The Record Men
Rich Cohen in his book, “The Record Men,” details in a historical and insightful way the origins and beginnings of what we know as Rock ‘n’ Roll. Following the Second World War, a new upbeat and clashing type of music developed through the help of Leonard Hess and Muddy Waters. It pitted parents, the mass media, and the government against teenagers, and at the same time helped wear away some of the prejudices felt towards African Americans. This was amidst a very trying time for United States of America. Segregation and racism was still dominantly found throughout the country and especially the south. White teenagers listened to music not just inspired by, but often performed by African Americans. Parents of theses white teens disliked this very much so. They disliked the sexuality of the lyrics and of the performers, they disliked the fact that the music came directly from African Americans. However, over time this music promoted racial and social integration.…show more content… This is a time where the blues music really began to emerge especially in the south. Men like Charley Patton first contributed to this movement. “Patton was not the first blues singer, but he was the first poor blues singer on record, so with him we get the first thrilling sense of this music as a kind of oral history, a collection of incidents and happenings and conquests.” (75) Patton’s songs held meaning and historical roots to the region he was preforming in. Blues music had always been a big hit within the African American community but never gartered national attention. That is until Blues musician Muddy Waters came onto the scene. This was during the 1940’s and muddy was trying to break into the music scene in Chicago. He met with Leonard Hess who was resistant, at first, to allow Muddy’s band in studio. Eventually the two agreed to record together and the birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll was
