MUSIC
8-12
ARTS TOOLKIT
GRADES
• lesson plans
Blues and Ballads
Length: 3-5 sessions
Concept/Objectives
Students will learn the origins and traditional forms of ballads and blues music.
Activity
Students explore ballads and blues music and write lyrics for a song in either the ballad or blues form.
Music Toolkit Resources
From Doorways to Music DVD:
“Shady Grove”
Length: 2:13
“Light Rain Blues”
Length: 4:29
From Music Around the World DVD:
Contemporary Folk: Shady Grove Length: 4:09
I Sing the Blues
Length: 4:07
Kentucky Academic Content
Big Idea:
Structure in the Arts
Big Idea:
Humanity in the Arts
Academic Expectations
1.14
2.23
Academic Expectations
2.24
Program of Studies
Understandings
AH-8-SA-U-1
Skills and Concepts
AH-8-SA-S-Mu4
Related Core Content
AH-08-1.1.3
Program of Studies
Understandings
AH-8/HS-HA-U-1
AH-8/HS-HA-U-2
Skills and Concepts
AH-8/HS-HA-S-Mu1
AH-8/HS-HA-S-Mu3
AH-8/HS-HA-S-Mu4
Big Idea:
Purposes for Creating
the Arts
Academic Expectations
1.14
Program of Studies
Understandings
AH-8/HS-PCA-U-1
Skills and Concepts
AH-8/HS-HA-S-Mu1
Related Core Content
AH-08/HS-3.1.1
Related Core Content
AH-08/HS-2.1.1
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
295
Instructional Strategies and Activities
MATERIALS
Introduction
• handouts: Introducing the
Many people in Kentucky (and elsewhere) play folk music on
instruments such as guitar, banjo, harmonica, mandolin, piano, and bass.
Some of these musicians are trained to read music, but a great many
play and sing “by ear,” or by listening and then repeating what they hear
without reading written music notation.
There are many folk music styles attributed to various regions or ethnic
groups. Two of these styles are blues and ballads. Styles such as these
have become known as “roots” music because they have inspired other
musical forms, including country (which grew, in part, out of the ballad
tradition) and rock (which grew, in part, from the blues).
In this lesson, students will explore ballads and blues music and their
origins and forms.
Materials Note
Because talking about music is not as effective in isolation as when the
discussion is accompanied by listening samples, it is important to
provide examples of both styles of music for students to actually hear.
See Resources for information about listening samples.
Activities
Inform students that both blues songs and ballads can tell a story, and
any song that tells a story is a narrative song. However, while ballads
are specifically created to tell stories, blues songs are not necessarily
narrative by nature and are more likely to exist to express an emotion,
thought, or idea. The two styles share many qualities, including slang,
universal topics, “borrowed” melodies/words, and repetition.
Show students a world map to locate these places: the British Isles,
central and southern Appalachia, western Africa, the Mississippi Delta
region (which includes Mississippi and Louisiana), and the cities of
Memphis and Chicago. Explain the migration routes (both forced and
chosen) of people from the British Isles to Appalachia, of Africans to the
Delta, and of southerners to Chicago, for it was these groups (or their
descendents) who were the primary “carriers,” creating and spreading
these musical styles.
Select one of the ballads in this lesson and reinforce for students the
concept of the oral tradition, pointing out that they may have heard
differing versions of this song—typical of the variant nature of the way
the oral tradition works. Compare this ballad to “The Walrus and the
Carpenter,” a poem by Lewis Carroll. After explaining that “The Walrus
and the Carpenter” is an example of a literary ballad—it was written by
a poet and not meant to be sung—have students read it aloud
(possibly by rotating stanzas). Another option is to provide copies of the
poem for students to read. Download a copy of the poem at the Poetry
Foundation web site
www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=173170.
296 • Lesson Plans • Arts Toolkit Music
• world map
BALLAD, Introducing the
BLUES, Think Sheet:
BALLADS, Think Sheet:
THE BLUES, Ballads
Lyrics, Blues Lyrics
• recorded or live
performances of at least one
song from each lyric sheet (or
similar blues and ballads)
• “The Walrus and the
Carpenter” by Lewis Carroll
VOCABULARY
ballad
blues
folk songs
WHAT DOES PRETTY
POLLY HAVE IN
COMMON WITH
BLUES?
This is a question posed in the
Introducing the BALLAD and
Introducing the BLUES handouts. Here’s a suggested
response: The ballad “Pretty
Polly” has lyric structure in
common with blues. Although
“Pretty Polly” isn’t written in the
12-bar format often used by
traditional blues, each stanza
does consist of three lines: line
one; line one repeated as line
two; and a completely different
third line to conclude the
stanza. Compare this pattern
to the songs on the Blues
Lyrics handout.
MEET SONGWRITERS
For advice from songwriters,
use the Meet Some Music
Makers section of the World
of Music CD-ROM.
Songwriters and composers
working in a variety of styles
share their experiences in
songwriting. Among those
participating is Mitch Barrett,
who arranged the
contemporary version of
“Shady Grove.”
Now students are ready to explore the music itself by studying ballad
style through class discussion and the Introducing the BALLAD
handout. Have students read the ballad lyrics and discuss the form. You
may wish to have each student write a brief story synopsis for each
ballad on the lyric sheet (item #5 on the Introducing the BALLAD
supplement requires a single synopsis). Then, give students an
opportunity to listen to performances of each song (all three are wellknown British Isle and Appalachian ballads and are available on many
recordings of ballads and old-time music). If live performance is a
possibility, that is always the method preferred over recordings.
After this introduction to the ballad form, show the two performances of
“Shady Grove.” One version is the more traditional Jean Ritchie version
(on the Doorways to Music DVD). The other is the more contemporary
Zoe Speaks version (on the Music Around the World DVD). Have
students compare the two performances, discussing in particular how
these two performances show how the song has changed over time. Ask
them to discuss the similarities as well. (The John McCutcheon
performance of “John Henry” on the Doorways to Music DVD is
another good example of ballad.)
Have students repeat the process with the study of blues music, reading
the handouts and listening to examples. After the introduction to the
blues form, show performances of “I Sing The Blues” by Tanita Gaines
(on the Music Around the World DVD), a good example of electric or
Chicago blues style, and “Light Rain Blues” by Taj Mahal (on the
Doorways to Music DVD), which follows the traditional blues lyric
pattern. Have students compare and contrast these blues performances.
Responding
After each style is studied, viewed, and heard, have students answer
questions on each Think Sheet provided.
Going Further (Optional Activity)
Have each student choose a real life story that they wish to convert into
a ballad or blues song and then write lyrics for their songs. Topics can be
inspired by personal experiences or news articles. The song should
include at least four different stanzas. They should feel free to “borrow”
a melody, a common practice in the blues and ballad tradition.
Assessment
Use the open response prompt as a culminating activity at the end of the
entire lesson.
Support/Connections/Resources
If possible, find recorded examples of the songs on the lyric sheet
handouts. These songs are not on the Music Toolkit DVDs but may be
found in other recorded formats (CD, vinyl, tape, mp3). Lyrics are
provided for these songs:
Ballads: “The Cuckoo,” “Pretty Polly,” “Barbara Allen”
Blues: “Backwater Blues,” “Downhearted Blues,” “St. Louis Blues,”
“I Know You Rider”
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
297
You may also wish to create lyrics sheets for the Toolkit DVD
performances of:
Ballads: “Shady Grove” (2 versions), “John Henry”
Blues: “Light Rain Blues,” “I Sing The Blues”
You’ll find lyrics for Jean Ritchie’s version of “Shady Grove,” “John
Henry,” and “Light Rain Blues” in the Old Music for New Ears Sampler
Guide in the American Music section of the binder.
A copy of “The Walrus and the Carpenter” is available at the Poetry
Foundation web site:
www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=173170
There are many interesting web sites about ballads and blues that
include information, timelines, biographies, and classroom connections.
Here are a few:
• The Delta Blues Museum at www.deltabluesmuseum.org
• PBS The Blues at www.pbs.org/theblues/
• Smithsonian Folkways at www.folkways.si.edu/index.html
Applications Across the Curriculum
Language Arts
The literary ballad is a poetry form and may be taught in English or
language arts classes.
Musicians’ biographies can be a good source of nonfiction reading and/or
writing.
Social Studies
Cultural and geographical information can be combined with historical
studies to further illuminate the time/place/people origins of traditional
ballad and blues forms.
Practical Living
Music is an essential part of emotional and mental health, as well as
social skills.
Vocational Studies
A study of careers in music can lead to explorations of opportunities for
musicians, conductors, songwriters, sound engineers, producers, graphic
designers, and studio/theater architects.
298 • Lesson Plans • Arts Toolkit Music
WRITING TO
COMMUNICATE
Students may be required to
write to compare/contrast any
facet of this study.
Students may be required to
write blues or ballad lyrics
based on traditional or
nontraditional forms.
ADAPTATIONS FOR
DIVERSE LEARNERS
Students with musical
background in ballads or blues
music may perform examples.
Students who have special
needs may receive peer
assistance in pair or group
work.
Students may bring in other
examples of ballads or blues
songs from other sources.
Students may produce exhibits
or presentations on particular
styles, eras, or musicians.
Open Response Assessment
Prompt: The blues and ballads are two important folk music forms.
Both of these styles grew out of international influences and produced
widespread consequences in influencing musical styles which followed.
Additionally, both styles were created by people who were untrained in
formal music.
Directions to Students:
Answer all three parts below.
Synthesize your knowledge of the blues and ballad musical genres by
explaining:
a. two or more structural characteristics shared by ballads and blues
songs.
b. geographic migrations of both of these types of music.
c. changes each style experienced as it was moved from place to place.
OPEN RESPONSE SCORING GUIDE
Student
provides two or
more structural
characteristics
of both blues
and ballads.
Student
provides one
or two
structural
characteristics
of both blues
and ballads.
Student
provides one
structural
characteristic
of either blues
or ballads,
somewhat
describes
geographical
migration of
either the blues
or ballad form,
and describes
at least one
change
experienced
by either blues
or ballads as
these musical
forms moved
from place to
place.
Student
provides one
structural
characteristic
of either blues
or ballads OR
provides one
fact related to
geographical
migration of
either the blues
or ballad form
OR describes
one change
experienced
by either blues
or ballads.
No answer or
irrelevant
response
43332
32221
21110
100
44443
55
66
77
88
99
5556
667
778
889
9910
1
11
12
13
11
11
12
13
14
11
12
13
14
11
12
13
14
11
12
13
14
17
18
19
2
17
18
19
20
17
18
19
20
17
18
19
20
17
18
19
20
Student
demonstrates
extensive
understanding
in discussing
geographical
migrations of
blues and
ballad forms
and describing
changes
experienced
by both blues
and ballads as
these musical
forms moved
from place to
place.
Student
demonstrates
broad
understanding
in explaining
geographical
migrations of
blues and
ballad forms
and in
describing at
least one
change
experienced
by both blues
and ballads as
these musical
forms moved
from place to
place.
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
299
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Songs in both the blues and ballad traditions
A. sometimes use borrowed melodies and/or lyrics.
B. are always narrative.
C. avoid using slang language in song lyrics.
D. avoid repetition in music and lyrics.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
ANSWER KEY
1. A
2. B
3. D
2. The traditional blues structure is known as the
A. 8-bar blues.
B. 12-bar blues.
C. triple-measure blues.
D. rhyming-ballad blues.
3. Ballads must include
A. a four-line iambic pattern with stressed syllables structured 4-3-43.
B. at least one stanza that is comedic.
C. the designation of “traditional” or “unknown” as its origin.
D. a focus on a single event or incident.
Author: Kate Larken
Copyright 2007 KET
Reviewed by the Kentucky
Department of Education
This lesson plan is part of the
Music Arts Toolkit. To order the
entire toolkit or for more
information about the Arts
Toolkit project, visit
www.ket.org/artstoolkit or
call (859) 258-7294.
300 • Lesson Plans • Arts Toolkit Music
Introducing the BALLAD
The ballad form is a popular song form that came to America primarily from Europe. For example, many
Appalachian ballads were actually brought by immigrants from the British Isles, while others were
composed in and reflected characters and/or events of our eastern mountainous region. “The Cuckoo” is a
good example of a ballad that originated in England and underwent many adaptations in Appalachia.
“Shady Grove,” on the other hand, was probably created in America as an Appalachian ballad.
The ballad form is a very old musical genre (style), and traditional ballad form was quite specific (even
though the term “ballad” has come into more relaxed use over the years). Through English ballads, the
less-educated “folk” could teach stories and legends from their culture and history. Traditional ballads took
as their topics such famous figures as Robin Hood as well as less famous characters (at least until they
were immortalized in song!) such as “Barbara Allen” (the last name spelled variously Allyn, Ellyn, Ellen,
etc.).
Story Songs
The ballad is basically a story song. Some ballads follow a specific format in the way the stanzas are
structured, while others do not. Some people think of ballads simply as love songs, but many of the original
ballads, while including a love interest of one sort or another, actually centered on tragedy.
For example, consider the traditional tale of “Pretty Polly,” a young woman who was in love with a young
man named Willie who intended to do her harm … a fact that she realized when her fiancé admitted that
he had “dug on [her] grave the best part of last night.” It’s a gruesome tale, but it is typical of Appalachian
ballads of 100 years ago. (See handout for lyrics to “Pretty Polly” and other ballads.)
Ballads can be about any interesting story, really, and many have been composed about accidents, war,
legends, ghosts, love, death, betrayal, and mistaken identity. Some, such as the American ballad “Joe Hill,”
are political, telling true tales of people who stand up for what they believe is right … and lose their lives
in doing so.
The ballad focuses on a single event or incident, whether it is violent or not, and builds to a dramatic climax, as any good story will. Often, ballads begin in the middle of the action as a means of hooking the listener quickly. Some ballads have many stanzas, for it can take a long time to tell a story that is rich in
detail. There are plenty of ballads that do their work in short order. Still, most true ballads would not fit
the usual length of most songs heard on the radio these days. It is important to understand that the ballad
has been the pop music of its time during numerous historical eras in a number of cultures. Why do you
think this is true?
While any narrative song (song that tells a story) can be called a ballad, there are some specific “rules” to
traditional ballad form which are applied to the structure of the lyric (words).
Ballad Form
In order to understand how the ballad form works, you first must recognize an important poetry term:
iamb. This term describes the type of meter or rhythm the language of the poem contains. Each line of
rhymed poetry is made up of metric feet. In the traditional ballad, each stanza has four lines with four
metric feet in the first and third lines and three or four feet in the second and fourth lines. An iamb is
simply one metric foot containing two syllables, with the emphasis on the second syllable. The pattern goes
like this:
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA
da-DA da-DA
da-DA
da-DA da-DA
da-DA
[four iambic feet]
[three iambic feet]
[four iambic feet]
[three iambic feet]
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
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An iamb may be made up of two one-syllable words, one two-syllable word, or part of a three-or-moresyllable word; this, of course, depends upon the wording in the line, as long as it contains one unstressed
syllable followed by one stressed syllable. In some ballads, a five-line stanza is used (usually by repeating
the fourth line) or a six-line stanza is used (by adding one four foot line and concluding with a three foot
line). “Pretty Polly” has a pattern and count that create a six-line stanza. (After you study blues structure,
be sure to revisit “Pretty Polly.” Does it have anything in common with the way traditional blues lyrics are
put together?)
Here is an excerpt from the English ballad “Barbara Allen.” Read it aloud and clap your hands on every
second syllable to count the 4-3-4-3 stresses of the meter in the language that forms lines in the traditional
ballad form (stresses are demonstrated with CAPITAL letters in the example on the right):
They buried him in the church yard
They buried her nearby
Out of his grave there grew a rose
And out of hers, a briar
They BURied HIM in THE church YARD
They BURied HER nearBY
Out OF his GRAVE there GREW a ROSE
And OUT of HERS, a BRIAR
Ballads such as this one began as English poems set to music. This form has endured for centuries, and
many of the folk songs from Great Britain and western Europe brought to America by immigrants are
ballads, or else are derived from that original form. (Incidentally, ballad forms exist in eastern and southern
Europe, Latin America, and numerous other places besides England and America.) Many other ballads
follow a 4-4-4-4 basis.
The Oral Tradition
Even more important than the form of the ballad, however, is its role in the cultures in which it exists.
Long ago people learned songs and stories through a process we now call the oral tradition—that is to say,
people passed stories and songs from one person or generation to another by telling or singing them ... and
listeners would learn and repeat them. As previously stated, those stories or songs often told tales of
legendary characters or of events involving ordinary people. You will recall that a story must have a
setting, characters, and a plot (action) that contains some kind of tension or suspense or conflict. Many
ballads contain these elements, telling the story through narration, dialogue, or both. For this reason, they
were an important way of preserving stories of historical or otherwise cultural importance, and some of
them also provided behavioral lessons.
From the English ballad “Barbara Allen” (which tells of the deaths of a hard-hearted young woman and the
young man who had slighted her) to “Pretty Polly” (an Appalachian ballad about the violent death of a
young woman), ballads have told stories and have warned of the often fatal consequences of putting oneself
in dangerous situations or associating with ill-intentioned people. While some ballads are comical, others
focus on sensational, tragic events such as these. Folk ballads originated among more or less ordinary
people (the folk), were created and shared in the oral tradition (and still are), and usually focus on universal
human concerns.
Since the oral tradition was so much a part of the process, many ballads were changed over time. One person might change a line or add a stanza (often from a different song!); someone else might forget part of it
and construct a replacement section that changed some integral piece of the story. For the most part, however, even with all the changes in wording, the main message of the story stayed intact, regardless of how
many versions the song endured. If a song is labeled “traditional,” we don’t know who first composed it.
In contrast, a ballad composed by a particular writer and kept as a poem not set to music is considered a
literary ballad. “The Walrus and the Carpenter” by Lewis Carroll is a good example. Literary ballads are
meant to be read as poetry rather than sung, and they do not come from the often anonymous origins of
oral tradition.
Purposes of Ballads
Because it tells a story, the ballad form can fulfill any of the three purposes of music: ceremonial, recreational, and artistic. Some ballads are made to commemorate important cultural events (ceremonial),
others are for fun and social entertainment (recreational), while others are at their best when performed
for an audience (artistic) even though ballad origins are not necessarily formal.
302 • Lesson Plans • Arts Toolkit Music
Think Sheet: BALLADS
What have you observed? Answer the following questions based on your study of
ballads. Be sure to give examples where needed to prove your point.
1. Is repetition an important part of the ballad form? Support your answer with examples.
2. Are ballad topics usually about a “universal” human concern (love, personal issues, politics, etc.)?
List and describe one song and its topic.
3. Do the lyrics usually tell a story of some kind? Explain.
4. Is it fairly easy to re-tell to someone what a ballad is about? Why?
5. Choose one of the ballads studied and write a brief synopsis of the story it tells.
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
303
Ballad Lyrics
THE CUCKOO
PRETTY POLLY
The cuckoo, she’s a pretty bird
She warbles as she flies
But never hollers ‘cuckoo’ ‘til
The fourth day of July
Oh, Polly, pretty Polly, come
And go along with me,
Polly, pretty Polly, come
And go along with me,
And before we get married, oh
Some pleasures we will see.
(traditional)
My horses are not hungry and
They will not eat your hay
I’ll drive them a little farther on
And feed them on my way
I’ve gambled up in England and
I’ve gambled down in Spain
I’ve come now to your fair county
To gamble my last game
Jack o’Diamonds, Jack o’Diamonds
I’ve known you of old
You robbed my poor pockets
Of silver and of gold
I’ll build a little cabin on
A mountaintop so high
So I can see my darlin’ as
She goes passin’ by
She drinks from the white flowers just
To keep her voice so clear
She always hollers ‘cuckoo’ when
The night is drawing near
{NOTE: First stanza repeats after each stanza as a
refrain.}
(traditional)
She climbed up behind him and away they did ride,
She climbed up behind him and away they did ride,
Out through the valley and up the mountainside.
They rode a little bit further and what did they spy,
They rode a little bit further and what did they spy,
But a new duggen grave with a spade lyin’ by.
Willie, oh Willie, I'm afraid of your ways,
Willie, oh Willie, I'm afraid of your ways,
The way you’ve been acting, you’ll lead me astray.
Polly, pretty Polly, you're guessing about right,
Polly, pretty Polly, you're guessing about right,
For I dug on your grave the best part of last night.
He stabbed her so quick that her heart’s blood did
flow,
He stabbed her so quick that her heart’s blood did
flow,
And into the grave pretty Polly did go.
He threw a little dirt over her and started to leave,
He threw a little dirt over her and started to leave,
Paused not a moment and thought not to grieve.
The wind it did rustle and the tree limbs did groan,
The wind it did rustle and the tree limbs did groan
And nobody there but the wild birds to moan.
A debt to the devil now Willie must pay,
A debt to the devil now Willie must pay,
For killing pretty Polly and running away.
304 • Lesson Plans • Arts Toolkit Music
BARBARA ALLEN
(traditional)
In Scarlet Town where I was born
There was a fair maid dwelling
And every youth cried well away
For she was Barbara Allen
Twas in the merry month of May
The green buds were all swelling
Sweet William on his deathbed lay
For love of Barbara Allen
He sent a message unto her
To the place she was dwelling
‘You must come to my deathbed now
If you be Barbara Allen’
Slowly, slowly she got up
And slowly she came nigh him
But only this to him she said
‘Young man, I think you’re dying’
As she was walking o’er the fields
She heard the death bell knelling
And every stroke it seemed to say
‘Hard-hearted Barbara Allen’
‘Oh, mother, mother, make my bed.
Do make it long and narrow—
Sweet William died for me today,
I’ll die for him tomorrow’
They buried him in the church yard
They buried her nearby
Out of his grave there grew a rose
And out of hers a briar
They grew up to the steeple top
Till they could grow no higher
And there they twined in true love's knot
The red rose and green briar
Arts Toolkit Music • Lesson Plans •
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Introducing the BLUES
The blues is an American invention whose greatest influence came from rural African Americans. The
blues were born of field songs and works songs that originated in the slave and field worker tradition. Some
blues music also emerged from prison songs and chain-gang chants. Within a few years, rural Delta blues
began its migration north, and by the mid-20th century a new style known as urban, electric, or Chicago
blues evolved.
Delta blues was first transformed from rural to urban style in Memphis, where it was popularized on radio
broadcasts. The music later moved up-river to St. Louis and Chicago, where it underwent additional
changes and evolutions, primarily in electric instrumentation. While the Delta blues songs of Robert
Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson were mostly performed on acoustic instruments (early recordings
captured this sound), the blues style played by Memphis legend BB King and Chicago musicians Howlin’
Wolf and Muddy Waters became more urban in topic and more electric in instrumentation. Record
companies such as Stax in Memphis and Chess in Chicago brought blues music to a much larger audience,
eventually inspiring British rock musicians to discover and adapt the American blues sound to the rock
music they were making. This blues-inspired rock transformed popular music in America and around the
world. The appeal of blues music also helped to blur racial barriers.
The blues, in its natural origins, is a folk music form. That is to say, the people who invented it (in the late
19th century in the Mississippi River Delta region) and taught it to each other weren’t formally trained
musicians. Most, if not all, couldn’t read music, so they composed and played entirely “by ear” (by listening
and repeating what they heard, rather than by reading or writing the music in formal notation).
Classic 12-bar Blues Form
The classic 12-bar blues form consists of 12 bars (measures) with 4 beats per bar. Often in traditional blues
lyrics, the first line in the stanza takes four bars, and then that lyric is repeated for the second four bars,
leaving a third lyric line to complete the stanza with the final four bars: 3 lines x 4 bars = 12 bars.
Here’s what it might look like if you were counting the bars:
(line 1) 1
/
/ / /
2 3 4
/ /
2 2
/
3
/
4
/ /
3 2
/
3
/
4
/ /
4 2
/
3
/
4
(line 2) 5
/
/ / /
2 3 4
/ /
6 2
/
3
/
4
/ /
7 2
/
3
/
4
/ /
8 2
/
3
/
4
/
(line 3) 9
/ / /
2 3 4
/
10
/
4
/ /
12 2
/
3
/
4
/
2
/
3
/
4
/
/ /
11 2 3
A blues lyric would have the following rhythmic pattern (notice that some of the beats start or finish the
count musically, but all beats aren’t necessarily accompanied by lyrics):
/
/
/
/
That school bell rings each Monday.
//
/
/
It won’t leave me
/
///
alone.
////
/
/
/
/ / /
/
/
And it won’t leave me
That school bell rings each Monday.
/
///
alone.
////
/
/
/
/
/
/
/
/
////
Someday I may be grateful that my folks would never let me stay at home.
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If you chant this lyric, clapping your hands in regular rhythm on every accent mark ( / ), you will hear that
many of the lyrical rests are part of the overall count. Notice, too, that some of the words fall between the
counts. The vertical lines (bars) indicate where each measure breaks. Are there four beats in each measure?
Listen to some blues songs, and then make up a blues melody for these or other lyrics about school or
another topic that interests you. Collaborate with classmates to write additional stanzas, making the song
longer. If classmates play guitar (or any folk instruments that will be a good fit), perhaps they will play as
the class sings the song you wrote.
REMINDER: Don’t forget to go back to the lyrics of the ballad “Pretty Polly” and see what they have in
common with the blues format!
Not all blues lyrics follow this 12-bar format, but it is considered to be the most basic blues style. If you
listen to many examples of blues music—Delta, country, urban/electric, contemporary—you will begin to
notice some variations. For the most part, blues songs have in common the expression of dismay at
difficulties that life brings. However, there are some blues songs that do not seem very “blue” or depressing
at all ... and some that are even humorous! Perhaps you can find some examples of (ironically named)
“comic” blues.
Country Blues
Not exactly like Delta blues (but sharing some characteristics) is country blues, a style that came about
when singers of country music combined some of the traditions that came through ballads with some of the
African-American blues music that was migrating out of the Mississippi Delta. Examples of country blues
can be found among the recordings of Jimmie Rodgers and The Carter Family from the 1920s. Of course,
country blues is a style that still is played today, as are all blues styles.
As is true with the ballad form, since the oral tradition was so much a part of the blues process, many of
these songs changed over time. One person might change a lyric line or add a whole new stanza; someone
else might forget part of it and construct a replacement section. There were even floating verses that
showed up in both blues songs and ballads—if you listen to enough examples, you will begin to notice these
floating verses. And even though many versions of some of these songs may exist, that in itself is testament
to the process we know as the oral tradition.
Purpose of Blues
For the most part, blues music fulfills the recreational purpose of music, although some blues created
solely for performance (such as some melodies from Broadway musicals or concert music) might fit into the
artistic category. Blues came out of a social environment, however, and that social/recreational tendency
has remained closely associated with this interesting musical genre.
Listening Activity
Find examples of blues songs to listen to, either from a live performer or on a recording. See if you can
determine whether each song is Delta blues, electric (Chicago-style) blues, or country blues.
What instruments are being used? What are the songs about?
Try to find out when the songs were written or in what decade the recordings were made.
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Think Sheet: THE BLUES
What have you observed? Answer the following questions based on your study of the
blues. Be sure to give examples where needed to prove your point.
1. Is repetition an important part of the blues form? Support your answer with examples.
2. Are blues topics usually about a “universal” human concern (love, personal issues, politics, etc.)? List and
describe one song and its topic.
3. Do the lyrics in blues songs sometimes tell a story? Explain.
4. Describe two differences between Delta blues and Chicago (electric) blues.
5. Describe two similarities between Delta blues and Chicago blues.
6. Of the types of blues studied, which is your favorite? Why?
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Blues Lyrics
DOWNHEARTED BLUES
(Alberta Hunter – public domain)
Trouble, trouble, I’ve had it all my days
Trouble, trouble, I’ve had it all my days
It seems that trouble’s going to follow me to my grave
I never loved but three men in my life
No, I never loved but three men in my life
’Twas my father, brother, and the man who wrecked my life
’Cause he mistreated me and he drove me from his door
Yeah, he mistreated me and he drove me from his door
But the good book says you'll reap just what you sow
Oh, it may be a week and it may be a month or two
Yes, it may be a week and it may be a month or two
But the day you quit me, honey, it's coming home to you
Oh, I walked the floor and I wrung my hands and cried
Yes, I walked the floor and I wrung my hands and cried
Had the downhearted blues and couldn't be satisfied
BACKWATER BLUES
(Bessie Smith – public domain)
When it rains five days and the skies turn dark as night
When it rains five days and the skies turn dark as night
Then trouble’s takin’ place in the lowlands at night
I woke up this mornin’, can't even get out of my door
I woke up this mornin’, can't even get out of my door
There's enough trouble to make a poor girl wonder where to go
Then they rowed a little boat about five miles ‘cross the pond
Then they rowed a little boat about five miles ‘cross the pond
I packed all my clothes, threw them in and they rowed me along
When it thunders and lightnin’ and when the wind begins to blow
When it thunders and lightnin’ and the wind begins to blow
There’s thousands of people ain't got no place to go
Then I went and stood on some high old lonesome hill
Then I went and stood on some high old lonesome hill
Then looked down on the house where I used to live
Backwater blues caused me to pack my things and go
Backwater blues caused me to pack my things and go
’Cause my house fell down and I can't live there no more
No, no … I can’t move no more
No, no … I can’t move no more
There ain’t no place for a poor old girl to go
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excerpts from ST. LOUIS BLUES
(W.C. Handy – public domain)
I hate to see that evening sun go down,
I hate to see that evening sun go down,
’Cause my lovin’ baby done left this town.
If I feel tomorrow, like I feel today,
If I feel tomorrow, like I feel today,
I’m gonna pack my trunk and make my getaway.
I got those St. Louis blues, just as blue as I can be,
My man’s got a heart like a rock cast in the sea,
Or else he wouldn't have gone so far from me.
I KNOW YOU RIDER
(traditional)
I know you rider, gonna miss me when I’m gone
I know you rider, gonna miss me when I’m gone
You’ll miss your baby running to your arms
Sun will shine on my back door some day
Sun will shine on my back door some day
Wind rise up and blow my blues away
Wish I’s a headlight on a northbound train
Wish I’s a headlight on a northbound train
I’d shine my light right through the evening rain
Rather drink muddy water, sleep in a hollow log
Rather drink muddy water, sleep in a hollow log
Than stay down here, be treated like a dog
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