Charles Mingus: A Jazz Artist with 3 Personalities Living in 3 Different Worlds

By: Catherine L. Keithley

Per my conversation two weeks ago on Charles Mingus, I feel it is important to go back and speak about who Mingus really was as an individual. In our society we shape success around our careers as who we are, our careers define our "being" and physicality on Earth.


Younger Charles Mingus & Older Charles Mingus

Charles Mingus inspires me. He was a jazz bassist who didn't care about his image, what he cared about was his music. He believed his soul's purpose on this Earth was to create songs people could feel alive when listening to them. Our perceptions of artists in the music world is about seeing artist's image change while pop music changes. It is always an interesting process observing evolving artists. For me, growing up I watched Britney Spears evolve into the pop celebrity she has become to be after "...Baby One More Time." Do you remember these days?


Younger Britney Spears & Older Britney Spears

Charles Mingus states in his book, "Blue's People," that he is a man of personality. From being an angel one moment, to being the opposite as a trouble maker, he found himself split among the two struggling to make both personalities surface to a common ground (Mingus 116). Through his struggles of heartache with women and seeing them as goddesses to seeing women as sexual objects, Charles Mingus was one of the first true musicians that defined pop artists to be the evolving ever changing image that they represent today in the mainstream world. In conclusion, it is important to recognize those who built the backbone of inspired pop artists today. People like Charles Mingus represent the Marylin Monroe influence on the acting world today.

Mingus, Charles, and Nel King. Beneath the underdog. Vintage, 1991. 116. Print.

The Inspiration of "Nothing" has Become "Something" in Hip Hop

By: Catherine Keithley

There is a compelling correlation between blues and hip hop music today in popular culture in Charles Mingus' book, "Beneath the Underdog." This shift in today's blues and hip hop music compared to the early 1920's is that there suddenly is no reason to have something to sing about in particular in new blues and hip hop music. Mingus emphasizes that hip hop artists such as Gucci Mane or Ludacris no longer have a reason to sing about topics of the past such as gangster rap or lyrics that are degrading towards women. Hip hop has emerged to the mainstream air waves and no longer seeks out lyrics about degrading women or gangster rap.



In particular, blues music was originally about the struggles of African Americans who came to the United States as victims of slavery. However, today the mainstream world has embraced a much different side of blues and hip hop. Mingus explains that artists today do not need to sing about their struggles or harsh living situations in the hood. Hip hop artists rule the mainstream air waves, this is why artists like Gucci Mane can get away with writing songs about "Lemonade." Aside from the male artists in hip hop, females have also made the transition to singing about meaningless concepts. Artists like Lil Mama made her name in the pop music world with her single, "Lip Gloss." There is no doubt in my mind that I agree with Mingus when he speaks about the value of blues and hip hop music. In mainstream we are bombarded with meaningless songs. For example, on KIIS FM's 102.7 we hear anything that has a valid beat behind it and a couple of catchy chorus'. Then it brings up the other question of the value of pop music within itself... Is it possible to make millions off singing a catchy song about lemonade rather than singing a heavy yet meaningful song in mainstream?



The answer... yes. Mainstream has transformed blues and especially hip hop into being yet another product of capitalism.

Mingus, Charles, and Nel King. Beneath the underdog. Vintage, 1991. 89-96. Print.

Mardi Gras' Indian Influence on Jazz & Blues in New Orleans

By: Catherine Keithley

Happy Fat Tuesday!
Well... Happy Ash Wednesday really...

As we embark on yet another Mardi gras celebration it is important to understand what Mardi gras is about. No, not the sinful opportunities that are sprung upon us before the day of Ash Wednesday but the opportunities of looking at the history of New Orleans' musical influence on hip hop today in the mainstream world. Hip hop mixes multiple synchronized beats together creating a feel good music result.

New Orleans is famous for two things... gumbo and blues music. I believe the key to delicious gumbo is about layering on spices, slow cooking, and fresh ingredients. Blues music in New Orleans is similar to its gumbo. Just like the layering of spices in gumbo, blues music layers itself throughout hip hop, jazz, and even electronic music. Blues music is about the cultural experiences of sorrow and struggles during the slavery era, however, Mardi gras music is very different from the Blues music. Mardi gras music originates from the Indian culture with tribal chants and drumming influences.

Huey "Piano" Smith's 1958 release of "Don't You Know Yockomo"

During the early 1950's Indian music made its own niche in New Orleans. For every Carnival season there was a new collection of Indian music. From Sugar Boy Crawford's November 1953 checker recording "Jock-A-Mow," to Huey "Piano" Smith's 1958 release of "Don't You Know Yockomo" all include some references to Indian music and culture. With the tribal beats of Indian music being added into blues and jazz music in the Creole culture of New Orleans it is no wonder why hip hop music has changed their background beats to predominately electronic basses.

Just like New Orleans' gumbo, music builds off of the music created in the past, resulting in new creations and fixations on specific sounds.

Morgan, Thomas. "Mardi Gras Indian Influence on the Music of New Orleans." Tom Morgan's Jazz & Blues. 06 02 2002. Jass.com, Web. 17 Feb 2010. .

The Jazz Singer: Society's Secret Influence on Making Ethical Decisions

By: Catherine Keithley

The film, "The Jazz Singer" dating back to its release date in 1927 was one of the first films in American popular culture that had portrayed its characters with speaking lines. Aside from the first speaking line in the film, there is beautiful music that accompanies the film. Within the story of the film we see the climax of the film approach upon a religious holiday for the Rabinowitz family. The holiday was the "Day of Atonement" which is the Jewish holiday also known as "Yom Kippur." In Yom Kippur, people of the Jewish faith were to fast for twenty-four hours and then are expected to repent and ask for forgiveness through intensive prayer. The interesting idea about the film is why did the writer decide to make the climax during this particular holiday in the Jewish faith?

I believe the reason for the writer and director to portray the film in this particular light is because as Yom Kippur is the day of repent we see Jackie facing his father for the first time since he was disowned for wanting to become a cantor. Not only is his father on his deathbed on the day of atonement but Jackie's father finally decides to accept his son for becoming a jazz singer. It is plausible that the writer thought that by bringing religion into the discussion of acceptance is the ethical way of dealing with a child doing an occupation that the parent did not wish for. The question that arises from The Jazz Singer makes me wonder about why did the writer in 1927 decide that it was an ethical point in the film to introduce the ideologies of religion to justify the decision of accepting Jackie's decision of becoming a jazz singer.

Overall there is an ethical question relating to the way the film is written compared to our ideologies today for deciding what is right from wrong. The question that The Jazz Singer arises is, "do we rely on religion to make ethical decisions in our everyday lives?" I'll leave you with that idea. What do you think?

One Song at a Time, Pop Culture Repeats Itself: From Minstrel Shows to Disney's Mickey Mouse

Entertainment repeats itself through media trends from the past. The most fascinating comparison from the past to present are the Minstrel shows and American popular culture.

Minstrel shows date back to the early 1830's that portrayed segments of comic skits, variety acts, dancing acts, and music acts. Originally minstrel acts were led by entertainers with black faces which depicted the traits of African Americans that were brought over from Africa to America to engage in slavery. Minstrel shows were arranged in three acts. The first would traditionally be dancing, the second, being a "pun-filled" stump speech, and the third act would be concluded by the "slapstick" musical plantation act. Music played a large role in the Minstrel shows. The songs sang in the shows were performed by artists such as; "Zip Coon (1834), Old Dan Tucker (1842), Miss Lucy Long (1842), and De Camptown Races (1850)," (Kun 2010).

We see pop culture in the United States repeat itself just as entertainment in general repeats itself, however, the creation of Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse is the most well known "Minstrel show" inspired form of entertainment. Mickey Mouse's first appearance was in Steamboat Willie, a black in white, silent film debuted in 1928. In the film we see Mickey interact with Minnie on a steamboat as Minnie accidentally drops the sheet music to "Turkey in the Straw" written and sung by Zip Coon from 1834. Mickey picks up the sheet music and begins to whistle "Turkey in the Straw."


Steamboat Willie Song (Turkey in the Straw)

Today in 2010, children would identify "Turkey in the Straw" with the song "Do your ears hang low?" As we see nursery rhymes develop from Minstrel shows in the early 1830's, we then note to see hip-hop today develop their tracks from nursery rimes like "Do your ears hang low?" For example, rapper "Jibbs" broke into the music industry by remixing the harmony of "Do your ears hang low?" into "Does your chain hang low?"


Jibbs- Does your chain hang low?

From Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse to American nursery rhymes to Jibbs' "Does your chain hang low?" we can conclude that there is a cohesive for American popular culture. This cohesive is repeating entertainment's history and using these traits to create something new. Think of it as reinventing pop music.


Kun, Josh (2010), http://soundclash307.tumblr.com/, Los Angeles, California: University of Southern California.
Lott, Eric (1993), Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class, New York: Oxford University Press, ISBN 019509641X .

"Blues Music in a White Man's World"

By: Catherine L. Keithley

After reading Leroi Jones' "Blue's People," I have found a connection between the two when defining Blue's music in American Pop Culture. The term “Blue’s People” derives the concept of the history of the Blues music defines the identity of a Blue’s person. There is something singularly American about the Blue’s. The Blue’s are about facing the reality of never going back home, being a person that has lost their culture… not speaking the same, children who will have different societal views and realizing you are a new person in a new country as a outcast.




Blues music is about waking up to the realization of social distance between you and your people and the country you are in. During the time of slavery we see people as property rather than individuals conveying personal opinions. Leroy Jones' ideas remind us to remember slaves are not immigrants like European immigrants. The social interpretation between European immigrants and African immigrants is that one signifies the celebration of life and the other signifies the becoming of a commodity object. Blues music is about the slaves becoming a commodity object within a market of bodies. Additionally, Jones adds that this actually happened to the Africans who became slaves in the United States. These human beings were stripped of their identities, the very identities that forced them to think and be people different than who they really are. Blues music expresses the struggle and need for social change.
Then we observe paradox of the American dream and the influence this had on Africans who were then victims of patriotism and the historical concept of truth. Blues singers became empowered by liberal freedom and independence, however, the success of liberal freedom for few depended on the lack of freedom for others. The notion of freedom was based on slavery.
Jones asks his readers, "What happens to these people who have lost their "identities" so to speak?" (Jones, 41). This he says is the "beginning of cultural innovations and cultural freedoms that come out of blues music. (Jones, 43). Which leads to the ultimate theme of economics versus population to find an answer through cultural practice. Blues music is about the sub-culture of being black and singing emotion that resides from the soul.
"With the soothing sounds of the saxophone, guitar, and a soulful voice, blues music relives itself every time it is played."

-Catherine Keithley
Leroi, Jones. Blues People:Negro Music in White America. 1st ed. New York, NY: Harper Perennial, 1999. 40-56. Print.

Check out Nina Simone performing Oscar Brown Jr.'s "Work Song"


Check out The Supremes singing "Chain Game"

American Popular Music : An Always Evolving Sound in Media & Society

By: Catherine Keithley



"People value American popular music for many reasons, including a desire for beauty, but also a great deal more;they use music to escape from the rigorous work week,to celebrate important events in their lives, to help them make money, war, and love" (Starr, and Waterman 6).

American popular music is important in our everyday lives this is true...but why is it that the pop music we listen to has such a distinctive sound? Why does Britney Spears' "In the Zone" album sound so similar to her most recent album "Circus?" Why are the Black Eyed Peas so famous for "I Gotta Feeling?" We hear these pop songs and forget our daily lives as authors Larry Starr and Christopher Waterman state in "American Popular Music: From Minstrelsy to MP3," but simultaneously there is a technical sound to all pop music. With a catchy chorus and recognizable feelings everyone may experience one may have a pop song.



Today in 2010, we notice a transformation within music written by The Beatles in the 1960's to today's pop music. Our music today has an electronic European feel and no longer is using a guitar and drums beat. With synthesizers our music is almost spoken, like Ke$ha's "Tik Tok." Pop music is about having a good time, getting ready for partying, and forgetting all your worries.

Along with a catchy sound artists today have managed the way they market themselves. Sure we can all sing "Tik Tok," but it is about attitude and physical presence while performing, the style clothing one may choose, etc. Popular music is a constantly changing sound and evolves with the culture and society we live in as time progresses.



Sources:
Larry, Starr, and Waterman Christopher. American Popular Music: From Minstrelsy to MP3. 1st ed. Oxford, NY: Oxford University Press, 2010. 6-8. Print.