Howlin’ Wolf,1910-1976: His Life, His Times, His Blues (Blues Stories, 28)
A Review of James Segrest and Mark Hoffman, Moanin’ at Midnight: The Life and Times of Howlin’ Wolf. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004. Howlin’ Wolf was born Chester Arthur Burnett, June 10, 1910, near West Point, Mississippi. (His grandfather nicknamed … Continue reading →
Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, American History, Chicago Blues, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Robert Johnson, Skip James, Son House, Southern History, The "Great Migration", The Blues, Uncategorized, Urban Blues, WP Long Form	| Tagged Age of Jim Crow, American History, American History and Culture, American Popular Culture, Blues, Blues Revival of the 1960s, Chicago Blues, Delta Blues, Howlin' Wolf biography, James Segrest and Mark Hoffman, Robert Johnson, Southern History, The Blues, The Great Migration, WP Longform	| 2 Comments
[This is the second and concluding post about the trip the Willowy Bride (AKA, the WB) and I took along the Delta portion of the Mississippi Blues Trail in May 2013. For Part 1, go here.] * * * * … Continue reading →
Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, Alan Lomax, B.B. King, Big Bill Broonzy, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Delta Blues, History, History of Rock and Roll, Howlin' Wolf, Interdisciplinary Work, John Lee Hooker, Leadbelly, Mississippi John Hurt, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Research, Retirement, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern History, The Blues, Uncategorized, WP Long Read	| Tagged Delta Blues Museum (Clarksdale, Ground Zero Blues Club, Helena Arkansas, Henry Townsend, Mound Bayou Mississippi, Ms.), Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Rock 'n' Roll and Blues Heritage Museum (Clarksdale, Son House, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Tunica (Mississippi) Museum	| 4 Comments
Blues Masters from the Delta (Blues Stories, 21)
A Review of Ted Gioia, Delta Blues: The Life and Times of the Mississippi Masters Who Revolutionized American Music. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008. [NOTE: Once upon a time, I hoped to write a book on the origins … Continue reading →
Posted in "Charley Patton", Age of Jim Crow, Alan Lomax, American History, B.B. King, Bessie Smith, Books, Chicago Blues, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Delta Blues, History, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Popular Culture, Retirement, Robert Johnson, Son House, Southern History, The "Great Migration", The Blues, Uncategorized	| Tagged "race records", Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blues Revival of the 1960s, Chitlin' Circuit, Henry Speir, John and Alan Lomax, Mississippi Delta Blues, Skip James, Ted Gioia	| 2 Comments
Alive and Still Bloggin’: “Retired But Not Shy” at Five
A little over a year ago, I posted an account of the evolution of this blog as it reached its fourth birthday. It’s now time to provide an update, a few months after the fifth anniversary of “Retired But Not Shy,” and the appearance … Continue reading →
Posted in Age of Jim Crow, American "republicanism", American Revolution, Books, Cherokee Indians, Civil Rights Movement, George R. Gilmer, Georgia History, Historical Reflection, History, History Curriculum, History graduate school, Martin Luther King, Mississippi John Hurt, Muddy Waters, Newark (Del.) High School Class of 1962, prep school teaching with a PhD, Research, Retirement, Rick Lamplugh, Ronald Reagan, Son House, Southern (Georgia) History, Southern History, Teaching, The Blues, Uncategorized, Wilson Lumpkin, Wolves	| Tagged " Hardy Jackson, "American Republicanism, Blogging, Fifth anniversary of a blog, George R. Gilmer, James Broussard, James Krefft, Mississippi John Hurt, Teaching History Backwards, Wilson Lumpkin	| 4 Comments
“The Blues Had a Baby” (Blues Stories, 18)
A Review of John Milward, Crossroads: How the Blues Shaped Rock ‘n’ Roll (And Rock Saved the Blues). Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2013. “’The blues had a baby,’ Muddy Waters sang, ‘and they called it rock and roll.’ Yeah, and … Continue reading →
The Chitlin’ Circuit: Life, Death, and a Musical Revolution (Blues Stories, 14)
A Review of Preston Lauterbach, The Chitlin’ Circuit and the Road to Rock ‘n’ Roll. New York and London: W.W. Norton & Company, 2011. As Blues fans know, the “chitlin’ circuit” kept the Blues alive after World War II and … Continue reading →
Posted in Age of Jim Crow, American History, B.B. King, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Delta Blues, History, Muddy Waters, Research, Southern History, TBone Walker, The Blues, Uncategorized	| Tagged Chitlin' Circuit, Peacock Records, Preston Lauterbach, Rock 'n' Roll, The Blues	| Leave a comment
Mississippi John Hurt, The Yoda of the Blues (Blues Stories, 11)
A Review of Philip R. Ratcliffe, Mississippi John Hurt: His Life, His Times, His Blues. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2011. This entry in the University Press of Mississippi’s “American Made Music” series is very interesting, for several reasons. The … Continue reading →
Posted in Age of Jim Crow, Big Bill Broonzy, Civil Rights Movement, Delta Blues, History, John Lee Hooker, Mississippi John Hurt, Muddy Waters, Son House, Southern History, The Blues	| Tagged Age of Jim Crow, Delta Blues, Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927, Mississippi John Hurt, Philip R. Ratcliffe, Southern History, The Blues	| 5 Comments
Big Bill Broonzy–The Blues Man as Pragmatist (Blues Stories, 9)
Posted on September 3, 2013	by georgelamplugh
A Review of Robert Riesman, I Feel So Good: The Life and Times of Big Bill Broonzy. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 2011. [NOTE: 2011 was a very good year for Blues biographies: three reputable university presses … Continue reading →