John Lee Hooker's breakthrough song "Boogie Chillen" at studio360.org

Blues veteran Charlie Musselwhite and writer Peter Guralnick explain how Hooker's 1948 song left its mark on American music.

via studio360.org

Howlin’ Wolf’s "Smokestack Lightning"

Every year the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress selects 25 recordings to be preserved for all time. One song chosen this year is Howlin’ Wolf’s "Smokestack Lightning," a cornerstone of Chicago Blues. Howlin' Wolf's daughter and longtime guitarist Hubert Sumlin talk about the importance of his music. Produced by Ben Manilla Productions.

via studio360.org

See also here on my blog:

Howlin' Wolf - Goin' Down Slow
Howlin' Wolf - How Many More Years
Blues - art of ambiguity

Video : Blues Maker (1969)

Shows Mississippi blues singer, Fred Mc Dowell, singing and talking about his blues. Producer: Univ Of Mississippi | Audio/Visual: sound, b&w | Wikipedia : Mississippi Fred McDowell

via archive.org

latimes.com : At the crossroads as Robert Johnson centennial nears

Decades after his death, reverence and debate still swirl around the legendary bluesman who supposedly made a deal with the devil.

via Howlin' Wolf - Goin' Down Slow

wnyc.org : Soundcheck : The Delta Blues at Full Speed : "Robert Johnson's 'The Complete Recordings' is one of the most popular blues collections ever released, and is unquestionably the biggest-selling album ever by a pre-World War II bluesman. But new evidence shows we've been listening to his music at the wrong speed."

"CROSSROADS" is a musical movie based on the legends of the black guitarist Robert Johnson, died mysteriously in 1938. It's a PACT WITH THE DEVIL there. One night, at the crossroads, a man forces the fate and sells his soul to the Devil in exchange for glory. The fame arrives fast, but it contains a curse. Robert Johnson dies after the recording of 29 songs. The legend says that there would be a thirtieth piece. Whoever will find it will become immensely rich and will release Johnson of his pact.

Robert " Bud " Johnson is a homonym of famous Bluesman. He is white, lives in Missouri and follows a strange dream : be the one who will find the thirtieth track. Shot in the Delta of the Blues, between Memphis and Greenwood in Mississipi, CROSSROADS tells Robert's trip " Bud " Johnson on the old abandoned roads and the cotton fields.

via archive.org

Visit John Doe's website for other films : filmsjohndoe.wordpress.com

nytimes.com : Slide Show : Arhoolie at 50 : The influential American roots music label is celebrating its anniversary.

In 1960, Chris Strachwitz launched Arhoolie Records, a humble but enthusastic enterprise to deliver a broad range of American roots music to an equally diverse collection of music fans. 

SXSW 2010 - Initially, many thought the idea of the Rock Hall was antithetical to the spirit of rock and roll. Despite its success, the question of whether rock and roll belongs in a museum persists. What efforts are being made to preserve this art form?

Blues & Chaos - The Music Writing of Robert Palmer
Edited By: Anthony DeCurtis

Simon and Schuster: http://bit.ly/ankGSh