Black Music Month began in 1979 when a group led by Kenny Gamble, half of the famous Gamble and Huff songwriting and music production team, developed the idea for the observance and pitched it to President Jimmy Carter, according to the National Museum of African-American Music.
On June 7, 1979, Carter issued a proclamation designating June as the month to recognize and celebrate black music. Succeeding presidents maintained the annual observance. In 2009, President Barack Obama renamed it African-American Music Appreciation Month. In 2016, in his last proclamation of it as president, he said:
“A vital part of our Nation’s proud heritage, African-American music exemplifies the creative spirit at the heart of American identity and is among the most innovative and powerful art the world has ever known. …. Let us recognize the performers behind this incredible music, which has compelled us to stand up — to dance, to express our faith through song, to march against injustice, and to defend our country’s enduring promise of freedom and opportunity for all.”
He called upon public officials, educators and others to observe the month with activities and programs “that raise awareness and foster appreciation of music that is composed, arranged, or performed by African Americans. “This year’s observance will kick off with music festivals on June 2 in Columbia, Md.; Healdsburg, Calif.; and Chicago.
Diversebooks.net has listings for more than 200 books about music, primarily on African American forms: spirituals, work songs, blues, jazz, gospel, rock ‘n roll and rhythm & blues, among them are these titles below. Several have been previously reviewed in this blog.
Memphis Boys: The Story of American Studios
by Roben Jones. $45 (List price: $50), University of Mississippi Press, ISBN: 9781604734010, pp. 640.
The author details the history of Chips Moman’s American Studios, focusing on its rhythm section. The book examines the business, the personal dynamics and the music through interviews with the owner and staff, describing recording sessions with such artists as Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett and telling the story behind songs produced at the studio.
Jazz Planet
by E. Taylor Atkins, $45 (List price: $50)
University of Mississippi Press, ISBN: 9781578066087272, pp. 272.
