Listen What I Gotta Say: Women in the Blues
Lesson 5:
Blues in the Country
What makes the country blues "country"?
Elizabeth Cotten with Guitar, by John Cohen. Folkways Records.
Blues in the Country
Store and "Juke Joint", by Marion Post Walcott. Library of Congress.
The Deep South: Mississippi Delta Blues
Component 1
30+ minutes
King and Anderson Plantation, Clarksdale, Mississippi Delta, by Marion Post Wolcott. Library of Congress.
The Deep South: Country Blues
The music that began to evolve in rural areas of the Deep South during the late 1800s is often referred to as “country blues”.
Country Blues, one of the earliest forms of blues music, is characterized by solo vocals with acoustic, fingerstyle guitar accompaniment.
Listen to an example:
Can you hear these characteristics?
"Low Down Rounder's Blues", by Peg Leg Howell
Generally Speaking .....
The Mississippi Delta
After the Civil War, many Black Americans began to move into the Mississippi Delta region (shown in green on the map), where there were more job opportunities, higher wages, and opportunities to buy land.
This region is sometimes called "the land where the blues began"!
Reconstruction and Jim Crow Laws
However, the freedoms that initially drew many to the Delta region eroded as Reconstruction (1865–1877) ended.
Jim Crow laws were instituted, and racial violence became more common in a sharecropping system designed to replace the system of slavery.
It was in this environment that the blues evolved.
Blues in the Mississippi Delta
Black farmers, sharecroppers, and lower-class laborers in the Mississippi Delta region played and popularized the blues, performing at country barbeques, juke joints, and family gatherings.
Queen of Hearts, Juke Joint, by David LaFevor. Smithsonian Magazine.
Mississippi Delta Blues Musicians
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The Mississippi Delta is a distinct cultural region in northwest Mississippi.
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On this map, you'll notice that many well-known bluesmen and blueswomen were born in or near the delta (region shown in green).
Mississippi Delta Blues Musicians Birth Map, by Danielle Nalangan. Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
Watch this video...
...from the Smithsonian Channel, which provides more information about the birthplace and evolution of the Mississippi Delta Blues (the form of country blues that developed in this region).
Where to Sell Your Soul for the Delta Blues, by Smithsonian Channel.
Discussion
Why do you think the producers of this video referred to the Mississippi Delta region (Clarksdale specifically) as "ground zero" for the blues?
What did you learn from this video that was new or interesting?
Houses in the Mississippi, by Ann Charters. Folkways Records.
Attentive Listening: Delta Blues
Let's listen to an example of the Mississippi Delta Blues: "Married Woman Blues", by Big Joe Williams.
How does Big Joe Williams use musical elements and expressive qualities?
Big Joe Williams, unknown photographer. Folkways Records.
Listening for Delta Blues Characteristics
Listen to "Married Woman Blues" again:
Check off the musical and stylistic characteristics you hear.
Optional: Compare and Contrast
Remember: The "Delta" blues is one distinct type of country blues.
"Married Woman Blues," by Big Joe Williams
"Low Down Rounder's Blues," by Peg Leg Howell
If time allows, discuss musical and stylistic differences between the Delta blues example and the country blues example you heard earlier.
Women in the Country Blues
Often, we highlight male musicians when we talk about the country blues. Women, however, played the country blues too.
We'll hear more from these women throughout this Learning Pathway, but let's listen to a listen sample of their music now!
Elizabeth Cotten, from North Carolina, was known for her guitar picking skills.
Memphis Minnie (Elizabeth Douglas), from Memphis, TN, was known for her unique vocal and guitar style.
Images: Elizabeth Cotten with Guitar, by John Cohen. Folkways Records. Memphis Minnie, by. National Musuem of American History.
"Freight Train"
"Hold Me Blues"
Relationships Between Blues Styles
1920s
1930s and Beyond
Country Blues
Urban Blues
Learning Checkpoint
- In what type of environment did the country blues develop?
- What are some musical and stylistic characteristics of the distinct form of country blues known as the Delta Blues?
- Who were some important country blues musicians?
End of Component 1: Where will you go next?
The Tub, Harmonica, and Diddley Bow
Component 2
25+ minutes
Beale Street, by Arthur Leipzig. National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Attentive Listening: Country Blues Instruments
As you listen to an excerpt from this 1950 audio recording of a song called "Salty Dog Blues," think about this question:
What instruments do you hear?
"Salty Dog Blues," by Red Willie Smith
In rural America, musicians have often made use of household tools to create instruments.
Guitar and "Tub"
Left: Washtub Bass, unknown maker. National Museum of American History. Right: Red Willie Smith with Guitar, by Harold Courlander. Folkways Records.
The song you just heard was played on guitar and sung by "Red" Willie Smith. He was accompanied by fellow musician Huston Townsend on an instrument called "tub" (i.e. washtub bass).
Generally Speaking .....
Origins of the "Tub"
African Earth Bow Diagram, by Harold Courlander. Folkways Records.
"American" Tub
The "American" version of this instrument is constructed in the following way:
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A washtub is inverted, and a cord is attached to its bottom, which acts as a sounding board.
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A stiff stick, usually a broomstick about four feet long, is braced against the lip at the outer diameter of the tub, and the string is attached to its upper end.
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The tub is played in precisely the same manner as the earth bow: the string is usually plucked with the thumb and forefinger, or sometimes tapped with a stick.
American Washtub, by Harold Courlander. Folkways Records.
Text
Evolution of the "Tub"
It is interesting to observe how the "tub" tradition has evolved over time.
Above: Beale Street, by Arthur Leipzig. National Museum of African American History and Culture. Middle: Right: George Morrow, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, and Kenny Dorham on Stage, by Gertrude Abercrombie. Archives of American Art.
Right: Upright Acoustic Double Bass, unknown maker. National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Engaged Listening: "Salty Dog Blues"
This time, listen specifically for the sound of the "tub".
Can you tap along with the steady beat?
"Salty Dog Blues," by Red Willie Smith
Let's return to the recording of "Salty Dog Blues".
Attentive Listening:
"I'm So Glad that Trouble Won't Last Always"
Let's listen to an excerpt from a different recording.
What instruments do you hear?
"I'm So Glad that Trouble Won't Last Always," by Elder Roma Wilson
The Harmonica
Left: Blues Harp Harmonica, by M. Hohner. National Museum of American History. Right: Elder Roma Wilson, by Chris Strachwitz. Arhoolie Records.
The recording you just listened to featured a solo male voice and harmonica.
The musician, Elder Roma Wilson, was a Pentecostal preacher and self-taught singer / harmonica player.
The Harmonica and the Blues
Barry Lee Peason, Phil Wiggins, John Cephas, unknown photographer. Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
Harmonica virtuoso Phil Wiggins (middle in photograph) explains the importance of the harmonica in the blues: “The harmonica was basically a European instrument, I mean, ... they played waltzes and marches and things like that on it. And when black people took hold of it [the harmonica], they immediately wanted to have [harmonicas] vocalize, have them imitate your voice, have them express emotion and feeling the way your voice can ... bending the notes is the way that you slur the notes in order to imitate your voice and to be really expressive. And the combination of using your hands to shape the notes as they come out, and bending the notes, makes the harmonica imitate our voice in a clear way."
Big Mama Thornton
Big Mama Thornton With Her Band, photograph by Chris Strachwitz. The Arhoolie Foundation.
Can you identify any characteristics of country/Delta blues in Big Mama Thornton’s song “I Need Your Love"?
While not a performer in the country blues style, blues woman Big Mama Thornton was raised in the South—Alabama—where she acquired her vocal style and learned to play the harmonica.
Delta Blues Characteristics
The Diddley Bow
Diddley Bow Dulcimer, made by Compton Jones. National Museum of American History.
The diddley bow is another single-stringed instrument that influenced the development of blues music in the United States.
This instrument could be found on the porch of many rural houses in the South, as it was easy to construct, consisting of a tight rope fixed to a wooden board or even to the wall of the house. It was played by pinching or rubbing the string with a bottleneck, knife, or iron thimble. The variations were many.
Diddley Bow in Action
Ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax collected footage of Lonnie Pritchford, a Country Blues musician who transferred his skill of the acoustic and electric guitar to the one-string diddley bow.
Lonnie Pitchford: Diddley-Bow Tune #2, Alan Lomax Archive.
Watch this video of Lonnie Pritchford playing for a few children in his hometown in Mississippi.
Optional Closing Discussion
Think about the instruments you learned about in this Lesson Component:
Why do you think they were popular among country blues musicians and in some cases continued to be used in urban areas as well?
Learning Checkpoint
- What are three important instruments that have been associated with country blues styles?
- Why were these instrument used?
End of Component 2: Where will you go next?
Pickin' and Slidin'
Component 3
25+ minutes
Etta Baker, by David Holt. The Etta Baker Project.
Country Blues Instruments: The Guitar
Dobro Guitar, made by John Dopyera. National Museum of American History.
In Component 2, we explored three instruments that are associated with country blues styles: The tub, harmonica, and diddley bow.
The guitar is another important instrument associated with many styles of blues music.
Specifically, the "Dobro" guitar was the most influential instrument instrument in the development of early "rural" blues styles.
This type of guitar has a metal (or wood and metal) resonance chamber and is smaller than the traditional guitar. It produces a distinct, clanking, high-pitched sound.
Attentive Listening: "Sun Goin' Down"
Listen to an excerpt from a song called ”Sun Goin’ Down,” recorded by a famous Delta blues musician, Son House.
How would you describe the style that Son House uses to play the guitar?
"Sun Goin' Down," by Son House
Son House, unknown photographer. {PD-old-70-expired}, via Wikimedia Commons.
Attentive Listening: Slidin'
Son House played the guitar in a unique way:
Listen again for this "sliding" technique:
With his right hand, he strummed the strings energetically.
With his left hand, he used a “slide” to change / bend the pitch of the notes.
"Sun Goin' Down," by Son House
Optional Activity: Listening Log
Conduct an in-depth analysis of "Sun Goin' Down" - which is an example of the Delta blues.
Delta Blues Characteristics
The Piedmont Blues
Watch this short video to learn about another type of country blues that is associated with a unique guitar playing style, called the Piedmont Blues.
Dog Days of August, featuring John Cephas and Phil Wiggins. Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
The Piedmont Blues
According to the musicians we just watched, the Piedmont Blues is distinguished by technique and where it originated.
The Appalachian Region Map, courtesy of the Appalachian Regional Commision.
This style of blues originated in the Appalachian mountains.
It is associated with a thumb and fingerpicking approach.
A bass line is established with the thumb and the melody is picked out on the higher strings.
Women in the Piedmont Blues
Elizabeth Cotten and Etta Baker are two of the most well-known blueswomen who have used the Piedmont style.
How would you describe the style these women use to play the guitar?
Does this style sound familiar?
Images: Elizabeth Cotten with Guitar, by John Cohen. Folkways Records. Etta Baker, by David Holt. The Etta Baker Project.
"Freight Train"
"One Dime Blues"
Meet the Artist: Elizabeth Cotton
Elizabeth Cotten with Guitar, by John Cohen. Folkways Records.
Elizabeth Cotten taught herself to play the guitar and banjo at an early age and has a unique, left-handing playing style.
She is best known for her timeless song "Freight Train".
She won a Grammy Award in 1985 when she was ninety, almost eighty years after she first began composing her own works!
Meet the Artist: Etta Baker
Etta Baker, a blues musician with African-American, Native American, and European-American heritage began playing the guitar at the age of three.
Etta played both the 6-string and the 12-string acoustic guitar and the five-string banjo. She played the blues for nearly ninety years.
Attentive Listening: Pickin'
In her song, "One Dime Blues,"Etta Baker uses a Piedmont finger-picking technique:
Listen again for this "picking" technique:
She establishes a bass line with her thumb.
She picks out a melody on the higher strings.
"One Dime Blues," by Etta Baker
Optional Activity: Listening Log
Conduct an in-depth analysis of "One Dime Blues" - which is an example of the Piedmont blues.
Reflection: Personal Preferences
Which style of guitar playing did you prefer, and why?
If you completed the optional listening activity, you can use your compare / contrast worksheet to guide you in making this decision.
- Strumming and Sliding (Son House)?
- Finger Picking (Etta Baker)?
Learning Checkpoint
- What is the Piedmont Blues and where did it originate?
- What are two distinct guitar playing styles that are associated with the Delta and Piedmont blues (two types of country blues traditions)?
End of Lesson 5: Where will you go next?
Lesson 5 Media Credits
Audio courtesy of
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Video courtesy of
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Smithsonian Channel
Alan Lomax Archive
Images courtesy of
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
The Arhoolie Foundation
Library of Congress
National Museum of American History
National Museum of African American History and Culture
The Appalachian Regional Commission
Archives of American Art
The Etta Baker Project
David LaFevor
© 2022 Smithsonian Institution. Personal, educational, and non-commercial uses allowed; commercial rights reserved. See Smithsonian terms of use for more information.
This Lesson was funded in part by the Grammy Museum Grant and the Smithsonian Youth Access Grants Program, with support from the Society for Ethnomusicology and the National Association for Music Education.
For full bibliography and media credits, see Lesson 1 landing page.