All about the blues, blues musicians and blues clubs
Famous Blues Musicians
Robert Johnson
In 1895 George W. Johnson's recorded "Laughing Song", this is the first time that a blues song is known to have been recorded. Increasingly different blues artists and songs began to be recorded and appear in music rolls and recordings that were available to the general public. One player piano series from 1906 only had one available blues song.
In the 1920's Mamie Smith sold 75,000 records in one month. That was a signal that the blues were hot and were going to a major force in the world of American entertainment and music. During the 1920s and 1930s very few blues records were sold outside of the African American community. The companies that were producing the records sold almost exclusively to the black community and marketed aggressively to them. As a result of Smith's success, record companies seized the opportunity to make a profit in the new market. The record companies recognized the potential profit of this untapped market and began seeking new singers and songwriters in the blues to get their share of the profits that the early blues artists had surprised everyone with. These early successes brought may of the most famous early artists like Ethel Waters, Ma Rainey, Alberta Hunter, Bessie Smith.
Now when we listen to the blues music of famous artists like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, Bessie Smith, and many other greats we understand that they have a righ heritage and history behind their incredible talent. All these great artists owe their inspirations and origins to the sorrow and emotion of the period of American history that was so painful for all Americans, particularly African Americans. The ever changing and dynamic nature of African American life after the Civil War led to the vibrant culture and artistic expression out of which the blues was created.
