ABSTRACT
We have dated the origins of the blues to the late nineteenth century, and early reports indicate that the blues was a folk-form that originated in the rural areas of the south. Whether it be touring singer Ma Rainey hearing a blues-like lament in 1902 or W.C. Handy watching a roustabout playing guitar with a knife in 1903, the early blues must have been performed by nonprofessional musicians in an informal setting. Unfortunately, we have no recorded examples that preserve these early forms of the music although there are scattered recordings of black strings bands, and even a few performances that indicate blues influences. Among these are a 1904 harmonica solo by Pete Hampton called Dat Mouth Organ Coon, and a 1916 record called Nigger Blues, by George O’Connor.
