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Some musicians strived to imitate the sound and image of early African-American bluesmen and their songs while others seemed determined to perform blues in their own “new” way interpolated with a wide range of musical influences. I had also become aware of a difference in approach. For some time I had noticed this recurring tendency to construct,Īddress and enforce a canon of blues artists and repertoire, as well as an overwhelming need to replicate blues as a strictly acoustic form replete with finger-picking and slide guitar. As I sat there listening, I began to wonder why I was always coming across contemporary musicians performing “covers” of old blues songs and making a point of drawing attention to their “original” African-American author-especially when that author was Robert Johnson.
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The concert was split into two courses: an acoustic entrée featuring several Robert Johnson “covers” and, an electric main with side dishes of early Fleetwood Mac material-the band Green had help found many years ago. My epiphany-and catalyst for the current thesis topic-eventually presented itself while viewing a live performance from Peter Green Splinter Group. In the meantime, I developed a keen interest in a fellow colleague’s thesis topic that addressed the role of “covers” within the Australian music industry (Giuffre, 2005). Although each artist was clearly addressing the musical characteristics and influences I had come to recognise as “blues music”, it all sounded different. “Australian blues”, it became apparent that this proposed sub-genre struggled to unify and explain the disparate musical styles contained therein. The penultimate step towards this topic came in the form of my honours thesis-a creative project that involved rerecording several tracks from the catalogue of an early Australian country music artist, one of which was titled “Blue Mountain Blues”.1 From there I turned to blues music in Australia. From there I began tracing musical influences from song credits and interview excerpts-a path often travelled by musicians and fans alike-that would eventually lead me to an appreciation of blues music. This influence is evident in both their construction of sound and the old songs that they rerecorded.
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Throughout my teens he would introduce me to a wide range of local and international acts, many of which were influenced by African-American blues artists.
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Introduction In many ways, my journey towards this thesis topic began with my brother’s music collection.
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