RARA-AVIS: Re: Blues Settings

From: Victoria Esposito-Shea ( victoria@esposito-shea.com)
Date: 25 Sep 2000


>However, neither of these musics were of very respectable or even
mainstream culture, always
>thought to be from the wrong side of the tracks. I don't really recall any
hillbilly musicians in
>vintage hardboiled lit, either. Are there even many (I can't think of any,
but my knowledge of
>vintage HB could be a lot better) scenes set in roadhouses or juke joints?
>expanding contemporary movement of country noir.)

Right off the bat? The Op visits roadhouses/dives in three short stories
("The Big Knockover"; its sequel "$106,000 Blood Money"; and "The Girl with the Silver Eyes"), and in all of them the place is fairly important as a setting & plot device. My recollection is that the places in the first two stories are urban and the third is rural. And in the third (or so) part of RED HARVEST, the Op and Dinah Brand set out for yet another rural roadhouse but get caught in some crossfire and never quite get there.

I don't know if this means anything to anyone, but in "$106,000" Hammett actually mentions the song that's being performed--"Tell Me What You Want and I'll Tell You What You Get". It's stuck with me because the reference is so specific--I don't know whether it was popular then or some particular genre or just fits the story, or what exactly.

Vicky

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