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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age Hardback - 2016

by Bill Dahl

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Reader reviews for The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

From the publisher

This stunning book charts the rich history of the blues, through the dazzling array of posters, album covers, and advertisements that have shaped its identity over the past hundred years. The blues have been one of the most ubiquitous but diverse elements of American popular music at large, and the visual art associated with this unique sound has been just as varied and dynamic. There is no better guide to this fascinating graphical world than Bill Dahl--a longtime music journalist and historian who has written liner notes for countless reissues of classic blues, soul, R&B, and rock albums. With his deep knowledge and incisive commentary--complementing more than three hundred and fifty lavishly reproduced images--the history of the blues comes musically and visually to life.

What will astonish readers who thumb through these pages is the amazing range of ways that the blues have been represented--whether via album covers, posters, flyers, 78 rpm labels, advertising, or other promotional materials. We see the blues as it was first visually captured in the highly colorful sheet music covers of the early twentieth century. We see striking and hard-to-find label designs from labels big (Columbia) and small (Rhumboogie). We see William Alexander's humorous artwork on postwar Miltone Records; the cherished ephemera of concert and movie posters; and Chess Records' iconic early albums designed by Don Bronstein, which would set a new standard for modern album cover design.

What these images collectively portray is the evolution of a distinctively American art form. And they do so in the richest way imaginable. The result is a sumptuous book, a visual treasury as alive in spirit as the music it so vibrantly captures.

Details

  • Title The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
  • Author Bill Dahl
  • Binding Hardback
  • Pages 224
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher University of Chicago Press
  • Publication date 2016
  • Illustrated Yes
  • Features Bibliography, Illustrated, Index
  • ISBN 9780226396699 / 022639669X
  • Weight 3.3 lbs (1.50 kg)
  • Dimensions 11.2 x 10.1 x 0.9 in (28.45 x 25.65 x 2.29 cm)
  • Themes
    • Ethnic Orientation: African American
  • Category Art & Art Instruction
  • Library of Congress subjects Commercial art - United States, Blues (Music) in art
  • Library of Congress Catalogue Number 2016014268
  • Dewey Decimal Code 704.949

About the author

Bill Dahl is a freelance music journalist who writes regularly for the Chicago Tribune, Living Blues, and Goldmine. He has written or cowritten liner notes for countless albums--including the boxed set, Ray Charles--Genius & Soul: The 50th Anniversary, for which he received a Grammy nomination. He is the author of Motown: The Golden Years.

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Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
Stock photo: cover may vary

Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Bill Dahl

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  • Hardback
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Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669X
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University of Chicago Press, November 2016. Hardcover. Very Good. Bumped corners
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Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
Stock photo: cover may vary

Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Bill Dahl

  • Used
  • Hardback
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Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669X
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University of Chicago Press, November 2016. Hardcover. Used - Very Good. There is a very slight tear in the dust jacket at the top of the spine.
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Dahl, Bill

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
Stock photo: cover may vary

The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Dahl, Bill

  • Used
  • Hardback
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Illustrated
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669X
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Dahl, Bill

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669X
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Art of the Blues

Art of the Blues

by Bill Dahl

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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Bill Dahl

  • Used
  • Hardback
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Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669x
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Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2016. 1st. Hardcover. Hardcover in a bright dust jacket, still in publisher's shrinkwrap. This stunning book charts the rich history of the blues, through the dazzling array of posters, album covers, and advertisements that have shaped its identity over the past hundred years. The blues have been one of the most ubiquitous but diverse elements of American popular music at large, and the visual art associated with this unique sound has been just as varied and dynamic. There is no better guide to this fascinating graphical world than Bill Dahl—a longtime music journalist and historian who has written liner notes for countless reissues of classic blues, soul, R&B, and rock albums. With his deep knowledge and incisive commentary—complementing more than three hundred and fifty lavishly reproduced images—the history of the blues comes musically and visually to life. Record # 380157
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The Art Of the Blues
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The Art Of the Blues

by Dahl, Bill,

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669x
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The Art Of the Blues
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The Art Of the Blues

by Dahl, Bill,

  • New
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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669x
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age
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The Art of the Blues: A Visual Treasury of Black Music's Golden Age

by Dahl, Bill

  • Used
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  • Hardback
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Binding
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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780226396699 / 022639669X
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