I love what you said about Sammie being that young but genuinely having the blues in him because of his position in his inherited trauma, socio-political position, etc. It really does speak to how the blues has this universal language amongst the old and the young because even if it's a different type of blues, it's still all blues (and arguably in this case the blues ain't all too different). Hendrix was only 27 when he died and he had been playing the blues for at least a decade prior to that. Love to Delta Slim, that scene where he starts banging on his lap in the car with Stack and Sammie really hit, I've seen my grandmother mourning in a similar way - really made that connection with the global diaspora. Love this piece.
Being sexy and sad is so real, I think Black people have so much depth, we are ethereal, we preserve beauty and yet we’re the wretched of the earth. We are poetry in flesh and bones. Also loved the imagery of our tears reflecting our reality.
What did you think of Pale, Pale moon in the movie? I think it speaks to this beauty. I also love that you pointed out Sammie’s positions as a youth being almost dismissed from the practice because he ain’t lived yet.
My thought after watching the movie was that we need more Blues today, and now I wonder if because we dismiss each other from generation to generation; do we fail to pass down tradition, teach each other how to process emotions? It definitely showed the importance of protecting and shaping our leaders of tomorrow and not hold them back with arbitrary rules like his father did but his view of religion was still very rooted in puritan culture and English tradition/ polite society.
Lastly I love what you said about Blues asking for nothing but a witness. like i don’t know for sure but If one thing about this world is true, it’s that we gotta witness what surrounds us and makes up our world; rather than ignoring and dismissing, dominating without question
I think the thumps of Pale, Pale Moon were really resonant. That catharsis of its performance was the biggest takeaway from it for me!
When it comes to kids this could be its own piece! Kids are a massive oppressed class of humans. Constantly dehumanized, rights stripped from them and vastly unprotected. It’s much easier to learn young, but we have adults who weren’t able to learn when young teaching children all sorts of backwards shit.
I hope we can all bear witness to what exists around us. I definitely struggle with that but I’m doing my best is all!
HMM this itself has the effect the Blues is about! I love how you section this, and I love you interpretation, imma have to re-read and sit with this again but first read is just: snapping my fingers, going “hmmmmm” and feeling joy at how your words have the capacity to reach me from wherever you may be in the world!! I hope to write like this as well 🩷🩷🩷
You are too kind! I think I naturally kind of interact with the world in this Bluesy way of letting things out and accepting. I appreciate you pointing that out. I genuinely can’t wait to see you piece about the Blues!
I love this piece and your descriptions about the differences between the Blues and Spirituals in the Black community. The exact scene in Sinners that comes to mind is when Sammie, Stack, and Slim were riding to the juke joint and they ride by the exact slaves Slim used to work alongside. He goes into sharing a story about a Black man that once tried to open his own juke joint and got murdered because of it. Instead of crying, Slim immediately breaks out into the Blues. While tears weren’t rolling down his face, you can hear the deep sadness and sorrow in his singing voice. It was that scene that opened my eyes to what the Blues really are. They’re rooted in grief, despair, hopelessness whereas Spirituals are meant to bring new life and resurrection. Thank you for sharing your sentiments on this topic!
I love what you said about Sammie being that young but genuinely having the blues in him because of his position in his inherited trauma, socio-political position, etc. It really does speak to how the blues has this universal language amongst the old and the young because even if it's a different type of blues, it's still all blues (and arguably in this case the blues ain't all too different). Hendrix was only 27 when he died and he had been playing the blues for at least a decade prior to that. Love to Delta Slim, that scene where he starts banging on his lap in the car with Stack and Sammie really hit, I've seen my grandmother mourning in a similar way - really made that connection with the global diaspora. Love this piece.
Awww I appreciate the connection to your own family and that! All so connected through the music ❣️❣️❣️
Love your comment! I relate to that scene too and have seen my elders mourn and feel this way, it really connect us through time and space <3
So second read:
Being sexy and sad is so real, I think Black people have so much depth, we are ethereal, we preserve beauty and yet we’re the wretched of the earth. We are poetry in flesh and bones. Also loved the imagery of our tears reflecting our reality.
What did you think of Pale, Pale moon in the movie? I think it speaks to this beauty. I also love that you pointed out Sammie’s positions as a youth being almost dismissed from the practice because he ain’t lived yet.
My thought after watching the movie was that we need more Blues today, and now I wonder if because we dismiss each other from generation to generation; do we fail to pass down tradition, teach each other how to process emotions? It definitely showed the importance of protecting and shaping our leaders of tomorrow and not hold them back with arbitrary rules like his father did but his view of religion was still very rooted in puritan culture and English tradition/ polite society.
Lastly I love what you said about Blues asking for nothing but a witness. like i don’t know for sure but If one thing about this world is true, it’s that we gotta witness what surrounds us and makes up our world; rather than ignoring and dismissing, dominating without question
I think the thumps of Pale, Pale Moon were really resonant. That catharsis of its performance was the biggest takeaway from it for me!
When it comes to kids this could be its own piece! Kids are a massive oppressed class of humans. Constantly dehumanized, rights stripped from them and vastly unprotected. It’s much easier to learn young, but we have adults who weren’t able to learn when young teaching children all sorts of backwards shit.
I hope we can all bear witness to what exists around us. I definitely struggle with that but I’m doing my best is all!
HMM this itself has the effect the Blues is about! I love how you section this, and I love you interpretation, imma have to re-read and sit with this again but first read is just: snapping my fingers, going “hmmmmm” and feeling joy at how your words have the capacity to reach me from wherever you may be in the world!! I hope to write like this as well 🩷🩷🩷
You are too kind! I think I naturally kind of interact with the world in this Bluesy way of letting things out and accepting. I appreciate you pointing that out. I genuinely can’t wait to see you piece about the Blues!
I relate to that and I think it’s something inherently revolutionary about Black Folks ✊🏾 Thank you for encouraging me as well:))
Check out my article where I delve deep into how Fleetwood Mac’s Peter Green mastered this technique
I love this piece and your descriptions about the differences between the Blues and Spirituals in the Black community. The exact scene in Sinners that comes to mind is when Sammie, Stack, and Slim were riding to the juke joint and they ride by the exact slaves Slim used to work alongside. He goes into sharing a story about a Black man that once tried to open his own juke joint and got murdered because of it. Instead of crying, Slim immediately breaks out into the Blues. While tears weren’t rolling down his face, you can hear the deep sadness and sorrow in his singing voice. It was that scene that opened my eyes to what the Blues really are. They’re rooted in grief, despair, hopelessness whereas Spirituals are meant to bring new life and resurrection. Thank you for sharing your sentiments on this topic!