Skip to main content

Roberta Flack - Angelitos Negros

That link between writing music and the physical outcome of it is one of the problems I have with the modern blues musician. They make records. They are not recorded. It's not their fault, you understand, we live in a time where music as product is inescapable, so everyone channels their art into this product even if they don't mean to. Their art is made with format in mind. Therefore the modern version of the blues, the type you find under the Blues & Jazz section in HMV, is the performer communicating their version of the blues to other people from original idea through to CD in jewel case. They are artists. My over simplistic view of the blues is that it has a purpose, and that purpose is to sing away your troubles or sooth them somehow. That's where the roots of the music lie. In theory, if you do a perfect job you won't be playing the blues anymore, as you'll have cheered your ass up. When you're on a 10 album contract you're probably less likely to work towards that goal, if you know what I mean.

Now, I know, a real or natural recording is impossible. I'm not naïve enough to think that the early race recordings I'm talking about were made in wonderful, uncorrupted surroundings and that their strength is in their purity, or some such nonsense. Like the late blues scholar, guitar legend and fat drunken antagonist John Fahey pointed out in his thesis on the aforementioned Charley Patton, any recorded environment is unnatural, even that of the folklorist who went from town to town making natural field recordings of black musicians.

But the early, late 1920s/early 1930s, race records are the closest we can come to natural, to hearing someone articulate their feelings in a piece of music conceived with no mind to commerce, even if the act of recording that music is commercial to the core. Don't underestimate how powerful that is.


Roberta Flack - Angelitos Negros
  • Released in: 1969
  • Genre: Jazz, Funk / Soul
  • Vocals by: Roberta Flack

"Roberta Flack performs in the areas of jazz, soul, and folk, and began her professional career recording for Atlantic Records without much success, until one of her earliest recordings which won the 1974 Grammy for Record of the Year."

See previous Song of the Day 

Labels:
Location: United States

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jackson Browne - Kisses Sweeter than Wine

Europe has a rich history of embracing blues and jazz music. In the early 20th century, American jazz musicians began touring Europe, introducing the continent to a new sound that was unlike anything they had ever heard before. Jazz became an instant hit among European audiences, and many European musicians began incorporating jazz elements into their music. Today, jazz festivals are held all over Europe, attracting thousands of fans from all over the world. In addition, many European cities have thriving blues scenes, with local bands and musicians performing regularly. Blues and jazz have also made their way to Asia, where they have found a devoted fan base. Japan, in particular, has a thriving jazz scene, with many Japanese musicians achieving international recognition. In addition, China has also seen a rise in the popularity of jazz music in recent years. Jazz festivals are now held in major Asian cities such as Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, attracting jazz lovers from all over ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ian Brown - Home Is Where The Heart Is

Talking to artists about how they had adjusted to the pandemic yielded information that normally doesn’t come up during artist interviews. While some musicians lost their main source of income, others were able to continue with their regular day jobs that, given the generally low pay for gigs, often allowed them to be active in the blues. Others were forced to turn to webcasting. In Clarksdale, Lucious Spiller was one of the first to do these shows and was likely the most active, for a year he played every Wednesday night, on Thursday afternoons, a time amenable to Europeans, and on most Saturdays, about as often as he normally performed. Aside from a fall off after the first weeks, support for the gigs, which was almost enough to pay the bills, remained steady until things began to open up in May of 2021. About five years ago, Clarksdale reached the milestone of live music seven days a week, 365 days a year, but that ended abruptly... The contemporary Southern soul market is largely s...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Gap Band - The Sun Don't Shine Everyday

The Gap Band - The Sun Don't Shine Everyday Genre: RnB Released in: 1984 Duration: 5:14 "The Gap Band was most successful when working with producer Lonnie Simmons, with four consecutive gold records. Their party train soon slowed to a stop. They reformed in the 90s and occasionally toured and attempted a comeback album." See Previous Song of the Day 
Post a Comment
Read more