Hillbilly. Hillbilly is a term (often derogatory) for people who dwell in rural, mountainous areas primarily in Appalachia but also parts of the Ozarks in the United States.
Due to its strongly stereotypical connotations, the term can be offensive to those Americans of Appalachian heritage. History[edit] Origins of the term "hillbilly" are obscure. According to Anthony Harkins in Hillbilly: A Cultural History of an American Icon, the term first appeared in print in a 1900 New York Journal article, with the definition: "a Hill-Billie is a free and untrammeled white citizen of Alabama, who lives in the hills, has no means to speak of, dresses as he can, talks as he pleases, drinks whiskey when he gets it, and fires off his revolver as the fancy takes him.
" The Appalachian region was largely settled in the 18th century by the Ulster Scots, Protestants who migrated to the Irish province of Ulster during the Plantation of Ulster in the 17th century. Music[edit] In fiction and popular culture[edit] Blues. Blues as a genre is based on the blues form but possesses other characteristics such as lyrics, bass lines, and instruments.
Blues sub-genres include country blues, such as Delta, Piedmont and Texas blues, and urban blues styles such as Chicago and West Coast blues. World War II marked the transition from acoustic to electric blues and the progressive opening of blues music to a wider audience, especially white listeners. In the 1960s and 1970s, a hybrid form called blues-rock evolved. Etymology[edit] One alternative explanation for the origin of the "blues" is that it derived from mysticism involving blue indigo, which was used by many West African cultures in death and mourning ceremonies where all the mourner's garments would have been dyed blue to indicate suffering. Lyrics[edit] Early blues frequently took the form of a loose narrative. The lyrics often relate troubles experienced within African American society. "Backwater rising, Southern peoples can't make no time. Rock and roll. Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll or rock 'n' roll) is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s,[1][2] primarily from a combination of African-American genres such as blues, jump blues, jazz, and gospel music,[3] together with Western swing and country music.[4] Though elements of rock and roll can be heard in blues records from the 1920s[5] and in country records of the 1930s,[4] the genre did not acquire its name until the 1950s.[6][7] The term "rock and roll" now has at least two different meanings, both in common usage: referring to the first wave of music that originated in the US in the 1950s and would later develop into the more encompassing international style known as "rock music", and as a term simply synonymous with the rock music and culture in the broad sense.[8] For the purpose of differentiation, this article deals with the first definition.
Terminology[edit] Origins[edit] Rockabilly[edit] American folk music. American folk music is a musical term that encompasses numerous genres, many of which are known as traditional music, traditional folk music, contemporary folk music or roots music.
Roots music is a broad category of music including bluegrass, country music, gospel, old time music, jug bands, Appalachian folk, blues, Cajun and Native American music. The music is considered American either because it is native to the United States or because it developed there, out of foreign origins, to such a degree that it struck musicologists as something distinctly new. It is considered "roots music" because it served as the basis of music later developed in the United States, including rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and jazz. Roots music[edit] Many roots musicians do not consider themselves to be folk musicians; the main difference between the American folk music revival and American "roots music" is that roots music seems to cover a slightly broader range, including blues and country.
Books[edit]