The Sounds of Slavery : Discovering African American History Through Songs, Sermons, and Speech

Through vivid anecdotes and firsthand accounts, White and White expand our historical ear from the 1700s through the 1850s, showing how profoundly slaves shaped the American soundscape. The Sounds of Slavery allows us to eavesdrop on the past, providing a fascinating, innovative, and accessible account of the aural dimension of slavery. “A fascinating book . . . that brings to life the historical soundscape of 18th- and 19th-century African Americans at work, play, rest, and prayer . . . This remarkable achievement demands a place in every collection on African American and U.S. history and folklife. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal“The Sounds of Slavery will not only be valuable to young scholars, but . . . to young performers and composers, especially with the explosion of interest in ‘roots music,’ looking for new sources of original and searing music.” —Ran Blake, Christian Science Monitor“Highly recommended.” —Michael Russert, Multicultural Review“A work of great originality and insight.” —Ira Berlin, Distinguished University Professor, University of Maryland“Shane White and Graham White’s book is a joy.” —Branford MarsalisShane White and Graham White, who are not related, are professor and honorary associate, respectively, in the history department at the University of Sydney, Australia. They are the coauthors of Stylin’: African American Expressive Culture, from Its Beginning to the Zoot Suit This exploration of African American slavery through sound is a groundbreaking way of understanding both slave culture and American history

A work of great originality and insight.

-Ira Berlin

Shane White and Graham White's book is a joy.

-Branford Marsalis

A fascinating book . . . that brings to life the historical soundscape of 18th- and 19th-century African Americans at work, play, rest, and prayer . . . This remarkable achievement demands a place in every collection on African American and U.S. history and folklife. Highly recommended.

-Library Journal

The authors have undertaken the difficult task of bringing to contemporary readers the sounds of American slave culture . . . [giving] vibrancy and texture to a complex history that has been long neglected.

-Booklist

The book's strongest point is its attention to detail . . . [it] will not only be valuable to young scholars, but . . . to young performers and composers, especially with the explosion of interest in 'roots music,' looking for new sources of original and searing music.

-Ran Blake, Christian Science Monitor

A lyrical and original treatment of the musical and spoken culture of American slaves. This book is moving testimony to how scholarship can penetrate the transcendent spirit once considered exotic or unknowable, how historians can trace social survival to the human voice in slavery's heart of darkness.

-David W. Blight, professor of history, Yale University, and author of Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory

A seminal study of a neglected aspect of Southern and African-American culture . . . and the approach to the topic is both creative and resourceful. The book is highly recommended.

-Michael Russert, The Multicultural Review

Shane White and Graham White, who are not related, are professor and honorary associate, respectively, in the history department at the University of Sydney, Australia. They are the coauthors of Stylin': African American Expressive Culture, from Its Beginning to the Zoot Suit.

This exploration of African American slavery through sound is a groundbreaking way of understanding both slave culture and American history "A work of great originality and insight." -Ira Berlin "Shane White and Graham White's book is a joy." -Branford Marsalis "A fascinating book . . . that brings to life the historical soundscape of 18th- and 19th-century African Americans at work, play, rest, and prayer . . . This remarkable achievement demands a place in every collection on African American and U.S. history and folklife. Highly recommended." - Library Journal "The authors have undertaken the difficult task of bringing to contemporary readers the sounds of American slave culture . . . [giving] vibrancy and texture to a complex history that has been long neglected." - Booklist "The book's strongest point is its attention to detail . . . [it] will not only be valuable to young scholars, but . . . to young performers and composers, especially with the explosion of interest in 'roots music,' looking for new sources of original and searing music." -Ran Blake, Christian Science Monitor "A lyrical and original treatment of the musical and spoken culture of American slaves. This book is moving testimony to how scholarship can penetrate the transcendent spirit once considered exotic or unknowable, how historians can trace social survival to the human voice in slavery's heart of darkness." -David W. Blight, professor of history, Yale University, and author of Race and The Civil War in American Memory "A seminal study of a neglected aspect of Southern and African-American culture . . . and the approach to the topic is both creative and resourceful. The book is highly recommended." -Michael Russert, The Multicultural Review Shane White and Graham White, who are not related, are professor and honorary associate, respectively, in the history department at the University of Sydney, Australia. They are the coauthors of Stylin': African American Expressive Culture, from Its Beginning to the Zoot Suit. The lords of sounds "All we knowed was go and come by de bells and horns" "To translate everyday experiences into living sound" "De music [of the slaves] make dese Cab Calloways of today git to de woods an' hide "Sing no hymns of your own composing" "He can invent a plausible tale at a moment's warning" "Boots or no boots, I gwine shout today!" "When we had a black preacher that was heaven" Soundtracks of the city: Charleston, New York, and New Orleans Soundtracks of the city: Richmond in the 1850s Epilogue: The sound of freedom Notes The sounds of slavery: Recordings of African American field calls, songs, prayers, and sermons. CD: "Arwhoolie" holler / Thomas J. Marshall Levee holler / Enoch Brown Field holler / Roosevelt "Giant" Hudson "Oh if your house catches fire" levee camp holler / Willie Henry Washington "Roxie" / Convicts, Mississippi "New buryin' ground" / John Brown and African American convicts "Long hot summer day" / Clyde Hill and African American convicts "Go preach my gospel" / Deacon Harvey Williams and the New Zion Baptist Church congregation "Jesus, My God, I know his name" / Willie Henry Washington, Arthur Bell, Robert Lee Robertson and Abraham Powell "Go to sleep" / Florida Hampton "The buzzard and the cooter" / Demus Green "Prayer" / Rev. Henry Ward "Run, old Jeremiah" / Joe Washington Brown and Austin Coleman "Job, Job" / Mandy Tartt, Sims Tartt and Betty Atmore "Sometimes I feel like a motherless child" / Cilfford Reed, Johnny Mae Medlock and Julia Griffin "Have mercy, Lord" / Mary Tollman and the Rev. Henry Ward "The unusual task of the gospel preacher" / Rev. Harry Singleton "The man of calvary" / Sin-Killer Griffin. "The singing of slaves on plantations, while chopping weeds in cotton fields, or while working at a corn shucking; the sound of a slave preacher delivering a sermon or an elderly slave telling Brer Rabbit stories to children; newly freed blacks exchanging greetings or whistling on southern city streets - all these and many more made up the sounds of slavery." "Shane White and Graham White break new ground and bring history vividly to life through an exploration of the varied and nuanced sounds of slavery. Moving through a complex soundscape, White and White use anecdotes and firsthand accounts to illuminate the depth of slave culture and history, where each sound played a critical role in defining the slave's world, expressing moments of joy, defiance, and pain. The authors also recover some of the surprise and shock these sounds evoked in white listeners - some dismissed them as primitive while others marveled at their skill and beauty. This book expands our historical ear from the 1700s through the 1850s and continues into the modern era, drawing connections between this rich aural history and such beloved American music as the blues. Allowing us to eavesdrop on the past, The Sounds of Slavery is the closest modern listeners will ever get to experiencing the diverse sounds that surrounded slave life. An 18-track CD compilation - with most of the tracks recorded in the 1930s - lets us hear, for the first time, a complex history that has been silent for too long."--Jacket Collects songs, speeches, and sermons that provide a revealing window into the sufferings of slaves, as well as some of the most revealing of such documents from the 1700s through the 1850s. "When de day begin to crack," the former Louisiana slave Charley Williams told his interviewer, "de whole plantation break out wid all kinds of noises...