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Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Music defines us in ways we often don’t appreciate to the fullest. Music is history in sound, history that is heard and shared, and history that is a reflection of who we are. In Terry Blade’s Of Bloodlines and Blue Notes, the author shares his voice through sound vocalized in music and stories. After all, as the author writes, “History is not only written but also heard. It lives in cadence. It lives in what people choose to say.” Music is evidence of life, as well as of history, labor, traditions, and survival. Music is the voice that speaks volumes in rhythmic cadences as well as in silence, allowing family stories to emerge in many forms. Music is a human document, recording what life has dealt out, often in spades of pain and suffering, but also in joy and caring.
Terry Blade’s book, Of Bloodlines and Blue Notes: Lyrics, Album Notes and Critical Essays, might appear to be his memoir, but it’s more than that. It’s ethnomusicology, a thorough study of the cultural practice of music, of its creation and presentation, and how it’s understood and appreciated. The book is laid out with a thorough introduction, followed by three interconnected albums, “American Descendant of Slavery,” “Ethos: Son of a Sharecropper,” and “Chicago Kinfolk: The Juke Joint Album.” It includes lyrics and descriptions of various songs, all woven into the overall cultural analysis of the ethics of listening to historical narratives. The book ends with an interesting “Afterward and Reflections,” as well as what all great music uses in its finale: a “Coda,” complete with more thoughts for the reader to consider. This is a fascinating and intuitive read.
