Exploring African American Musical Influences in O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Chris B wrote:

African Americans in the United States are clearly recognized for their musical contributions and the cultural elements of music they brought with them from their native land. The black experience in America is a sad story, and out of their suffering in America much of their music developed. In the Cohen Brothers film, O Brother, Where Art Thou? a wide selection of music was used including songs with strong ties to African American musical roots. This essay will explore African American musical influences that have contributed to the developments of many different genres of music including blues, Negro spirituals, and black gospel, and also analyze their use in the film.

Blues music was developed over a long period of time by black Americans working as slaves in the Deep South. The precursors to the modern form of blues were the “field hollers” and “work songs” that slaves sang as they toiled in the fields. These first songs sung in the fields were often of a melancholy nature and blues music finds its roots in such songs reminiscent of the sad era of African slavery in America (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origins_of_the_blues). As blues music developed, the Negro Spirituals played an important role in so much as the musical intonation and sound developed. Although, the blues style of playing found its way into many genres, the traditional blues often possess a “blue” feel in the sound and lyrics that focus on the difficult and darker side of life. Blues icon Robert Johnson reportedly “sold his soul to the Devil” in order to learn how to play guitar. From this perspective blues can be considered the opposite end of the “moral” spectrum opposed to other genres of music such as Negro spirituals, and black gospel which also possess African roots (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_music). Looking at the progression of blues it is easy to see how blues has lent itself to much of the classical rock. Blues is probably the most distinct instrumental/musical contribution that has been incorporated into other popular genres (http://www.articlealley.com/article_1030997_48.html). Bands such as Led Zeppelin have often credited old Blues artists such as Robert Johnson with certain elements of their music. Genres that are distinctly, “secular” find many of their roots in the blues of the “oldies”.

Negro Spirituals began to develop during the late 18th early 19th century, as slaves were taken to church with their masters (http://www.negrospirituals.com) This music became their adaption of certain traditional hymns which they learned in the white church. This genre differs from Blues music primarily in the message and content, besides the fact that it was religious music combined with messages of the suffering and hardships of the slaves. However, musical elements of African American origin including a “blues sound” have also heavily influenced this music. The old spirituals such as, “Give me Jesus” with lines such as, “You can have all this world, but give me Jesus” directly tie the religious aspects of God and the Bible with the black experience. In this song, the slaves are singing to their masters telling them that they can possess the whole world, as long as the slaves are allowed to have Jesus. This is quite a significant picture that represents at least of portion of Negro Spiritual themes.

The genre of black Gospel also deals with concepts of God and religion and was, in essence, “brought out” of the established white church. Modern Gospel began developing in the 1920 and was influenced by the traditional blues musical quality (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Urban_contemporary_gospel). Initially rejected by the church, Gospel music became a recognizable symbol of music made popular by singers such as Thomas A. Dorsey, Sallie Martin, and Willie Mae Ford Smith (Burnim “Gospel Music Research” Black Music Research Journal, 1980). Gospel music tends deal with life’s questions by directing people to a trust in God’s word, the Bible. Even the name itself “gospel” is a direct connection to the “Gospel of Christ” found in the New Testament. The musical elements included powerful delivery, elements of free flowing music, call and response, and spoken lines by the song leader that are reminiscent of the old spirituals.

Attempting to answer a question brought up in discussion recently, “What is the difference between the old Negro Spirituals and Gospel. Gospel music in and of itself often focuses on the external message derived from religious themes found in the Bible. The words “gospel” means, “good news” and that usually describes gospel music’s themes of hope, salvation, and heaven. The Negro Spirituals are unique because they combine the themes of religion and God with the African American experience as slaves. The two are very similar but this is a distinct difference- the incorporation of African American episode into the Spirituals themselves separate them from the gospel genre. Spirituals also tend to be more free-flowing in their use of scales, keys, melodies, and rhythms. Gospel songs are more structured and the use of vocal harmonies is traditional and carefully developed.

Significance in the film:

The musical selections serve a twofold purpose in the film. Firstly, the different styles of music were used to apply the classic story of, The Odyssey to the American scene in, O Brother, Where Art Thou? The Odyssey is clearly rooted in Greek culture and that geographical area of the world; similarly, the producers anchored the film in America using a wide selection of primarily “American” forms of music. The historical connection to the past is an important part of traditional epic poetry. The songs selections in the film provide a sense of the important connections to the historical events linking the viewer to the past. The majority of the songs carried a distinctly American flavor and this helped to connect the story to the heart of American history and the American scene. Secondly, another entire dynamic is how the use of blues, gospel, and Negro spirituals were used to generate a contrast between the two searches for answers. This reoccurring theme of people searching for answers can be seen in the musical selections. The blues songs such as, “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” by Chris Thomas King can be interpreted to represent one end of the search- looking for answers by turning away from God to the Devil. The old traditional gospel, “I Went Down to the River to Pray,” similarly conveys this theme of looking for answers by looking to God and religion. In the film, religion provides comfort and support for O'Donnell and Pete who come under conviction at the river baptism. Pragmatist McGill rejects the religious experience of his cohorts seeing no practical use for God; in fact reacting by stating they are still wanted by the state of Missouri for their crimes even if they were “forgiven” by God. The musical selections and styles somewhat mirror the fact that people often either turn to God for help or get angry at God and turn “to the devil”. The musical contrast between the genres of “religious” and “secular” music, create the different dynamics which enable the viewer to see the opposite ends of the moral spectrum of the search for answers.

The theme of searching for “what is the proper way to behave?” found in The Odyssey correlates to the, “search for answers” found in, O Brother, Where Art Thou? These great quests and questions found in both works of art are heard in the echo of music from both ends of the moral spectrum. The Negro Spirituals and Black gospel represent the search for answers by looking to God and possessing religious faith. By contrast, the Blues from the “fires of hell” looks away from God to the Devil seeking to find meaning in life. These two ends of the spectrum represented musically in the film, represent the two alternates that are presented as the characters in these works seek to walk through their lives. Additionally, the inclusion of a wide selection of music from the old classics and such traditional music, mirror the importance of tradition and legend to the telling of epic poetry. The use of such music, in a sense, makes the film itself an “epic film” because of it connects with the largeness of people in another time and place and follows the tradition of epic storytelling using music.