Bibliograph

Eubie Blake, rags, rhythm, and race, Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom

Type

Label

Eubie Blake, rags, rhythm, and race, Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references (p. [387]-438) and index

resource.biographical

individual biography

Illustrations

illustrations

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

Eubie Blake

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

1130319581

Responsibility statement

Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom

Sub title

rags, rhythm, and race

Summary

"Eubie Blake tells the story of one of the key composers of 20th century American popular song. Through his music, he rose from the slums of Baltimore to the heights of Broadway success. His show Shuffle Along was the first African-American show to win a major white audience, becoming the tenth most popular show of the 1920s. The show introduced future black stars - including Josephine Baker, Paul Robeson, and Florence Mills - the syncopated chorus line, and introduced jazz-styled music to Broadway.Blake's composing skills were matched by his piano mastery. Even in the Depression, Eubie continued composing of innovative new works. At 61, he studied the Schillinger Method to expand his harmonic knowledge and ability to compose beyond the confines of traditional popular song.Blake's persistence in maintaining his ties to ragtime and Broadway paid off in the late '60s when he was rediscovered due to new recordings and personal appearances. In the last decade of his life he influenced an entirely new generation of pianists and composers from the jazz and classical worlds.This is the first biography to explore the wealth of personal records, interviews, and deep research to illuminate Blake's life and impact on over 100 years of American culture. It tells the true story of African-American performers struggling to achieve recognition and success in the popular music world at a time of deep racism. Blake's career blazed a path for countless others to rise above the limitations previously faced by blacks in the popular music world"--, Provided by publisher

Table Of Contents

Family and Early Life : 1887-1903 -- Becoming an Established Musician : 1904-1915 -- Blake Meets Sissle : 1915-1919 -- Vaudeville : 1919-1921 -- Shuffle Along : 1921 -- Shuffling On : 1922-1923 -- Chocolate Dandies and the End of Sissle and Blake : 1924-1930 -- Hard Times : 1930-1936 -- Government Worker : 1937-1946 -- After the War : 1946-1952 -- Lean Times to Revival : 1953-1970 -- Final Years : Concert Stage and a Return to Broadway, 1971-1983

Classification