The Birth of the Blues: A Social and Musical History

This section is focused on the very beginning of the blues history. The rose of the blues music inside the African-American communities in the rural southern states of America in the years following the American Civil War (1861–1865).

Chicago is often credited as the home of the urban blues, and, with its burgeoning recording industry, the city’s vibrant musical environment became the place to be for jazz, and blues.

Before the bluesman, there were the songsters: they were skilled traveling troubadours who helped to build the foundations of the blues. In this section, we talk about them.

The most recurring subjects were: women, hard times, denunciation, and discontent. Also, one of the most recurrent themes in blues concerns unfaithful women.

After the emancipation, thousands of African Americans decided to move to the urban areas in the North. This wave of immigration started at the beginning of the twentieth century up to the financial crisis of 1929.

Perry Bradford, a musician, and producer at the time, convinced Okeh Records to sign Mamie Smith, a talented unknown black singer. The song "Crazy blue" became an hit all over the country. She was the first black woman to sign for a music company.

The “Crazy Blues” record made Mamie Smith a national star, at least through the mid-1920s. She was the first black woman singer to sign a contract for a recording company.

As the blues developed, there were different regional styles in different parts of the country. Although there was some overlap between the various styles, the early folk styles are usually classified as Piedmont blues, Texas blues, and Delta blues.

Folklorist Alan Lomax used to refer to bluegrass as “folk music with overdrive,” and one could say the same thing about the relationship between blues and R&B.