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Black Music Appreciation Month 2022

President Jimmy Carter designated June as Black Music Appreciation Month in 1979.

In a proclamation, President Joe Biden said:

For generations, Black music has conveyed the hopes and struggles of a resilient people — spirituals mourning the original sin of slavery and later heralding freedom from bondage, hard truths told through jazz and the sounds of Motown during the Civil Rights movement, and hip-hop and rhythm and blues that remind us of the work that still lies ahead. The music created by Black artists continues to influence musicians of all persuasions, entertain people of all backgrounds, and shape the story of our Nation.

As noted in the 1971 documentary “Black Music in America: From Then Till Now,” Black music is “one of the great artistic contributions to American culture. Black music in America began as the African drum beat and plantation song ignored and then suppressed by white culture.”

To explore the history of Black American music, check out the Black Music Project.

Women’s History Month: Bessie Smith

Bessie Smith famously told us: “Ain’t nobody’s business if I do.”

I have made it my business to oppose the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia’s proposed Christian Street Historic District which would memorialize a small “light, bright, and damn near white” Negro elite. Cataclysmic events during the period of significance (1910 to 1945) include the Great Depression, the Great Migration, two World Wars, and the New Deal.

The Empress of the Blues lived on Christian Street. Her house is located less than 500 feet outside the arbitrary boundaries of the proposed historic district. The fact that one of the highest paid Black entertainers in the 1920s and ‘30s is excluded from the gentrifiers’ narrative about “Black wealth” tells you all you need to know about the merits of the nomination.

Bessie Smith shaped a fashion aesthetic for blues singers. Drexel University professor Alphonso McClendon, author of Fashion and Jazz: Dress, Identity and Subcultural Improvisation, wrote:

Contrary to the sad lyrics they espoused, the blues ladies dressed in extravagant designs that articulated their growing wealth, as well as the changing attitudes of women. … In a publicity photo for Columbia Records [1914], Bessie Smith, Empress of the Blues, captured the Oriental aesthetic, elegantly draped in a sleeveless net tunic embroidered with beads and floral appliqués that scalloped at the hem. Smith was known for her opulent headdresses that exploited beads, fringe and feathers, conceivably a strategy to emphasize the head as practiced by early African societies.

For info about the “Oriental aesthetic” and the Jazz Age, check out the exhibition “Venus and Diana: Fashioning the Jazz Age” presented by the Fox Historic Costume Collection at Westphal College of Media Arts and Design.

Gospel Roots of Rock and Roll

Muddy Waters famously said, “The blues had a baby and they named the baby rock and roll.”

The architect of rock and roll, Little Richard, credits gospel legend Marion Williams for making him a star. During the 1993 Kennedy Center Honors, he said, “If it weren’t for you, I never would have been a star. I got that whoop from you.”

A new documentary traces the gospel roots of rock and roll.

“How They Got Over” is now playing in theaters and virtual cinemas. For ticket info, go here.

Black Music Month 2021

June is Black Music Month. In his Proclamation on Black Music Appreciation Month, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said:

Throughout our history, there has been no richer influence on the American songbook than Black music and culture.  From early spirituals born out of the unconscionable hardships of slavery; to the creation of folk and gospel; to the evolution of rhythm and blues and jazz; to the ascendance of rock and roll, rap, and hip-hop — Black music has shaped our society, entertained and inspired us, and helped write and tell the story of our Nation.

During Black Music Appreciation Month, we honor the innovative artists whose musical expressions move us, brighten our daily lives, and bring us together.  Across the generations, Black music has pioneered the way we listen to music while preserving Black cultural traditions and sharing the unique experiences of the Black community.  Black artists have dramatically influenced what we all hear and feel through music — joy and sadness, love and loss, pride and purpose.

I embrace Duke Ellington’s dictum that there are two kinds of music, good music and the other kind. I love good music but I live for the blues.

I’m living proof of the power of music to transform lives.

At age 84, Buddy Guy is getting his flowers – and American Masters treatment.

Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase The Blues Away premieres on July 27, 2021 at 9 p.m. ET. The documentary will be available on PBS and PBS Video App.

Trump Impeachment Trial 2.0

The article of impeachment for incitement of insurrection will be delivered to the Senate at 7 p.m. Monday.

In a letter to House Democrats, Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote:

Monday, January 25, will be a momentous and solemn day, as the House sadly transmits the Article of Impeachment for Donald Trump to the Senate.

Our Constitution and country are well-served by our outstanding impeachment managers – lead manager Rep. Jamie Raskin and Reps. Diana DeGette, David Cicilline, Joaquin Castro, Eric Swalwell, Ted Lieu, Stacy Plaskett, Madeleine Dean, and Joe Neguse. I salute them for the great love of our country, dedication to our democracy and loyalty to our oath with which they have proceeded, as they ensure that no one is above the law.

The House has been respectful of the Senate’s constitutional power over the trial and always attentive to the fairness of the process. When the Article of Impeachment is transmitted to the Senate, the former President will have had nearly two weeks since we passed the Article. Our Managers are ready for trial before the 100 Senate jurors.

The Senate will begin Trump’s second impeachment trial the week of February 8. They call it “Stormy Monday.” For Donald John Trump, Tuesday and the coming weeks will be just as bad.

Merry Christmas

Christmas is my least favorite time of the year. The coronavirus pandemic has eliminated a lot of the fake cheerfulness.

While I don’t like the commercialism, I love the reason for the season – and Christmas blues.

Gone Fishin'