Big Road Blues: Tradition and Creativity in the Folk Blues

"Mr. Evans has written an extraordinary fine book on the blues. It is based on meticulous, imaginatve, and persistently thorough field work. The significance of his book goes beyond the blus to provide a concrete model for an analysis of other genres of oral literature in other cultures. This will be the most valuable book on the blues both for non-specialists and specialists alike for a long tiime to come." (Albert B. Lord)

"All the legendary figures of the blues, Charlie Patton, Son House and Tommy Johnson among them, are referred to, and the maintenance of the tradition down to today is illustrated by contemporary performers ... it is a landmark publication, one that is recommended without qualification to all, to the casually interested as well as to the most sophisticated of folk-blues scholars." (Jazz Times)

"Like any good study it transcends the genre, it is specifically devoted to and has relevance to the entire field of folklore." (Western Folklore)

"With clarity and brilliance, David Evans accurately presents blues as folksong by focusing on the traditional elements and processes. Unlike most of his predecessors who misjudged or maligned tradition and therefore misinterpreted the form, Evans places tradition where it belongs: at the forefront of blues composition and performace." (Ethnomusicology)

CONTENIDO:

Illustrative examples
Acknowledgements

Introduction
1. Folk and Popular Blues
2. The Blues Singer
3. The Local Tradition
4. The Traditional Blues Song
5. Folk Blues and the Study of Folklore

Notes
Bibliography
Index