A music geek’s encyclopedia
by Josh Friedberg
“A Guide to Selected Essays on African-American Music, Part One.” Not yet having devoted a whole column entry to readings on music, I thought this would be a fantastic place to start. I chose to write about essays rather than books, mostly because essays are more concise but are still tremendously informative for sampling a wide range of perspectives. And I chose to write this entry not only with my interest in soul, jazz and other genres dominated by African-Americans, but also with the wide range of scholarship available on the subject that I would like to introduce. All of these pieces are available in Lilly Library, and I suggest further reading for those so interested.
Nelson George, “Black Beauty, Black Confusion (1965-70)” (found in “A Turbulent Voyage: Readings in African American Studies,” edited by Floyd W. Hayes III)
Originally published in George’s 1988 book, “The Death of Rhythm and Blues,” this chapter traces musical, political, ideological and corporate changes in soul music of the late 1960s. The writing might seem more historical summary than argument, but George’s analysis is invaluable. His passion about the musical and historical contributions of James Brown made me want to rehear and reappraise Brown’s music and message. George also poses fascinating questions about the success of Aretha Franklin among whites. And for someone like me who grew up reading historical narratives dominated by white musicians, George’s insights about the changes rock music underwent with the Beatles and others (”It was rock. It was art. It was white.”) helped me further reevaluate such narratives.
Further reading: “Hip Hop America”
Mark Anthony Neal, “Another Man is Beating My Time: Gender and Sexuality in Rhythm and Blues” (found in “American Popular Music: New Approaches to the Twentieth Century,” edited by Rachel Rubin and Jeffrey Melnick)
As a professor and the Director of the Institute for Critical U.S. Studies at Duke University, Mark Anthony Neal has become a leading voice amongst contemporary African-American intellectuals, particularly with issues of gender. In this essay he analyzes the ideas of black masculinity R&B singers have celebrated over the decades. I found his analysis particularly insightful and nuanced when he shows that female R&B singers who have incorporated feminist rhetoric in recordings have still reinforced patriarchy and homophobia.
Further reading: Mark Anthony Neal, “What the Music Said: Black Popular Music and Black Public Culture”
Stanley Crouch, “On the Corner: The Sellout of Miles Davis” (available in “The All-American Skin Game, or, The Decoy of Race: The Long and the Short of It, 1990-1994″)
This essay infuriates me with its strongly disagreeable interpretation of jazz legend Miles Davis’s later career. However, notwithstanding its random ad hominem attacks on Eddie Murphy, Spike Lee and others, it is generally quite well written. Crouch’s analysis of Davis’s earlier, acoustic jazz work is excellent, though I think it falters when Crouch approaches Davis’s later, more rock-influenced work. I would argue that Crouch does not understand the music. This is dense writing, but if you like polemics, Crouch is for you: his highly specific ideas about what jazz should sound like might enrage, but Crouch’s general brilliance and erudition certainly deserve note and make the piece worth reading.
Further reading: Stanley Crouch, “Considering Genius: Writings on Jazz”
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