Blues on Stage presents a new history of the development of the "Classic Blues" of the 1920s, offering a comprehensive review of various Black singers who recorded and were influential in this era, including Bessie Smith, Trixie Smith, Butterbeans and Susie, and Ma Rainey. The business of music recording and publishing, including songwriting and touring theater circuits, is explored as part of the narrative of how and when these artists became nationally popular. The most highly regarded singers of this period were not folk or rural artists, but rather highly experienced stage professionals whose careers often extended two decades or more prior to their first recordings. These artists, some of the most famous acts on the Black vaudeville and tent show circuits, were preceded in the recording studio by many cabaret and nightclub singers with a different entertainment perspective and were followed by artists who came from a more rural, less professional background. For anyone interested in the roots of jazz and blues, Blues on Stage offers a new and comprehensive introduction to the development of this American musical style.

"Tells the story of classic blues singers from Ma Rainey to Bessie Smith"--

Singing was just one element of blues performance in the early twentieth century. Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, and other classic blues singers also tapped, joked, and flaunted extravagant costumes on tent show and black vaudeville stages. The press even described these women as "actresses" long before they achieved worldwide fame for their musical recordings. In Staging the Blues, Paige A. McGinley shows that even though folklorists, record producers, and festival promoters set the theatricality of early blues aside in favor of notions of authenticity, it remained creatively vibrant throughout the twentieth century. Highlighting performances by Rainey, Smith, Lead Belly, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGhee in small Mississippi towns, Harlem theaters, and the industrial British North, this pioneering study foregrounds virtuoso blues artists who used the conventions of the theater, including dance, comedy, and costume, to stage black mobility, to challenge narratives of racial authenticity, and to fight for racial and economic justice.

Experience music history with this memoir by one of the last of the genuine old school Blues and R&B legends, the Grammy-winning dynamic showman Bobby Rush. This memoir charts the extraordinary rise to fame of living blues legend, Bobby Rush. Born Emmett Ellis, Jr. in Homer, Louisiana, he adopted the stage name Bobby Rush out of respect for his father, a pastor. As a teenager, Rush acquired his first real guitar and started playing in juke joints in Little Rock, Arkansas, donning a fake mustache to trick club owners into thinking he was old enough to gain entry. He led his first band in Arkansas between Little Rock and Pine Bluff in the 1950s. It was there he first had Elmore James play in his band. Rush later relocated to Chicago to pursue his musical career and started to work with Earl Hooker, Luther Allison, and Freddie King, and sat in with many of his musical heroes, such as Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed and Little Walter. Rush eventually began leading his own band in the 1960s, crafting his own distinct style of funky blues, and recording a succession of singles for various labels. It wasn't until the early 1970s that Rush finally scored a hit with "Chicken Heads." More recordings followed, including an album which went on to be listed in the Top 10 blues albums of the 1970s by Rolling Stone and a handful of regional jukebox favorites including "Sue" and "I Ain't Studdin' Ya." And Rush's career shows no signs of slowing down now. The man once beloved for performing in local jukejoints is now headlining major music/blues festivals, clubs, and theaters across the U.S. and as far as Japan and Australia. At age eighty-six, he is still on the road for over 200 days a year. His lifelong hectic tour schedule has earned him the affectionate title "King of the Chitlin' Circuit," from Rolling Stone. In 2007, he earned the distinction of being the first blues artist to play at the Great Wall of China. His renowned stage act features his famed shake dancers, who personify his funky blues and his ribald sense of humor. He was featured in Martin Scorcese's The Blues docuseries on PBS, a documentary film called Take Me to the River, performed with Dan Aykroyd on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and most recently had a cameo in the Golden Globe nominated Netflix film, Dolemite Is My Name, starring Eddie Murphy. He was recently given the highest Blues Music Award honor of B.B. King Entertainer of the Year. His songs have also been featured in TV shows and films including HBO's Ballers and major motion pictures like Black Snake Moan, starring Samuel L. Jackson. Considered by many to be the greatest bluesman currently performing, this book will give readers unparalleled access into the man, the myth, the legend: Bobby Rush.

A blues poem that revisits the history of the African American experience.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the House of Blues is an institution in music history. Since opening its doors in 1992 in a converted historical house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it has been home to live music, original folk art, and delta-inspired cuisine. The concert and restaurant chain grew out of a founding ideal to introduce the world to the music of the rural south, including the blues, rhythm and blues, gospel, jazz, and roots-based rock and roll. Today, House of Blues boasts thirteen unique venues across the country. Countless famous musicians have performed on those stages, from the Blues Brothers, Bootsy Collins, Al Green, and Eric Clapton, to Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, and Snoop Dogg. Concertgoers, music fans, and pop culture junkies alike will dig this illustrated account of the story behind the music. Chapters explore the venues, musicians, performances, and food, providing readers with a backstage pass to everything House of Blues. Personal interviews with company founders and famous musicians tell the story, revealing behind-the-scenes details and outrageous party anecdotes. Vivid photography showcases iconic performers on stage as well as in private moments in dressing rooms. Tucked among the pages are concert memorabilia, including special reproductions of tickets, posters, and menus.

In his memoir, O. G. Fillmore Slim breaks down how he went from being the most prolific pimp in America, the legendary gentleman Mack, to an eminent blues musician later in life. Known as The Godfather and Pope of the Game, Slim leads his prostitution operation with charisma, kindness, and charm turning out more than ten thousand women in over thirty years in the game. He preaches the ethics of safe sex and nonviolence. "I pimped with my brain, not with my fists." His gentlemanly approach promotes his highly lucrative business, and in the eyes of many, gives him a highly celebrated and revered reputation in urban street culture. But when Slim emerges from his longest stint in prison-five years-he leaves the pimping life behind and transforms himself into a famous blues musician, which was his original dream. Despite the odds, his stardom soars and he goes on to perform with an array of famous musicians, from B. B. King to Ike and Tina Turner, touring America, Europe, Russia, and beyond. Slim explains how his two worlds-the streets and the entertainment industry-are much more linked than the average person would guess as he tells the unbelievable story of his life.