Tribe wrote:
"I assumed that it had to do that early blues was not
"acceptable" music, whereas jazz was more commonly accepted
and listened to by white audiences."
Jazz was not entirely accepted in the '30s or even the '40s.
It was crossing over, with more whites listening and
performing (is Paul Whiteman the perfect name for a non-black
musician who crowned himself the "KIng of Jazz" or what?),
but still somewhat disreputable -- isn't that the formula for
popularity in music? This is also why it was so perfect as
background for hardboiled tales, right on the border between
danger and sophistication.
"In fact, even in early african american culture, the blues
was devil's music."
Not "even," only. Blues on Saturday night, Church on Sunday
morning. However, blues was so far below the white reformers'
radar screen that I have been unable to find a single
reference to whites complaining about blues (and I've looked,
hard, but only in print sources; so there may very well have
been complaints from the pulpit, particularly in the south
where, as has been noted, black and white culture were
probably not nearly as separate as some would have liked or
liked to think), although I have found volumes of complaints
(in order) about ragtime, jazz, swing, r & b, rock 'n'
roll, rock, heavy metal, rap and techno.
And I agree that juke joints and roadhouses seem like a
perfect setting for a period noir.
Mark
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