Blues

Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of music based on the use of the blue note. It emerged in African-American communities of the United States from spirituals, work songs, field holler, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballad. The use of blue notes and the prominence of call-and-response patterns in the music and lyrics are indicative of Africa influence. The blues influenced later American and Western popular music, as it became the roots of jazz, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, bluegrass, hip-hop, and other popular music forms. The phrase "the blues" is a reference to the the blue devils, meaning 'down' spirits, depression and sadness. An early reference to "the blues" can be found in George Colman's farce Blue devils, a farce in one act (1798). Later during the 19th century, the phrase was used as a euphemism for delirium tremens and the police, and was not uncommon in letters from homesick Civil War soldiers. Though the use of the phrase in African American... full article at wikipedia