Superbly researched and vividly written, The Devil's Music is one of the only books to trace the rise and development of the blues both in relation to other forms of black music and in the context of American social history as experienced by African Americans. From its roots in the turn-of-the-century honky-tonks of New Orleans and the barrelhouses and plantations of the Mississippi Delta to modern legends such as John Lee Hooker and B. B. King, the blues comes alive here through accounts by the blues musicians themselves and those who knew them.

Eight critiques, resulting from years of research, make up this text. The collection presents African American popular music as a self-contained cultural domain and as a form of oral history which continues to be a permanent source of enlightenment shining light on several dark corners of official history.

Norman Kelly joins Public Enemy's Chuck D and others to dissect the history of black music. R&B examines how black music - from today's hip hop all the way back to soul and blues - has been developed, marketed, and distributed within the structure of capitalism. Public Enemy's Chuck D, author Norman Kelly, and other journalists and musicians combine forces to dissect contemporary trends in the music industry, and explore how blacks have historically interacted with the business as artists, business-people and as consumers.

Despite the influence of African American music and study as a worldwide phenomenon, no comprehensive and fully annotated reference tool currently exists that covers the wide range of genres. This much needed bibliography fills an important gap in this research area and will prove an indispensable resource for librarians and scholars studying African American music and culture.

Beloved of Clapton, Dylan and the Stones, Robert Johnson remains one of the most iconic and mythologised figures in popular music. Exploring the stories and legends that surround his life and death - his childhood, his womanising, his pact with the devil at the crossroads - Mezzo and DuPont have produced a fittingly creative and beautiful depiction of this most extraordinary life.