Stephen Calt

a blues dialect dictionary

Barrelhouse words

Although he died when he was just 27, and left a recording catalogue of only 29 tracks, Robert Johnson (1911-38) is one of the most celebrated figures in blues history. Over the years his life has become the archetype of a blues life.

The Life and Legend of Robert Johnson

Hellhound on My Trail

This fascinating compendium explains the most unusual, obscure, and curious words and expressions from vintage blues music. Utilizing both documentary evidence and invaluable interviews with a number of now-deceased musicians from the 1920s and '30s, blues scholar Stephen Calt unravels the nuances of more than twelve hundred idioms and proper or place names found on oft-overlooked "race records" recorded between 1923 and 1949. From "aggravatin' papa" to "yas-yas-yas" and everything in between, this truly unique, racy, and compelling resource decodes a neglected speech for general readers and researchers alike, offering invaluable information about black language and American slang.

A Blues Dialect Dictionary

Barrelhouse Words

Skip James (1902–1969) was perhaps the most creative and idiosyncratic of all blues musicians. Drawing on hundreds of hours of conversations with James himself, Stephen Calt here paints a dark and unforgettable portrait of a man untroubled by his own murderous inclinations, a man who achieved one moment of transcendent greatness in a life haunted by failure. And in doing so, Calt offers new insights into the nature of the blues, the world in which it thrived, and its fate when that world vanished.

Skip James and the Blues

I'd Rather Be the Devil

David A. Jasen

Richard Nevins

Presents brief biographies of musical innovators in blues, jazz, and country music along with original illustrations by R. Crumb.

Stephen Calt

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