blues.

Folk Blues

Folk Blues can be traced back to the acoustic style of honky-tonk music and evening small celebrations at the junction of the 19th and 20th centuries.

It grew out of southern influences from Texas to the Delta and is considered by many to be America's most original music. Although early American blues also penetrated the public, it was folk blues that really brought people into honky-tonk dancing.

It was Lead Belly and later Sony Terry and Brownie McGhee who passed down the folk blues

style, and guitarist Ben Harper in the 1990s successfully reproduced this style

Not considered a retro element.

Early American Blues

This category includes the earliest recordings of blues. From W.C. Handy to Robert Johnson. The quality of this kind of album is usually not ideal, but it is full of deep emotion and lingers for three days.

Acoustic Blues

Unplugged is acoustic. Acoustic does not necessarily mean exclusively acoustic guitar. This type of blues refers to blues played on all non-electronic instruments - from guitars and banjos (banjos) to harmonicas and tin cans. Each place has its own style of music—

—Chicago, the Delta! Alta), New Orleans, Texas, etc.; there are also various musical styles

—portamento, jazz, fingerpicking, etc. The masters of the first half of the 20th century Big Bill Broonzy

, Lead Belly and Blind Lemon Jefferson are considered acoustic, as well as more modern ones

Keb' Mo', Taj Mahal and John Lee Hooker