backwater blues texture

The song has a homophonic texture due to the use of instruments and vocalization in unison. Through an examination of Smith's touring itinerary, the testimony of fellow entertainers who toured with her, newspaper reports, and other documents, it can be shown that the song was composed about a flood of the Cumberland River that struck Nashville, Tennessee, on Christmas morning, 1926. Hi! Over her ten year career, she created one hundred and sixty recordings. Bessie Smith, "Backwater blues", 1927 - YouTube Smith's voice not only had this quality, it also possessed a rich timbre and tremendous emotive power. Discuss Bessie Smith's performance of "Back Water Blues" as an example of both. Includes 1 print + interactive copy with lifetime access in our free apps. Dinah Washington - Back Water Blues - YouTube "it rained five days and the sky turned dark as night". Discover an intuitive and deep understanding of how music works. Smith (on vocal with James P. Johnson on piano) recorded it as "Back-water Blues" on February 17, 1927, in New York City. The blues poems remind us that the American poetic tradition can be traced to African American oral tradition; that great art, great poems come from deep suffering that is personal, historical, and political and could be read on the page as well as sung out loud. The song has long been associated with the great flood of the lower Mississippi River in 1927. Billed annually at $39.99. The lyrics are in the often-used AAB blues format. There's thousands of people ain't got no place to go. About a thousand people lost their lives. Her lyrics aid the audience in understanding why she is down. I do not believe in a fixed way to write blues poems or poetry with blues feeling. The first line sets the scene, the second line repeats the first for emphasis. The words vary from one performer to another; this opening verse is representative: When it rains five days, and the skies turn dark as night (2) print music publishers. Marilyn Chin reads and discusses Bessie Smith's "Backwater Blues This is historically problematical because that flood began two months after Smith recorded her song. Back-Water Blues 65th in 1927. Songtext von Bessie Smith - Backwater Blues Lyrics Try listening to Backwater Blues while reading the lyrics; hear how the piano embodies the texture of what is being sung, as if the piano witnesses and takes on the storm and flood alongside Bessie Smith. [3] However, that flood was at its worst some two months after the song was written. I love writing blues poems. Backwater Blues does not sound as much like the blues as Down Hearted Blues to me, but it is still distinguishable as the blues due to the sad content of the song. Backwater Blues by Bessie Smith Chords, Melody, and Music Theory 'Cause my house fell down. Bessie Smith "Backwater Blues" Sheet Music in C Major (transposable I believe the blues represents a range of human experience that can speak on and to that thing that nearly ended someone but the very fact of them living to sing about it encapsulates the blues. Please download this song, preferably the original 1927 recording by Bessie Smith, and listen to her amazing singing. Updated September 9, 2020. Bessie Smith had a powerful impact on future blues and Rock and Roll singers, like Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, and Janis Joplin. The first two lines are of almost equal length. Smith continued on to become very successful with hits like St. Death. Writer (s): Smith Lyrics powered by www.musixmatch.com. Her powerful voice stands out so much in this song that the instrumental background may not even be needed as supplementation. First, research supports the claim that blues music originated during the postUS Civil War era (186165) and is derived from spirituals and work and field songs of Black sharecroppers of the rural south, particularly the Mississippi Delta. Not only did she sing, she was also an actress and comedian. Backwater Blues Bessie Smith Chords and Lyrics for Guitar Cover versions of Back Water Blues by Irma Thomas | SecondHandSongs Bessie Smith, commonly referred to as the Empress of the Blues, was born in 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Writer(s): Smith Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out (Bessie and Me). The flood was a devastating ordeal. It is a flexible approach to pitch (pentatonic base)-BLUES NOTES, descending melodic lines, raw/ gritty timbres, call and response, swing or laid back/flexible approach to the . 04 January 2007. Backwater Blues - Wikipedia Cause my house fell down and I can't live there no more. Backwater Blues - The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band - YouTube Following her death, Smith received numerous awards and honors for her achievements, including: Bessie Smith- American Singer. Encyclopedia Britannica, written by The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Feb 2019, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bessie-Smith. The three most important chords, built off the 1st, 4th and 5th scale degrees are all major . I am majoring in biology and love helping my community! In this blog post I am going to be looking at and analysing a track by famous New Orleans jazz musician, Louis Armstrong. We could define and reproduce several devices of blues lyric, such as call and response, and blues turnaround, and surely, we can write sad poems. Bessie Smith's 'Back-Water Blues': the story behind the song Entire black neighborhoods were wiped out. Almost a million people became homeless for a time. There was evidence of lynchings and unspeakable killings and terrible acts against the black community. Big Bill Broonzy released it on the album Folk Blues in 1954. hasContentIssue false. The beginning of Down Hearted Blues actually reminded me of Ragtime music slightly. View all Google Scholar citations Theres this rich toughness in her voice that tells us this girl and her people are going to get through this calamity. Back-Water Blues. Bessie Smith's Back-Water Blues: the story behind https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261143007001158, Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. What are the introductory chords that illustrate this? The rhythm remains constant throughout the song, allowing the melody to flow peacefully during the piece. Instagram oder Facebook auf Songtexte.com geladen werden. Its musical composition entered the public domain on January 1, 2023. Yeah, when it's thunderin' and lightnin'. She is considered by many as one of the most successful African-American females of all time. Smith (on vocal with James P. Johnson on piano) recorded it as "Back-water Blues" on February 17, 1927, in New York City. The song "Backwater Blues" is a blues and jazz standard written by Bessie Smith. As a poet who writes in English I know that every time I write a sonnet I pay homage to the high European tradition and to master poets like Shakespeare, Dunn, Keats, Petrarch. The poem moves to personal depression. Este es un disco muy bueno; una gran voz, la Reina del Blues Dinah Washington, y unos temas espectaculares, las canciones de la gran Bessie Smith. Backwater Blues - Piano - YouTube I have her strong voice in my ear at all times. Bessie Smith (Down Hearted Blues, 1923) Jazz Legend. Youtube, uploaded by RagtimeDorianHenry, 3 Jun 2009, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go6TiLIeVZA. Bessie Smith - Backwater Blues Flashcards | Quizlet Hostname: page-component-75b8448494-knlg2 The three most important chords, built off the 1st, 4th and 5th scale degrees are all major chords (E Major, A Major, and B Major). Thank you. Mchtest du Inhalte von aktivieren? Through an examination of Smith's touring itinerary, the testimony of fellow entertainers who toured . Although Smith is very pleasing to the ears, she seems to be slightly monotone in this piece. The third-sixth verses have the traditional AAB blues pattern, which helps emphasize what she is saying during each verse. What are the introductory chords that illustrate this? The flood was a devastating ordeal. The conjunct melody made me want to sing along with her! There were reports that officials behaved in a discriminatory fashion. The initial first line resoundstherefore necessitates itself perhaps as a question, a declaration, or even a second guessing of this sung things existence to its audience of many or just their self. The rhythm and beat remain constant throughout the song. In terms of chords and melody, Backwater Blues is more complex than the typical song, having above average scores in Chord Complexity, Melodic Complexity, Chord-Melody Tension and Chord Progression Novelty. Great cover of blues classic Backwater blues on The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band 2011. album How I Go Backwater Blues gefllt bisher niemandem. According to the Theorytab database, it is the 5th most popular key among Major keys and the 5th most popular among all keys. I cant do justice to this poem, to Backwater Blues, by just reciting it myself. Back Water Blues by Irma Thomas was written by Bessie Smith and was first recorded and released by Bessie Smith in 1927. Become a Musicnotes Pro - Premium member today and receive 24 titles per year plus take 15% off all digital sheet music purchases and get PDFs included with every song! [Verse 5] And I went . She made almost 200 recordings, including duets with Louis Armstrong and Joe Smith. Poet, writer, teacher, and political activist Amiri Baraka was born Everett LeRoi Jones in 1934 in Newark, New Jersey. Backwater Blues by Big Bill Broonzy was written by Bessie Smith and was first recorded and released by Bessie Smith in 1927. music review for midterm Flashcards | Quizlet Though, after repeated listening and reading of blues standards like Backwater Blues, call and response became more than an AAB tercet on page/to my ear. The beat does not change because each verse follows the same AAB pattern, which results in the same rhythm continuing on. Brown, who alongside Langston Hughes was a pioneer of blues poetry in the 1920s. It was originally composed by Joe "King" Oliver and is largely performed as an instrumental, although lyrics were . for this article. Bessie actually wrote "Backwater Blues" for the Cumberland River flood that hit Nashville on Christmas morning 1926. Learn to hear chords by ear. The song "Backwater Blues" is a blues and jazz standard written by Bessie Smith. Down Hearted Blues, her first recording, sold nearly 800,000 copies, firmly establishing her as a new singer in the blues genre. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Jazz- Review Questions. Nonetheless, when she recorded it in 1927 "Backwater Blues" became an anthem for the great Mississippi River Flood. She began recording regularly in the 1920s, distinguishing herself as the most successful African American artist of her time with her recording Down Hearted Blues in 1923. The scene is set with the terrific storm by the female speaker, so depressed that she cant even get out of the door. C, F7, C, C7, F7, C. AAB e.g. The consonant chords allow for a smooth harmony to flow continuously during the song. Published online by Cambridge University Press: Lyrics powered by www.musixmatch.com. The rhythm and beat remain constant throughout the song. Smith did not cut any corners in her songs- she told everyone how the world really was and how she felt about it. Sheet music arranged for Piano/Vocal/Guitar in C Major (transposable). The piano's bass part keeps the rhythm of the piece steady but when doing the 'response', the right hand can complicate this and create interest. A modified 12 bar blues. Marilyn Chin (1955- ) was born in Hong Kong, grew up in Oregon, and received her MFA from the University of Iowa. Following her death, Smiths legacy continued on as she inspired new artists to display who they truly were. "Backwater Blues" (1927) . Bessie Smith - Back-Water Blues Lyrics | Genius Lyrics It was covered by Brother John Sellers, Toni Lynn Washington, Meschiya Lake and The Little Big Horns, The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band and other artists. I see myself as an activist Chinese American poet, and I want to show the multiple sides of my literary inheritance. One subscription across all of your devices. Leadbelly - Backwater BluesTaken from: 16 Greatest Songs (As Pictured)Track no. "When it rains five days, and the skies turn dark as night (x2). Blues on Yellow Marilyn Chin from Rhapsody in Plain Yellow. Alle Informationen dazu findest du in unseren The vocals to be the focus and the 'response' to be more complex, At times it can sounds almost 'half-spoken'. Pro Credit Pack (3 Pro Credits) Included with first year, Your high-resolution PDF file will be ready to download in Notice, however, that although the form remains the same throughout, pianist James P. Johnson's accompaniment style frequently changes during different verses of the song, as he interacts musically with Smith and attempts to depict the meaning of her lyrics through his playing.\r\rBessie Smith (vocal); James P. Johnson (piano)\r\rRecorded in New York, February 17, 1927 The blues artists who wrote and sang in this era there are famous names in this era such as Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Howling Wolf, and of course, Bessie Smith, who is one of my favorites. This piece draws its material from the song "Backwater Blues" by Bessie Smith and from the historically articulated performance practice that has accrued to it. Terrible images came across the television screen and recently with global warming and continuous flooding and natural disasters this poem survives the test of time and can speak to a variety of incidents and international dislocated peoples. The Cumberland River, which flows through the city, rose 56 feet (17m) above its normal level, still a record as of 2014[update].[4]. Download and Print scores from huge community collection ( 1,426,528 and growing) Advanced tools to level up your playing skills. The piece uses syncopation to allow variation between the instruments and the vocals. Please use a recent version of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, or Opera instead. [1] Its musical composition entered the public domain on January 1, 2023. Once more, listen for the turnaround (the melody at the final two bars of each 12-bar progression or last line of each stanza) and hear it transform the melody of one progression/stanza into the next. Photo credit: Carl Van Vechten, Celebrating Contemporary Books & Writers at the Library, From the Catbird Seat: The official Poetry and Literature podcast, Receive notifications about events, activities, and online resources, Marilyn Chin reads and discusses Bessie Smith's "Backwater Blues", Rhapsody in plain yellow, by Marilyn Chin, Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature. I think in the best identity poems that the self represents something much larger than the self. Bessie Smith. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, courtesy of the Rock Hall Library and Archive, https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/bessie-smith. There were reports that officials behaved in a discriminatory fashion. Performance: Backwater Blues by Big Bill Broonzy | SecondHandSongs Her voice is subversive, defiant despite all odds against her. In this recording of \"Backwater Blues,\" we can hear these techniques at work, and they stand in contrast to the very structured twelve-bar blues form of the song. One more piece. Bemoaning the fate of losing a home to flood waters after five days and nights of rain, Smith laments: 'Thousands of people ain't got no place to go.'. My name is Lex and I am a rising senior at the University of Georgia. Total loading time: 0 But the second strophe, the second stanza, we turn inward, and its about personal disaster: I woke up this morning cant even get out of my door, I woke up this morning cant even get out of my door. Backwater blues done called me to pack my things and go. Backwater blues done called me to pack my things and go. Bessie Smith Chords & Tabs : 24 Total @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com The despair is deep, is deeply personal, but it is also metaphorical and speaks to the despair of an entire community. Perhaps the build-up of rain made her anticipate the flood; it was released just as the flood came, and as a result, it became a big hit., Charter Member Directory (Password Protected). Bob Dylan - Backwater blues Lyrics | Genius Lyrics And I can't live there no more. As musicologist Dr. David Evans has noted, Back-Water Blues was recorded in February 1927, before the great disaster of April. Bessie Smith, "Backwater blues", 1927The song "Backwater Blues" is a blues and jazz standard. The song is called "West End Blues" and was recorded by Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five in 1928. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bessie-Smith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gXShOJVwaM, https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/bessie-smith, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go6TiLIeVZA, 1980: Inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, 1989: Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 1989: Received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 1994: Face was placed upon a US Postage Stamp, 2001: Down Hearted Blues was named one of the Songs of the Century by the National Endowment for the Arts, 2002: Down Hearted Blues was listed on the National Recording Preservation Board by the Library of Congress, 2006: Down Hearted Blues listed in the Grammy Hall of Fame. [2], The song has long been associated with the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. Create beats, songs, and musical ideas with built-in music theory and AI from over 30k songs. Bessie Smith - Songs, Death & Facts Her ability to use \"blue notes\" and other vocal embellishments, along with a loose melodic phrasing, became hallmarks of jazz and blues inflection that other musicians (singers and instrumentalists) emulated. The third line either comments or reverses the first two lines. According to the Theorytab database, it is the 5th most popular key among Major keys and the 5th most popular among all keys. The Mississippi River flood of 1927 was horrific. The beat does . Though theres no singular definition of the blues that fully encompasses the history and culture of the people from whom the blues are derived, I do think there are some notes to consider. Log dich ein um diese Funktion zu nutzen. Nose To Tail - Dragon Ball Z Raging Blast 2, Mushihimesama Futari - Sea of Frozen Crystals. This personal depression by extension is about the depression of an entire people, marginalized in the back waters, stricken with poverty, homelessness, suffering social injustice, discrimination, and now hit with this catastrophic natural disaster. "useRatesEcommerce": false West End Blues - Louis Armstrong (Analysis) - bradpottermusic See the E Major Cheat Sheet for popular chords, chord progressions, downloadable midi files and more! Backwater Blues Chris Fisher-Lochhead However, the blues utility in our everyday language signifies to me that the blues are ingrained into US culture. Hooktheory requires WebAudio and this browser doesn't support it. Backwater Blues is written in the key of E Major. This suggests to me that aspects of contemporary US poetry could be in lineage of African diasporic culture. View Official Scores licensed from. The melody is conjunct, making it easy to follow the lyrics of the song and the instrumental portions at the same time. The elements of voice, musical instrument, and audience formed a living tercet in which the blues singer and musician resound one another to deliver that final line blues statement. Smith is believed to be one of the highest paid black performers of her time. The first two verses are unique and do not have any repetition. Of course, we Americans have historical amnesia. This is historically problematical because that flood began two months after Smith recorded her song. El disco e. Mmm, I cant move no more. 3.2 Online-Unterricht - Backwater Blues - YouTube Major keys, along with minor keys, are a common choice for popular songs. Backwater blues done caused me to pack up my things and go, / Backwater blues done caused me to pack up my things and go, / 'Cause my house fell down and I can't live there no more. This is a song poem. "Backwater Blues" (Song) - Song Meanings and Facts After discussing blues history, we went over Bessie Smiths Backwater Blues, then Langston Hughes Too Blue, and concluded our study with Jericho Browns Duplex (specifically A poem is a gesture toward home). Thematically, write about whatever you feel must be sung. As an attempt to escape poverty as a teenager, she joined the Moss Stokes Company with her brother and Gertrude Ma Rainey, the Mother of the Blues. Ma Rainey served as the most influential person during Smiths pre-professional career. Harmonically, what is the piece based on? Post 4- Blues Music: Bessie Smith | by Alexis Allen | Medium The a rhyme glues the three-line stanza together. Adds to the blues feel as the music is seen to reflect the realities of her situation. Third, Mamie Smith became the first Black blues singer to record a blues record in 1920. Bessie actually wrote Backwater Blues for the Cumberland River flood that hit Nashville on Christmas morning 1926. Major keys, along with minor keys, are a common choice for popular songs. . He studied under Seamus Heaney and Lucie Brock-Broido at Harvard University and, while a student there, became a member of the Dark Room African diasporic culture and the aesthetics of the blues. Today, I hear phrases such as the winter blues and Blue Monday and know that they are not considering this history. There's trouble taking place in the lowland that night, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Bessie Smith's 'Back-Water Blues': the story behind the song", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Backwater_Blues&oldid=1150358087, This page was last edited on 17 April 2023, at 18:17. :)---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Title: Backwater BluesLevel: BeginnerCom. Of course, I learn so much from the Bessie Smiths blues poems. She lets the chords of the instruments dangle off of her words, resulting in a beautiful piece that focuses primarily on the lyrics. ). Irma Thomas released it on the album Our New Orleans 2005 - A Benefit Album in 2005. Dazu brauchen wir deine Einwillung*. Designed and built by Hooktheory in California. Louis Blues featuring Louis Armstrong, Backwater Blues, and Nobody Knows You When Youre Down and Out. As the Swing era was emerging, Bessie Smith was tragically killed in an automobile accident in 1937 in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Another way of reading classic blues lyric structure is as weighted-sonic couplets. The piece has a homophonic texture due to the supplementation of the instruments to the vocalization of Smith. I chose these works for how they built upon classic blues (blues that follows the standard AAB lyrical structure and common themes of love, longing, suffering, and travel) by addressing an ecological concern, as in Backwater Blues, or innovating the classical structure, as in Too Blue, and Duplex., I want to encourage reading and listening to early blues poetry and classic blues as a method toward mastering blues aesthetics. The beat is easy to tap along to, making it easier to focus on her lyrics. Hier geht's zu meiner Musik auf Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/artist/1EV1CjZHtzJGK5SZyEyKst?si=ya1BsYRcTpSlZeVFtMKekAMeine Musik auf Deezer:https://deezer. Backwater Blues tells the story of how the speaker is forced out of her home due to flooding waters. Baraka attributes this knowledge to his mentor Sterling A. Furthermore, Baraka notes that Africanisms (retentions of African culture throughout the African diaspora) were not limited to US Black people but that the culture of the Americas contains and is itself influenced by Africanisms. In our workshop, In the Voice and in the Deep, Blues Poetry, participants and I studied blues music, history, aesthetics, and ultimately blues poetry. Known as the\"Empress of the Blues,\" Bessie Smith's first recording, \"Down-Hearted Blues,\" from 1923, was very successful, and helped her to become the leading African-American performer of the time.

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