Negro music in America; 8

Negro music and American. Negro music in America. An exploration of it and its impact on American culture. Here is your host for the series Tony look at Bach. You know the controversial discussions and learned writings about jazz and its sources. One fact is apparent about which there can be no argument. Integration is no recent thing that started with the Supreme Court decision in 1954. For over three hundred years white and black southerners have been swapping songs and tunes across the Jim Crow line. The spirituals are most noble folk songs have both African English traits and are definitely an African American product. New Group plantation songs were imitated by white composers to satisfy the need for the highly popular minstrel songs and among the wider nigra folk musicians of the South led to the development of ragtime by the negro and the Southern Downs

Negro and white musicians throughout the years have admired and imitated each other and taught each other the whites had a fine European tradition of melodies and instrumental styles. The niggers were masters of improvising on the theme. The whites had a highly developed ballad tradition and a poetic form. The nigger songs were simply constructed but with a marvelous feeling for tonal effect. White folk song was a solo art somewhat nostalgic almost over refined and introverted nigra song was a choral art joyously sensual laughter filled and extroverted. The comparable or comparative isolation of the early south allowed the two groups to develop their own musical traditions side by side and each one became hybrid because of the FAQ and fourth movement of the songs. As time went on this merging became more rapid and today it is still producing new sons. One southern area with communities which have remained in a relatively isolated state until recently or the Georgia Sea Islands which are cut off by swamp and by sea the way of life here is

much as it might have been in pre-Civil War days. It is a real pleasure to be able to play for you. Alan Lomax recordings of rich examples of spirituals work songs and ring games that are mostly early American liberal musical forms. Our first number is a work so holding song from the days at the big savings coolers used to load timber A New Brunswick Georgia. Join the band is sung by the St. Simons Island singers. No not John. Dominic. Anyone wanna come John. Or Paul already gone into the back from an on going John already John Mark Boal rag on John or Paul.

John already gone John. All right are beyond her. Come on I'm done trying to match her to go in the back bedroom protractor I'm trying to next as a shot by a St. Simons Island Group song in the style of the very earliest level of Negro music called walk. Billy Abbott. Load. Will. Hold. This next number is a marvelous religious song called Sheep sheep. Don't you know

the road to know our own. You. Don't want to know know her or. Her you know the song. You are. Her. Own. Thank you good long. Long. Long long way to. Be gone. Down to NOLA No. Gun to my. Good. Old. Son. My son.

Oh you both say that they are. Saying no we're. Done here he's. Going to. Have to. Get along and. Not go long young to know. They're wrong. No no no. No. No.

No. No. The next number is also religious and is a kind of dance in which the dancers move in a circle and those who are infirm are too old to dance dump their feet and clap their hands to provide a wonderful syncopated beat by John Davis in The Saint Simon Island singers. Again I am. Going to.

Keep. Going. Keep. Going keep going. I am. My. Man.

Cave creature. I got my. Book. OK. Let's see Dave is who is truly a great singer. Brings to you a prisoner a chain gang works on called sink in Malone. If you listen to this closely you will read he hears only the roots of the blues. And that's something. Yeah but it means you're making real long years ago you know make the role and make of Sloan's that have sailed to please themselves and to tell the captain what they want but they were the first thing only to share with his baby stand with him sort of you know how they had to do it had the first down deep in his clay and his

day then had to raise it up high. They would have had made to me how he rode a captain's been around he would have done Juno you know had to be routed on the big dogs and set the end to end their leg and ahead of cog them in trucks and way a hound dog would be a way to know him in a way that's where they would say this up here won't tell you what happened at hand and. Go home blown down. Son come. What may be a malfunction on the

set of battle over head. I'll give you none in. The end none save Hannah's. And you know I asked my parent then has said I'm on it and come gone. He said it makes no more fun. I don't know you know I don't know you. Oh I don't know you've known this it makes no fun. Oh you know but have I let me get to January and

fit to where macho man through grown macho room through thought out big legged blue Corps lend me to co-own and me. Come back. Home come back. Home with a leg. Colin and me. When I asked Catherine how what time of day he was so hot homeowner just walked away. One as I indicated earlier is this music from the

Georgia Sea Islands is a remarkable body of songs in pre-Civil War style. The number of the singers are quite old and learn these songs from their parents and grandparents who had themselves been slaves. We'll bring to you more of these ancient and authentic songs from the Sea Islands next week. They grow music in America with Tony look and Bach presented transcribed by the SEIU Radio Network. Got it again next week as we continue our exploration of the negro and American music. This program was distributed by national educational radio. This is national educational radio network.