But I am still learning thanks to the latest wave of books,
stage shows and documentaries about rock and blues music. This weekend is the opening in D.C. of
the documentary, “Muscle Shoals” from director Greg Camalier. Most of us know
of the Alabama town where The Rolling Stones recorded “Brown Sugar” and “Wild Horses” but the history of producer
Rick Hall and his house musicians, The Swampers, also includes some major
milestones.
Percy Sledge was an unknown amateur when Hall got him in for
his first recording session. The result: “When A Man Loves a Woman.” Duane
Allman pitched his tent in the parking lot until they let him sit in on
sessions, including one with Wilson Pickett doing “Hey Jude.” Etta James and
Aretha Franklin laid down hit tracks there and Lynyrd Skynyrd came up with
“Freebird” while on the banks of the Tennessee River.
A documentary released earlier this year, “Born in Chicago,”
looks back at the work of Muddy Waters (“The Blues Had a Baby and They Named It
Rock and Roll”) Howlin’ Wolf and Chuck Berry and their influence on a younger
generation. Marshall Chess, founder of the namesake studio and record label,
narrators the film which focuses in part on Mike Bloomfield. No less an authority than Bob Dylan pays
tribute to his standing by describing him as “simply the best guitarist I had
ever heard.”
The history lessons continue on stage. In Chicago, the Black
Ensemble Theater Company is paying homage
to Curtis Mayfield, lead singer with The Impressions and funk pioneer,
with “It’s All Right To Have A Good Time.” On Broadway the tribute shows to Janis Joplin (Vinyl Stats
August 14) and Billie Holiday will be joined by “Beautiful,” the Carole King
musical.
In addition to new memoirs from Graham Nash and Neil Young,
there are two books out that deal with music that may have changed history and
not just music. In Ready for a Brand New Beat, Mark Kurlansky argues that the
super hit of 1964, “Dancin’ in the Street” from Martha & The Vandellas
became a political anthem that helped spark the social upheaval and urban riots
of the sixties.
And did Bruce Springsteen have more to do with the end of
the Berlin Wall than Ronald Reagan? Erick Kirschbaum thinks so and outlines his
argument in Rocking the Wall. The
date was July 19, 1988 and The Boss was allowed to do a live concert in East
Berlin. Between songs, Springsteen, in German, told the crowd of 300,000 (and
millions watching on TV), “I’ve
come to play rock and roll for you in the hopes that one day all the barriers
will be torn down.” He then launched into “Chimes of Freedom.”
Whether you buy Krischbaum’s thesis or not, it gives new
meaning to the Great Man theory of history.
