blues
Where it all started…. At the turn of the last century, blues music as we know it today began to take shape. Its' humble roots are stemmed deeply in extreme prejudice and heartache, fuelling the passion and feeling in the lyrics and music; however, as the genre flourished and matured a juxtaposition of the namesake is that the musical and lyrical passion can stir up an array of emotions, not just sadness.
From West Africa, to the deep South of America, the plantation fields were home to the true originators. Living in oppressive times, music was not only an outlet but a form of rebellion… Their stories with musical accompaniment became the precursor to Jazz, RnB (rhythm and blues) and Rock N Roll - which itself went on to form many many variants such as Punk Rock, Hard Rock, Pop & Pop Rock… All of which can be effectively traced back to the Blues.
jazz
A genre known to many as The American version of “Classical” music. A spawn of the Blues although often clarity on the two is perspectively hazy. Not many people realise that the blue was the predecessor, the one that paved the way.
The term Jazz is said to have come out of New Orleans in the 1920’s. And to this very day, New Orleans has a very rich music, cultural, and Jazz heritage and scene.
rock
The birth child of Blues, with help from Jazz and even Country… Rock music began to form in the 40’s and 50’s in America. A truly rebellious spirit engulfed the American youth post-world war, and with a need for joy along with anti-establishment, this where energetic and “loud” music that teenagers could dance to and stay out late at night to enjoy, entered the picture. The term Rock ‘N’ Roll came about mid 50’s and stuck ever since. American bands and artists like Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, and Bill Haley and The Comets pioneered the reimagined styles on Blues and Country music, paving the way more experimental, more electric and even more global bands to take the Worlds Stage such as The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, who took the blues genre and the newly formed, rebellious Rock ‘N’ Roll genre to a whole new electric and up-tempo level, with many elements of early 1920’s blues and even 1930’s country music highly prevalent in the structures and composition of their music.