Chapter 3: Transition from acoustic blues to eletric blues 

Transition from acoustic blues to electric blues.

(Transição do blues acústico pra o blues elétrico)

The transition from country to urban blues, that began in the 1920s, has always been driven by the successive waves of economic crisis and booms and the associated move of the rural Blacks to urban areas, the Great Migration. The long boom in the aftermath of World War II induced a massive migration of the African American population, the Second Great Migration, which was accompanied by a significant increase in the real income of urban blacks. The new migrants constituted a new market for the music industry. The name race record disappeared and was succeeded by Rhythm and Blues. This rapidly evolving market was mirrored by the Billboard Rhythm and Blues Chart. This marketing strategy reinforced trends within urban blues, as the progressive electrification of the instruments, their amplification and the generalization of the blues beat, the blues shuffle, that became ubiquitous in R & B. This commercial stream had important consequences for blues music which, together with Jazz and Gospel music, became a component of the wave R & B.

After the Second World War and in the 1950s, new styles of electric blues music became popular in cities such as Chicago, Memphis Detroit  and St. Louis. Electric blues used electric guitars, double bass (slowly replaced by bass guitar), drums, and harmonica played through a microphone and a sound system or a guitar amplifier. Chicago became a center for electric blues from 1948, when Muddy Waters recorded his first success: "I can not be satisfied."  Chicago blues is influenced to a large extent by the Mississippi blues style, because many performers had migrated from the Mississippi region.

Howlin 'Wolf,, Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon,  and Jimmy Reed  born in Mississippi and moved to Chicago during the Great Migration. His style is characterized by the use of electric guitar, sometimes slide guitar, harmonica, and a rhythm section of bass and drums. JT Brown who played in Elmore James' s bands, or JB Lenoir's  also used saxophones, but these were used more as "backing" or rhythmic support than as solo instruments.

Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller) are well known harmonica (called "harp" by blues musicians) players of the Chicago blues scene early. Other harp players such as Big Walter Horton were also influential. Muddy Waters and Elmore James were known for their innovative use of slide electric guitar. Howlin 'Wolf and Muddy Waters were known for their deep, "" voices of gravel.

Eu acredito que a transição do blues acústico pra o elétrico tenha acontecido com uma rápida evolução, com reforçadas tendências dentro do blues urbano como a eletrificação dos

Instrumentos e a gerenalização da batida do blues. Já eram usados os instrumentos elétricos

Como a guitarra, a gaita, o contrabaixo e outros instrumentos elétricos.

Ellen de Souza