California Soul: Music of African Americans in the West (Music of the African Diaspora)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.53 (808 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0520206282 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 462 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-06-25 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
The result is a collection of scholarly articles rather than light reading or a comprehensive view of the subject. The book's first section, "Music in an Urban Environment," documents the influence of California's urban centers on the state's blues sound. "Music and the Media" examines the trends and sounds that radio and musical recordings have brought to bear upon the state's blues music. California Soul is an original attempt to discuss the influence, growth, and style of blues, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, and soul music--the music of African Americans--in California. In fact, the state is usually mentioned only as a footnote, if at all, in blues history. "The Musician as Innovator," the third--and most personal--section focuses on individual artists, like early Motown's Brenda Holloway.
The essays draw from oral histories, music recordings, newspaper articles and advertisements, as well as population statistics to provide insightful discussions of topics like the California urban milieu's influence on gospel music, the development of the West Coast blues style, and the significance of Los Angeles's Central Avenue in the early days of jazz. This new series, co-sponsored with The Center for Black Music Research of Columbia College, seeks to increase our understanding of black music genres and their importance to the cultures of the Atlantic world, including their influence on African musical styles. Books in the series will examine the wide-ranging music of the African diaspora—including the folk-derived musical styles of the Americas as well as European-influenced concert hall music of the entire black Atlantic world—by analyzing issues critical to our interpretation of the music itself and exploring the relationships between music and the other black expressive arts.Focusing on blues, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, and soul music, California Soul
Excellently enlightening I initially purchased this book to learn more about the career of Brenda Holloway. However, in reading the entire volume from start to finish, a whole new dimension of the African American contribution to American and world music as a whole was opened up. It is indeed a scholarly piece, but the personal accounts of the artists make for good and informative reading.