art and pop culture project
cheickh sylla
this project is for the interesting Dilemma that is roboert johnsons musical carrer
cheickh sylla
this project is for the interesting Dilemma that is roboert johnsons musical carrer
Robert johnsons is often credited as the inventor of rock and roll style music after his branching away from the Mississippi style delta blues. The most famous story about him is the old Mississippi rumor of selling your soul at crossroads to the devil for skills. It stemmed from the many reports of how terrible and ear aching his bar music was before his 2 year disappearance. In the 1920s at the son house where he preformed the viewers would regularly tell him to go outside for air and to stop playing. He later in 1930 started traveling around the south and honing his skills with multiple styles. When he came back in 1932 he had invented a new skill and well liked guitar style that awed the sun house. Unfortunately rumor spread that he had plagiarized the devil himself.
a repeating element in the songs from Robert Johnson are his stern southern wording and Another is his musically style in geneal. hes the first to use the rock and roll style and he pulls it off well. The way he kept drawing your attention in with the guitar while keeping the song going is greatly timed. The fusion of country music and blues creating a new format of music that was unfairly associated with the devil.
I went to the crossroad, fell down on my knees
I went to the crossroad, fell down on my knees
Asked the Lord above, "Have mercy, now, save poor Bob if you please"
Yeah, standin' at the crossroad, tried to flag a ride
Ooh-ee, I tried to flag a ride
Didn't nobody seem to know me, babe, everybody pass me by
Standin' at the crossroad, baby, risin' sun goin' down
Standin' at the crossroad, baby, risin' sun goin' down
I believe to my soul, now, poor Bob is sinkin' down
You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie Brown
You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie Brown
That I got the crossroad blues this mornin', Lord, baby, I'm sinkin' down
And I went to the crossroad, mama, I looked East and West
I went to the crossroad, baby, I looked East and Wes
Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman, ooh well, babe, in my distress
At first listening to the song cross road blues sounds like a nostalgic and happy recalling of a time in the singers life when they were hanging around railway cross roads. He recalls waiting around in the sun to get on a train (Standin' at the crossroad, baby, risin' sun goin' down) and times where he had friends attempt to chase the train down when late.(Standin' at the crossroad, baby, risin' sun goin' down). He also brought up how nobody knew him and passed him by. With the tone and wording he uses in the song you'd thing hes simply making a nostalgic style travel song. When listening closer to the song you'll notice a layered meaning with his loneliness. You can see him falling to his knees at the beginning as he gives into depression. Following lines like (I believe to my soul, now, poor Bob is sinkin' down) show the depths of his depression with an inside joke. throughout the song you can hear his listed causes Such as nobody on the train knowing or caring about him. when looking into his real life he was a lone traveler since childhood and ramped up his travel around his song career. The final part of the song sounds a tad bit comical but is the compounding factor to his misery is having no woman. ( I looked East and West Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman, ooh well, babe, in my distress) initially that seems unserious until you learn that his first wife died during childbirth and his second died during his southeren music travels.
When listening closer to the song you'll notice a layered meaning with his loneliness. You can see him falling to his knees st the beginning as him giving into depression. Following lines like (I believe to my soul, now, poor Bob is sinkin' down) show the depths of his depression with an indie joke. throughout the song you can hear his listed causes Such as nobody on the train knowing or caring about him. when looking into his real life he was a lone traveler since childhood and ramped up his travel around his song career. The final part of the song is probolay the compounding factor to his misery is having no woman. ( I looked East and West Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman, ooh well, babe, in my distress) initially that seems more comical until you learn that his wife died during childbirth and his second died later .
rail lines are a frequent symbol that Robert Johnson uses in his songs for a whole host of reasons. The prime one in the song crossroads blues is its a symbol for his loneliness and the roots. The crossroads work as a good symbolism because of how their imagery of being everywhere and moving around a lot of cargo can be used to correlate a lot of things. Usually representing the amount of effort something is taking or to directly compare to a system the train uses like ticket lines or wheels. In his previous songs he was even able to use them for a happier message. In this song he mostly uses them as a symbol for his loneliness and sorrow. When looking into the life of Robert Johnson I can see a parallel to rites of passage that were talked about in Betwixit and Between. they’re ceremonies that mark important events of change. when he first started out in music he was notoriously bad and was frequently asked to stop. After a few years he went on a solo trip across the south learning and combining multiple different play styles. When he returned he was left the room in awe after his sessions for he had created rock and roll. Traveling for life experience can almost be seen as a rite of passage for a musician.
sometimes its funny the way people can interrupt words. Robert johnsons cross road blues has a fairly straightforwardly gloomy message about his life but was interpreted as devil worship. This is mostly because of the the rumor floating around his home town around the 1970s. That anyone who went to the crossroads at night could deal with the devil for talent and power . It was claimed that the devil took his guitar and played the song for him and then proceeded to copy him. Even if true would be impressive to perfectly remember and copy a song from a single listen but it was used to discredit his effort. It especially makes no sense since because of the lyrics he used are so personal to his life.( I looked East and West Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman, ooh well, babe, in my distress) Mainly the way the entire song leads up to talking about his dead partners. The complete disregard of his skill and back story remind of a concept in john Baughs black linguistics. The idea of linguistic profiling is the idea of using someones voice to make assumptions about their lifestyle. I think this is directly linked to the way that people heard his song saw the cover and immediately thought as if he made this.
the guitar sounds that Robert makes are notably modified blues, southern strokes, and country music style lyrics. Roberts choice of sound is the first example of rock and roll music to exist and its a great one. I even like the match between his voice tone and the timing hes using for guitar hits.
the stern southern accent that Robert uses throughout his song are perfectly phrased and sounded. After learning his backstory its noticeable since the south is where he got his training. Its possible that he got a thicker southern accent following his travels or his vocabulary started focusing on more southern vocab.
the Imagery that his railroads bring up are a genius hidden metaphor for his loneliness. The way he phrases the song like hes talking about rail lines gives the song a hidden double meaning. Being in a crossroads in life while at the cross roads is a heart moving double meaning.