Blues

In 1912, W.C. Handy published the first blues composition, "Memphis Blues." But even before that, the blues had become one of the few original art forms conceived in the United States. Blues is the marriage of West African rhythms and musical sensibilities with the instruments -- and some of the musical forms -- of Northern Europe. Weaving this into folk spirituals and adding the testimony of gospel, early blues was accessible by design -- any level of talent could pound out music on almost any instrument available, although guitar and piano were the most common. The pioneers of the blues -- legendary performers Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and B.B. King -- mastered styles that ranged from the technically brilliant to the evocatively mythic. Classic blues is played in a twelve-bar form, with repeated lyrical strains woven into improvised vocals or instrumentals. A hugely influential genre which in large part gave rise to rock 'n' roll, the blues has been embraced by countless non-African Americans as well, from guitar god Eric Clapton, to chart-topper Bonnie Raitt, to young upstarts such as Jonny Lang.