Here's what CJ posted. ...
Song title: Rock Awhile
Artist name: Goree Carter
Year produced: 1949
Which category would you say this track falls into and why? I think this song falls best into the "Race Music" category. This song follows a typical R&B structure and timbres, and was written and performed by a black musician. The song prominently features a piano and saxophone, both associated with the R&B of the era.
Interestingly enough, the song even contains elements of traditional black gospel, such as the tempo (though the lyrics are clearly not religious). A good point of reference in terms of sound might be Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s 1945 R&B gospel single Strange Things Happening Every Day.
What is the form of this song? Rock Awhile is in simple verse form. It does not feature a chorus.
What is this song about? Listeners have noted the lyrical simplicity of this song. The main refrain goes, "Feelin' good this mornin' / now I feel like I wanna rock a while." One of the only other lyrics says, “Come on, boogie woogie baby, come and stop this steel in style,” adding a noticeable sexually suggestive element.
Even though the song follows a bluesy chord progression, the lyrics are the opposite of the downbeat subject matter that is typically expected from the blues: In Rock Awhile, a man expresses excitement that his lover is returning home.
The lyrical content referencing “rocking” also foreshadows much of the 1950s' rock and roll, most famously Bill Haley's Rock Around the Clock.
Why did you choose this song? What specifically drew you to it? This song is notable as it is sometimes considered to be one of the first rock and roll singles (though it’s still very primitive). Considering the musical elements present, as well as its primitiveness, a more accurate descriptor for Rock Awhile might be “rollick-and-roll.”
After recording two more singles for the short-lived Freedom Recording Co., Carter was drafted in the Korean War. While Carter recorded little other than this single, its influence on other musicians was palpable. I recall reading an article that quoted Carter as saying, “With Rock Awhile, I got a minor hit, and Chuck Berry got a career.” Unfortunately, I was unable to find the article in question with a Google search.
How cute is that egg in that ramen? And the "mango pudding" dessert was also well done.
They have one more kit to go. The one above was the 'easier' one.
What is the form of this song? Rock Awhile is in simple verse form. It does not feature a chorus.
What is this song about? Listeners have noted the lyrical simplicity of this song. The main refrain goes, "Feelin' good this mornin' / now I feel like I wanna rock a while." One of the only other lyrics says, “Come on, boogie woogie baby, come and stop this steel in style,” adding a noticeable sexually suggestive element.
Even though the song follows a bluesy chord progression, the lyrics are the opposite of the downbeat subject matter that is typically expected from the blues: In Rock Awhile, a man expresses excitement that his lover is returning home.
The lyrical content referencing “rocking” also foreshadows much of the 1950s' rock and roll, most famously Bill Haley's Rock Around the Clock.
Why did you choose this song? What specifically drew you to it? This song is notable as it is sometimes considered to be one of the first rock and roll singles (though it’s still very primitive). Considering the musical elements present, as well as its primitiveness, a more accurate descriptor for Rock Awhile might be “rollick-and-roll.”
After recording two more singles for the short-lived Freedom Recording Co., Carter was drafted in the Korean War. While Carter recorded little other than this single, its influence on other musicians was palpable. I recall reading an article that quoted Carter as saying, “With Rock Awhile, I got a minor hit, and Chuck Berry got a career.” Unfortunately, I was unable to find the article in question with a Google search.
KITCHEN KAWAII: Early Sunday morning, Annabelle and I masked and gloved up to visit Uwijamaya, a local grocery store with lots of great Asian cuisine items. We bought COVID essentials like shrimp chips and Japanese mayo and a couple of Popin' Cookin' kits ...
OK, so the latter weren't on our list to begin with, but when we saw these cute little kits where you make your own gummy candies that look like other foods. How could we not?!?
Last night, the kids gave the 'Tanoshii Ramen" kit a go.
Inside the box, it was basically just a bunch of packets of powder, some kind of confusing directions, and some molds.
On the outside of the box, 'warnings' let you know it wasn't going to be a walk in the park.
I'm going to go ahead and say that if Annabelle and CJ weren't award winning cake decorators, the candy meal likely would have looked *nothing* like the one on the box.
They worked hard, and together, and were pretty darn successful.
I wish I'd put something in one of the photos for scale. These things are darn TINY!
They have one more kit to go. The one above was the 'easier' one.
Loved the music history. Ray Charles got some criticism early on among some African-Americans for sounding too much like gospel music. They thought it was sacrilege.
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