BluesTrotter.com

Memphis blues music has a very rich and interesting history that is packed with many of the biggest names in American music. Created in the 1920s and 1930s, Memphis blues music was created by musicians that lived in the area, like Furry Lewis, Frank Stokes, John Estes and Memphis Minnie. At first, it was only popular in vaudeville and medicine shows, but soon it quickly grew to capture the interest of the entire nation.

Memphis blues music really got its start on Beale Street, the place where the nightlife and culture of Memphis was (and still is). There have been several books written, dedicated only to Memphis blues music and Beale Street, including Goin Back to Memphis by James L. Dickerson, which came out in the year 2000.

Memphis blues music gained a lot of popularity very fast, largely in part to its unique sound. Because many of the musicians were poor and could not afford to buy traditional instruments, they were forced to improvise using household items that were previously not known for their sound producing capabilities. For example, washboards, kazoos and Jews harps were all prevalent in early Memphis blues music.

Quite possibly the most unique and frequently used odd instruments found in Memphis blues music is the jug. To replace the sound that an expensive bass guitar would make, people would blow into various sized jugs to create a deep and hollow sound. Of course, some of the people in Memphis blues music were able to get their hands on traditional instruments such as violins, banjos and mandolins.

Memphis blues music never really featured any electric instruments until after World War II, when Memphis blues music musicians slowly started buying and using them. Memphis blues music also started to transform itself as new musicians came onto the Memphis scene. This is because many African Americans started to migrate away from impoverished rural areas in search of cities and good jobs. Among those making the trek to Memphis were Willie Nix, Ike Turner, Howlin Wolf and B.B. King.

Still, Memphis blues music remained confined to the area of Memphis. That is, until Sun Records took an interest in Memphis blues music and started signing local artists as fast as they could. Eventually, Memphis blues music would go on to influence rock and roll, modern jazz and rhythm and blues music, and has been cited by several famous musicians in their songs.

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Music lovers generally learn to play at least one instrument in their lifetime. One of the most popular and the easiest to learn is the guitar. This instrument is used to play all types of music from Rock and Roll, Pop, and jazz. It is one of the more appealing musical instruments because of it is relatively easy to learn, and it doesn’t cost you a huge amount of money to buy.

When you’re just starting out to learn to play the guitar it can be a little confusing. You may already have your heart set on what type of genre of music you want to play. Whether you already know what type of genre you want to play, or you don’t,  you should consider learning how to play Blues guitar. Blues has played a huge part in the history of music and influenced many musical genres that we have today. If you learn to master playing the Blues on your guitar successfully then you will easily learn to play other genres of music too. Most other genres of music are rooted in Blues music. 

If you want to learn how to play blues guitar you’re in good company. Many people before you, and most likely, many people after you will learn to play the blues on their guitar. Blues music has a very rich and fascinating history. It is believed that blues music originated somewhere between 1870-1900. It reached its peak of popularity in the 1960′s. Because it was so popular, you had a whole generation of kids wanting to learn how to play blues guitar.

When this new generation learned how to play blues guitar, they started making some changes to it. When changes were made to Blues, it evolved. It became different types of genres of music. You can thank Blues for spawning these genres of music:

Jazz, Rock and Roll, Rhythm and Blues, etc…

Blues still lives on as a viable music genre. In fact, within recent times there has been a small resurgence of Blues, especially in the southern United States. However, most of today’s generation doesn’t really know about Blues music. Blues has been dwarfed in popularity by the other genres of music it helped to create. Even some modern hits have elements of Blues in them.

When learning music, its important to understand the origin of the genre you wish you play. Most likely, when you learn to play the guitar, the genre you play, will have its roots in Blues. When you learn how to play blues guitar, you’ll be carrying on a very long and proud history. You will find that when you learn how to play blues guitar, it will make learning other types of genres of music so much easier.