Y'know who sucks? Robert Johnson.
"Oh no he didn't!" I hear you say. And as I hear the rampaging feet of a hundreds "blues purists" brandishing pitchforks and lynch ropes coming towards me, let me deconstruct and hopefully destroy the cult of personality that is Robert Johnson.
Now, of course, the obsession with Robert Johnson is part of a greater issue I'd like to call the "Delta Blues Mystique". The Delta Blues Mystique is that element that is called upon by every indie band and post-punk band who wants to try and seem rootsy and authentic as well the element called upon by every half-assed singer/songwriter who want to sound "dark", "gritty" and "soulful". The Delta Blues Mystique is the modern conception of "the blues" which arose some time in the 60's and it is a horribly patronising and perhaps downright racist and offensive idea which was formulated by a lot of rich, educated student-types. Basically, it is the idea that old, black (ooooh, they've gotta be black) guitar-playing musicians, who are either poorly-educated or uneducated and who prelude every song they play by mumbling something incomprehensible while journalists nod on and pat them on the head for being such good boys...
I think this is the quintessential example:
Now, it is absolutely certain that the interviewer inquiring of Son House the nature and origin of "the blues" has written out his own idea of where "the blues" came from and has studying text books and musical theory and history to culminate this idea. And you know what? It's probably right! But it's probably not "authentic" whereas when Son House mumbles some cenile shite about "it's...it's...it's a feeeeeeling!" that's so freaking "authentic" that it must be worth writing down and sticking on some poxy BBC4 documentary. (Not that I'm dissing BBC4 documentaries in general - the Folk America series was really very good)
Ah, that word "authentic" which has done more harm to blues music than any other in history. It embodies The Delta Blues Mystique and signifies a hipster attitude and an artistic worth based on a supposed insight into the way poor, stupid people live - so rich bohemians can feel they're somehow in touch with a subculture that they are in no way a part of. It's not the music, it's the association/ I mean, have you ever heard anyone insult a country bluesman? Well, you're about to! Son House is crap - I mean, his playing is the equivilent of having a seisure while slapping an out-of-tune dobro. Ah, but it's REAL! And that's what counts!
Now, I must say that the Delta blue is not my thing - I prefer piedmont and atlanta styles which use complex fingerpicking and ragtime influences, as well as witty, hip lyrics and in-key singing. Buddy Moss, Blind Boy Fuller, Blind Blake, Blind Willie McTell and the rest of those fellas. But as far as I can tell, the reason that Delta Blues, which refers to the likes of Robert Johnson, Son House, Charlie Patton and Tommy Johnson, is the most famous and lauded genres of blues is because it's simplistic. It requires very little brains or skill to play or sing, is often completely tuneless or out-of-tune and the lyrics are repetative and moronically simple. Which is, apparently, more "authentic".
This is where the root of the "authentic" issue comes from. Take a guy like Louis Armstrong and put him up against Son House. Why is Son House "authentic" while Louis Armstrong is not? They both came from the same poor backgrounds, both born around the same time (Louis Armstrong was actually one year older), both black and from the South. The difference? Louis went and learned to play an instrument, joined bands, innovated new musical ideas, learnt to read sheet music, played with a studied complexity and combined his own knowledge of folk music with modernistic ideas. While Son House sat and banged out the same out crap for 86 years without changing an iota.
All of which brings me back to Robert Johnson. Well, everything I said about Son House applies to Johnson too, but there is a lot more to it. For me, there is nothing more irritating than seeing endless 100 Best Guitarists lists online and in magazines filled to brim with the usual wankers like Slash, Jimmy Page, Eddie Van Halen and Eric Clapton and then stuck somewhere around the middle, Robert Johnson. It's ridiculous. Not just because Robert Johnson wasn't a very good guitarist, but because his style has nothing in common with anyone else in that list and you know he's only been placed as a point of hipster recognition. "Oh yes, we loooove Robert Johnson, he's sooooo dark and real! You know he sold his soul to the devil?!" Yeah, yeah, we all know he sold his soul to the devil and magically became an ingenious guitarist...in fact, more people know this than have ever even heard his recordings. More than anything it's this that embodies the Delta Blues Mystique. There is nothing special about Robert Johnson - in fact, he's not particularly good a guitarist at all. The likes of "If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day" could be played by someone who'd had about a week of guitar lessons. What counts is the hype.
Now, I must say, it's not entirely due to ignorance that Robert Johnson is so well known. When the album "King of the Delta Blues Singers" was released in 1961 it was for a lot of people, particularly in Britain, the only easily available country blues album and with the blues/folk revival kicking off it's hardly suprising that people ranted and raved about Robert Johnson in the absence of anything else. Still, that's not a complete excuse and it's certainly no excuse nowadays in this age of internet where people can find out about far superior (and far more enjoyable) blues musicians like Blind Blake, Peg Leg Howell, Bessie Smith and so on...it's all at your fingertips.
I'm not exactly one for shirking ideas of "authenticity", I would quickly mentioned. Or to put it another way, I do think that age does add value to music; surviving the ravages of time and changing culture is difficult and older music adds insight into a vanished period and provides a point-of-view and inspiration which simply can no longer exist. But that must be merely a part of it, rather than the main drive. And it often ends in hypocrisy - what's more "authentic", "Oh Susanna" or "Crossroads Blues"?
Stupid question.
