African American jazz and rap : social and philosophical examinations of Black expressive behavior / edited by James L. Conyers, Jr. ; introduction by James B. Stewart.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Conyers, James L., Jr.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Jazz--History and criticism.

Jazz.

Rap (Music)--History and criticism.

Rap (Music).

African Americans--Music--History and criticism.

African Americans.

African Americans--Music.

African Americans--Social life and customs--20th century.

African Americans--Social life and customs.

Physical Description:

vii, 256 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland, [2001]

Summary:

Music is an expressive voice of a culture, often more so than literature. While jazz and rap are musical genres popular among people of numerous racial and social backgrounds, they are truly important historically for their representation of and impact upon African American culture and traditions. This collection of essays offers interdisciplinary study of these musical styles as they relate to black culture in America. The essays are grouped under sections. One examines an Afrocentric approach to understanding jazz and rap; another, the history, culture, performers, instruments, and political role of jazz and rap. There are sections on the expressions of jazz in dance and literature; rap music as art, social commentary, and commodity; and the future. Each essay offers insight and thoughtful discourse on these popular musical styles and their roles within the black community and in American culture as a who

Contents:

Pt. 1. Toward an Afrocentric approach to the study of jazz and rap music. Metatheory and methodology: appraising the Black experience / James L. Conyers, Jr. ; The role of criticism in Black popular culture / Warren C. Swindell

Pt. 2. "All that jazz": history, culture, performers, instruments, and political functionality. "And all that jazz" has African roots! / Learthen Dorsey ; Jazz antecedents / Eddie S. Meadows ; The life and jazz style of Blue Mitchell / Charles I. Miller ; Jazz guitar: ain't no jazz / George Walker and Mondo Eyen we Langa ; The social roots of African American music: 1950-1970 / Thomas J. Porter ; Jazz musicians in postwar Europe and Japan / Larry Ross

Pt. 3. Jazz expressions in dance and literature. African American dance and music / Samuel A. Floyd, Jr. ; Lady sings the blues: Toni Morrison and the jazz/blues aesthetic / Gloria T. Randle ; Al Young: jazz griot / Michael Carroll

Pt. 4. Rap music as art form, social-political commentary, and economic commodity. The rhythm of rhyme: a look at rap music as an art form from a jazz perspective / Reginald Thomas ; At the vanguard: African American life as seen through the music of selected rap and jazz artists / Andrew P. Smallwood ; Africana cosmology, ethos, and rap: a social study of Black popular culture / James L. Conyers, Jr.

Pt. 5. Toward the future: educating future generations and preserving cultural traditions. Can you sing jazz? perception and appreciation of jazz music among African American young adults / Nancy J. Dawson ; Hip-hop and the rap music industry / Tshombe Walker ; Ethnomusicology and the African American tradition / George L. Starks, Jr. ; Reflections on Sterling Stuckey's Slave culture: understanding Pan Afrikan Nationalism as a cultural force / Ahati N.N. Touré.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0786408286

OCLC:

44841663