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. Major keys, along with minor keys, are a common choice for popular songs. My name is Lex and I am a rising senior at the University of Georgia. Not only did she sing, she was also an actress and comedian. Through an examination of Smith's touring itinerary, the testimony of fellow entertainers who toured . In our workshop, In the Voice and in the Deep, Blues Poetry, participants and I studied blues music, history, aesthetics, and ultimately blues poetry. Down Hearted Blues, her first recording, sold nearly 800,000 copies, firmly establishing her as a new singer in the blues genre. Please use a recent version of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, or Opera instead. And I can't live there no more. Death. Smith performed for nearly a decade until Columbia Records signed her in 1923. The flood was a devastating ordeal. Published online by Cambridge University Press: She is the author of three collections of poems, most recently Rhapsody in Plain Yellow (2002). Bessie Smith Chords & Tabs : 24 Total @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com Lets look at this poem closely. I have sympathy towards Smith during her performance of this song because she conveys how lonesome she is. Chin is the recipient of the PEN/Josephine Miles Award, a Fullbright Fellowship, and the Paterson Prize, among numerous other honors. Its musical composition entered the public domain on January 1, 2023. La Bouche) [2023 Mix] [Extended Mix] Songtext. Her lyrics aid the audience in understanding why she is down. Second, the first published blues composition is accredited to W.C. Handys Memphis Blues in 1912. When it rained five days and the sky turned dark as night, Zur deutschen bersetzung von Backwater Blues, Die 10 schnsten Songs fr ein gemtliches Picknick, Die 10 beliebtesten ESC-Songs aller Zeiten, "Sing meinen Song" 2023: Alle Infos, Teilnehmer, Songs & Folgen, "Let's Dance 2023": Alle Tnze aus Show 9 + Songtexte, I'd Rather Be Dead and Buried in My Grave, Udo Lindenberg & Apache 207 - Komet Songtext, Ikke Hftgold, Schrze & DJ Robin - Bumsbar Songtext, Purple Disco Machine & Kungs - Substitution Songtext, Hypaton, David Guetta & La Bouche - Be My Lover (feat. 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 consonant chords allow for a smooth harmony to flow continuously during the song. 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. It was written by Bessie Smith, and recorded (under the title ". In this blog post I am going to be looking at and analysing a track by famous New Orleans jazz musician, Louis Armstrong. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like backwater blues, libretto, step interval and more. Teach music and songwriting in ways that keep students engaged, excited, and inspired. Sheet music arranged for Piano/Vocal/Guitar in C Major (transposable). I see myself as an activist Chinese American poet, and I want to show the multiple sides of my literary inheritance. Download and Print scores from huge community collection ( 1,426,528 and growing) Advanced tools to level up your playing skills. Considering these notes about the blues inception, the blues endured and scoredif not directly then through derived musical formsthe majority of the United States early nation-building and cultural formation. Bemoaning the fate of losing a home to flood waters after five days and nights of rain, Smith laments: Thousands of people aint got no place to go. While many latter-day listeners have equated this song with the disastrous 1927 flood of the Mississippi River, Smith actually recorded this before that particular flood had occurred. She made almost 200 recordings, including duets with Louis Armstrong and Joe Smith. Smith . "Backwater Blues" (Song) - Song Meanings and Facts Bessie Smith, commonly referred to as the Empress of the Blues, was born in 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The song has a homophonic texture due to the use of instruments and vocalization in unison. To pack my things and go. Major keys, along with minor keys, are a common choice for popular songs. 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. Great cover of blues classic Backwater blues on The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band 2011. album How I Go [Verse 5] And I went . homophonic texture. Although Smith is very pleasing to the ears, she seems to be slightly monotone in this piece. Smith continued on to become very successful with hits like St. 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. 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. Almost half a million homes were destroyed. 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. Backwater Blues is written in the key of E Major. Bessie Smith is the best-known of the female \"classic blues\" (or \"city blues\") singers from the 1910s and 1920s (others include Ma Rainey, Ethel Waters, Clara Smith, and Mamie 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. Backwater Blues by Bessie Smith Chords, Melody, and Music Theory 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. How does the music reflect the lyrical content of the piece? Bessie Smith is the best-known of the female "classic blues" (or "city blues") singers from the 1910s and 1920s (others include Ma Rainey, Ethel Waters, Clar. 04 January 2007. Third, Mamie Smith became the first Black blues singer to record a blues record in 1920. 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). Harmonically, what is the piece based on? The rhythm and beat remain constant throughout the song. The opening choruses of each performance . 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). LISTENING part 1 SEIGFRIED CHAP 5. richard wagner germany Backwater blues done called me to pack my things and go. Bessie actually wrote "Backwater Blues" for the Cumberland River flood that hit Nashville on Christmas morning 1926. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Backwater Blues - Piano - YouTube See the E Major Cheat Sheet for popular chords, chord progressions, downloadable midi files and more! 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. The vocalization stands out far more than the sound of the instruments, primarily due to Smiths incredible voice. In order to interrogate said materials, six recordings by different musicians were chosen and meticulously transcribed. Leadbelly - Backwater BluesTaken from: 16 Greatest Songs (As Pictured)Track no. She is considered by many as one of the most successful African-American females of all time. Backwater Blues is written in the key of E Major. Play the music you love without limits for just $9.99 $3.33/month. } The Mississippi River flood of 1927 was horrific. As musicologist Dr. David Evans has noted, Back-Water Blues was recorded in February 1927, before the great disaster of April. Kevin Young was born in Lincoln, Nebraska. :)---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Title: Backwater BluesLevel: BeginnerCom. "Backwater Blues" (1927) . 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. Hi! print music publishers. The best song poems, I believe, can live on the pages as well as in the ear. Bessie Smith - Songs, Death & Facts 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. Billed annually at $39.99. Another way of reading classic blues lyric structure is as weighted-sonic couplets. However, the blues utility in our everyday language signifies to me that the blues are ingrained into US culture. Mmm, I cant move no more. What is 12-bar-blues form? Study of Smith's touring itinerary, of testimony of fellow entertainers who toured with her, and of contemporary reports indicates that the song was written in response to the flood that struck Nashville, Tennessee on Christmas Day 1926. The song has long been associated with the great flood of the lower Mississippi River in 1927. Today, I hear phrases such as the winter blues and Blue Monday and know that they are not considering this history. 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. Discuss Bessie Smith's performance of "Back Water Blues" as an example of both. The flood from The Cumberland River that struck Nashville, Tennessee on Christmas Day 1926, AAB e.g. El disco e. Back-Water Blues. Her powerful voice stands out so much in this song that the instrumental background may not even be needed as supplementation. What is the structure of the lyrics? Almost a million people became homeless for a time. This incident gave birth to an important blues era, now known as the Delta Blues era. 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 . According to the Theorytab database, it is the 5th most popular key among Major keys and the 5th most popular among all keys. "it rained five days and the sky turned dark as night". Listening Guide to Backwater Blues by Bessie Smith - YouTube There were reports that officials behaved in a discriminatory fashion. There aint no place for a poor old girl to go. Since tab form can't express time interval, I hope you will figure The melody is conjunct, making it easy to follow the lyrics of the song and the instrumental portions at the same time. Blues on Yellow Marilyn Chin from Rhapsody in Plain Yellow. Backwater Blues Sheet music for Piano (Solo) | Musescore.com [3] However, that flood was at its worst some two months after the song was written. Hostname: page-component-75b8448494-knlg2 She teaches in the MFA program at San Diego State University. Bessie Smith - Back-Water Blues Lyrics | Genius Lyrics 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. Borrowing from song to write about whats wrong. Back-Water Blues was one of the best known works of the Empress of the Blues, Bessie Smith, recorded for Columbia Records in 1927 with James P. Johnson on piano. Yeah, when it's thunderin' and lightnin'. Back-Water Blues Bessie Smith (Columbia, 1927) Discover an intuitive and deep understanding of how music works. Jazz- Review Questions Flashcards | Quizlet 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). This is historically problematical because that flood began two months after Smith recorded her song. While many latter-day . Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings. *Als Songtexte.com PUR User kannst du entscheiden, welche Inhalte von externen Anbietern wie Youtube, 15Label: Route 16Year: 1990This CD is from my own collection. Bessie Smith had a powerful impact on future blues and Rock and Roll singers, like Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, and Janis Joplin. Bessie Smith, "Backwater blues", 1927The song "Backwater Blues" is a blues and jazz standard. Bessie Smith, "Backwater blues", 1927 - YouTube 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. Baraka attributes this knowledge to his mentor Sterling A. Back-Water Blues, composed by Bessie Smith and recorded by her on 17 February 1927, has long been associated in the popular mind and even by some writers with the great flood of the lower Mississippi River and its tributaries that occurred that year.