| Vendor | |
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Liepman Literary Agency
Marc Koralnik |
| Original language | |
| English | |
A Robert Johnson Blues Odyssey
Little is known about blues master Robert Johnson, giving rise to legends that he gained success by selling his soul to the devil. BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM is musicologist Mack McCormick's all-consuming search to uncover Johnson's life story. McCormick spent years of his career reconstructing Johnson's mysterious life and death, but never made public his discoveries. BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM publishes his compelling work for the first time, including 40 unseen black-and-white photographs documenting McCormick's journey (Smithsonian holds the rights to all but one photo).
The book explores McCormick's sleuthing for Johnson's loved ones and to gather oral histories. An editor's preface and afterword from Smithsonian curator John W. Troutman reckons with the damage McCormick did to the Johnson family and examines the controversy of white male enthusiasts assuming ownership over Black narratives and legacies in the blues community.
Robert Johnson died at twenty-seven of unknown causes, and BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM includes Mack's vivid account of the theory supported by his research and interviews. While Johnson died before achieving widespread recognition, his music took on a life of its own and inspired future generations. BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM, filled with lush descriptive fieldwork and photographs, is an important historical object that deepens the understanding of a stellar musican.
ROBERT "MACK" MCCORMICK (19302015) was an American musicologist and folklorist who researched the lives of blues musicians while supporting himself by writing, census taking, and in 1968 and 1971, working with musicians in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
JOHN W. TROUTMAN is curator of American music at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
The book explores McCormick's sleuthing for Johnson's loved ones and to gather oral histories. An editor's preface and afterword from Smithsonian curator John W. Troutman reckons with the damage McCormick did to the Johnson family and examines the controversy of white male enthusiasts assuming ownership over Black narratives and legacies in the blues community.
Robert Johnson died at twenty-seven of unknown causes, and BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM includes Mack's vivid account of the theory supported by his research and interviews. While Johnson died before achieving widespread recognition, his music took on a life of its own and inspired future generations. BIOGRAPHY OF A PHANTOM, filled with lush descriptive fieldwork and photographs, is an important historical object that deepens the understanding of a stellar musican.
ROBERT "MACK" MCCORMICK (19302015) was an American musicologist and folklorist who researched the lives of blues musicians while supporting himself by writing, census taking, and in 1968 and 1971, working with musicians in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
JOHN W. TROUTMAN is curator of American music at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
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Book
Published 2023-04-01 by Smithonian Books |