The Memphis blues is a style of blues music that was created in the 1920s and 1930s by Memphis-area musicians like Frank Stokes, Sleepy John Estes, Furry Lewis and Memphis Minnie. The Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of Music based on the use of the Blue notes It emerged as an accessible form of self-expression Frank Stokes ( January 1 1888 &ndash September 12 1955) was a Blues Musician, Songster, and Blackface John Adam Estes — 5 June 1977) commonly known as Sleepy John Estes or Sleepy John, was a U Furry Lewis ( March 6 1893 - September 14 1981) was a Country blues Guitarist and Songwriter Memphis Minnie McCoy-Lawler (born Lizzie Douglas, June 3, 1897 in Algiers, Louisiana; died The style was popular in vaudeville and medicine shows, and was associated with Memphis' main entertainment area, Beale Street. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s Similar to the fabled gypsy bands of old Europe medicine shows were traveling Horse and buggy teams which peddled miracle medications and other products between various entertainment Beale Street is a street in downtown Memphis Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street a distance of approximately. The history of the era is detailed in the early chapters of a 2000 book by James L. Dickerson entitled Goin' Back to Memphis ISBN 0815410492.
In addition to guitar-based blues, jug bands, such as Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers and the Memphis Jug Band, were extremely popular practitioners of Memphis blues. A jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of traditional and home-made instruments Gus Cannon ( 12 September 1883 — 15 October 1979) was an American Blues Musician who helped to popularize The Memphis Jug Band was an American musical group in the late 1920s and early to mid 1930s The jug band style empasized the danceable, syncopated rhythms of early jazz and a range of other archaic folk styles. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States It was played on simple, sometimes homemade, instruments such as harmonicas, violins, mandolins, banjos, and guitars, backed by washboards, kazoo, Jews harp and jugs blown to supply the bass. A harmonica is a free reed Wind instrument which is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes (reed chambers or The violin is a bowed String instrument with four strings usually tuned in Perfect fifths It is the smallest and highest-pitched member A mandolin is a musical instrument in the Lute family (plucked or strummed The banjo is a Stringed instrument developed by enslaved Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments The kazoo is a simple Musical instrument ( Membranophone) that adds a "buzzing" timbral quality to a player's voice when one vocalizes into it
After World War II, electric instruments became popular among Memphis blues musicians. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including As African-Americans left the Mississippi Delta and other impoverished areas of the south for urban areas, many musicians gravitated to Memphis' blues scene, changing the classic Memphis blues sound. Musicians such as Howlin' Wolf, Willie Nix, Ike Turner, and B.B.King performed on Beale Street and in West Memphis, and recorded some of the classic electric blues, rhythm and blues and rock & roll records for labels such as Sun Records. Chester Burnett redirects here For the American football player see Chester Burnett (American football Chester Arthur Burnett ( June 10, 1910 Willie Nix ( August 6 1922 — July 8 1991) was an American Blues Drummer active in Memphis, Ike Wister Turner ( November 5 1931 &ndash December 12 2007) was an American Musician, Bandleader, B B King (born Riley B King, September 16 1925 is an American Blues Guitarist and Singer-songwriter. West Memphis is the largest city in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. Sun Records was a Record label based in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27 1952. These musicians had a strong influence on later musicians in these styles, notably the early rock & rollers and rockabillies, many of whom also recorded for Sun Records. Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of Rock and roll music and emerged in the early 1950s A more contemporary band, the North Mississippi Allstars, has embraced the blues tradition of Memphis and reflects many of the classic blues rhythms in their songs. North Mississippi Allstars is a Blues - rock / jam band from Hernando Mississippi, founded in 1996
"Memphis Blues" is also the title of a song published by W.C. Handy in 1912 . A song is a Musical composition. Songs contain vocal parts that are performed 'sung' and generally feature Words ( Lyrics) commonly followed William Christopher Handy ( November 16 1873 &ndash March 28 1958) was a Blues Composer and Musician, often It is not the first blues published, but was an important early blues-influenced hit. Handy based it on his earlier political campaign song, "Mr. Crump Don't Like It. "
The Memphis Blues Society is the blues society for the Memphis region. Their mission is the preservation and education of the history and culture of Memphis Blues. They also serve as a networking facility for Memphis area blues musicians.
Memphis blues musicians
- W. C. Handy
- Frank Stokes
- Furry Lewis
- Willie Nix
- Sleepy John Estes
- Ida Cox
- Junior Parker
- Memphis Minnie
- Howlin' Wolf
- Rosco Gordon
- Bobby Sowell
- Big Mama Thornton
- Robert Wilkins
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic