Orpheus -
What I wrote was a real stripped down, simplified version of the far more complex history of the blues. Written almost facetiously - though there's truth in it. The roots of the "song form" date back to early on in the last century and probably well before that. The blues absolutely derive from an oral tradition. Thank God for Alan Lomax preserving some of that. I don't find anything too profound in Rok's statement. This is well-documented music history, not the product of some "authority" pontificating in a locked, ivory tower cell somewhere. AND I was talking about what I hear(d) - my listening - that shaped a lot of my music preferences WAY before I even knew there was something called "the blues". Jazz-wise, I defer to your knowledge. Blues? I will be guided by my own lights, thank you.
"...so much of it is the same music with different words." Yeah, it can be kind of formulaic (there's even a standard music theory structure for "a blues"!) but the blues don't have to always sound the same...and they DON'T. I'm inclined to think some of the sameness reflects a kind of dumbing down and catering to a mass market (maybe). Listen to enough B.B. King's Bluesville and it sometimes sounds like the same song on repeat. Regardless, it's pretty clear to me jazz offers a lot more creative options...a bigger palette and more colors in the paint box. Personal preference though? Most days I'll be picking the blues 5 to 1.
What I wrote was a real stripped down, simplified version of the far more complex history of the blues. Written almost facetiously - though there's truth in it. The roots of the "song form" date back to early on in the last century and probably well before that. The blues absolutely derive from an oral tradition. Thank God for Alan Lomax preserving some of that. I don't find anything too profound in Rok's statement. This is well-documented music history, not the product of some "authority" pontificating in a locked, ivory tower cell somewhere. AND I was talking about what I hear(d) - my listening - that shaped a lot of my music preferences WAY before I even knew there was something called "the blues". Jazz-wise, I defer to your knowledge. Blues? I will be guided by my own lights, thank you.
"...so much of it is the same music with different words." Yeah, it can be kind of formulaic (there's even a standard music theory structure for "a blues"!) but the blues don't have to always sound the same...and they DON'T. I'm inclined to think some of the sameness reflects a kind of dumbing down and catering to a mass market (maybe). Listen to enough B.B. King's Bluesville and it sometimes sounds like the same song on repeat. Regardless, it's pretty clear to me jazz offers a lot more creative options...a bigger palette and more colors in the paint box. Personal preference though? Most days I'll be picking the blues 5 to 1.