Rights Information

Rights sold: World English Language, Chinese

All other translation rights available

Reviews

“Thousands of books have been written about the blues. There have been many photographic essays over the years but there hasn’t been one as comprehensive and as attractively designed and produced as this one in a very long time. Newcomers to the music will benefit from the eight well-­written and informative chapters covering the 'Roots of the Blues' up to 'The Blues Today.' Making this book really special are the layout and the more than 350 photographs (color and black and white), both large and small, that document the societal happenings of each of the periods discussed, the top performers, the album labels, the concert posters, and so on. The book and cover design by Paul Palmer-Edwards, of Grade Design, London, gets high marks indeed. Author Evans (a musician) has been writing about music for over 40 years (Elvis: A Celebration; Woodstock: Three Days That Shook the World) and has done an admirable job of analyzing such a long and varied history in an entertaining yet educational way. Thus, this title is that rare combination, a sumptuous coffee-table book that is worth reading as well. VERDICT Highly recommended for all blues collections.”

— Library Journal (Starred Review)

“In this lavishly illustrated book that is part fan's notes and part music history, music historian Evans (Neil Young) digs deep to reveal the taproot of the blues in the music of W.C. Handy, the so-called father of the blues and its many branches, from classic blues, country blues, and big city blues to rhythm and blues, the blues revival, blues rock, and the blues today. In an effort to offer a definition of the blues, Evans quotes everyone from Ray Charles and B.B. King to W.C. Handy, who says that "the blues came from the man farthest down. The blues came from nothingness, from want, from desire. And when a man sang or played the blues, a small part of want was satisfied from the music." Evans provides useful sketches of the men and women who established the form and those who continue to keep it alive, from Big Joe Turner, Big Mama Thornton, Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and Muddy Waters to Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Joe Bonamassa, and Gary Clark, Jr. Evans furnishes a "selected blues playlist," providing a valuable resource for readers searching for an introduction to various forms of the blues. Evans' richly illustrated text offers a useful introduction for anyone interested in discovering the history of the blues.”

— Publishers Weekly

Author Biography

Mike Evans is a musician, editor, and author whose books include the best selling Elvis: A Celebration, and Ray Charles: The Birth of Soul.

Consultant editor Robert Gordon is a Grammy Award–winning writer and filmmaker specializing in the music of the American south.

For three years, 1996 to 1999, Scott Barretta was editor of Sweden’s Jefferson Blues Magazine. From 1999 to 2003 he served as the editor of Living Blues magazine, where he remains a contributing writer. Today Scott writes a weekly column on blues for the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi, is the host of Highway 61, a weekly blues program on Mississippi Public Radio and, together with Jim O’Neal, is a writer and researcher for the Mississippi Blues Trail, which has dedicated over 140 markers since 2006.