Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey
by Peter Guralnick, Robert Santelli, Christopher John Farley
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Book Summary Information
Author: Christopher John Farley, Peter Guralnick, Robert SantelliEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-11-02
ISBN: 0060525452
Number of pages: 288
Publisher: Amistad
Summary of Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey
A companion to the groundbreaking PBS documentary series, this volume is a unique and timeless celebration of the blues, from writers and artists as esteemed and revered as the music that moved them.
Included in this stunning collection are
- Essays by David Halberstam, Hilton Als, Suzan-Lori Parks, Elmore Leonard, Luc Sante, John Edgar Wideman, and many others
- Timeless archival pieces by writers such as Stanley Booth, Paul Oliver, and Mack McCormick
- Evocative color illustrations and rare vintage photography
- Illuminating and in-depth conversations and portraits of musicians, ranging from Robert Johnson and Bessie Smith to John Lee Hooker and Eric Clapton
- Lyrics of legendary blues compositions
- Personal essays by the series directors Martin Scorsese, Charles Burnett, Richard Pearce, Wim Wenders, Marc Levin, Mike Figgis, and Clint Eastwood
- Excerpts from literary masters James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison, Eudora Welty, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, and William Faulkner Tracing the art form's path from juke joints, house parties, and recording studios to musicians such as Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones, and The Beatles, Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues proves, in the words of Willie Dixon, "The blues are the roots; every-thing else is the fruits."
Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey is an idiosyncratic, well-produced, and relatively cheap introduction to a quintessentially American musical invention. With much of the material consisting of excerpts from other sources, and the lack of an index, the tome seems more like a fluffed-up set of liner notes for the accompanying DVD set and CD series than a book--and that's probably the best way to approach it. The book is loosely constructed around the seven films, and there are great writers involved, including Stanley Booth, Hilton Als, Robert Palmer, Richard Hell, Luc Sante, and Robert Gordon. These selections are for the most part inspired, though one wonders why there's not even one page from Alan Greenberg?s brilliant Love in Vain screenplay, or anything from LeRoi Jones' classic Blues People. Unlike similar collections, the book gives real props to gospel-blues pioneer Bind Willie Johnson and rightfully places fife and drum patriarch Othar Turner at the top of the blues pantheon. But very little print is given to political, racial, gender and social issues surrounding the music. Not that one wishes it were some heavy academic tome. But, like the celebrated PBS series itself, an aura of missed opportunity hangs over the entire endeavor. Overall, this book makes a fine gift for casual fans of the music and is recommended for those who really enjoyed the series. --Mike McGonigal
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