Searching for Robert Johnson: The Life and Legend of the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" [Paperback]

Peter Guralnick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1998

Robert Johnson, while probably the most influential of all blues guitarists, is also one of the most obscure. Recognized as an influence on musicians like Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones, Johnson was poisoned by a jealous husband in 1938--at the age of twenty-seven. This untimely death, his supposed bargain with the devil that enabled him to play guitar, and the ferocity and tormented originality of his work have given rise to a legend that has inspired a Hollywood movie and numerous stories. Peter Guralnick's extended essay about the life of the man and the myth, and of the place and time that produced both, illuminates much of the obscurity around Johnson without forfeiting any of the mystery.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Blues fans have long held up Robert Johnson's small but potent body of work as a slender pillar on which much modern blues and rock rest, and the songs themselves remain astonishing paradigms of the blues' most primordial style, the country blues of the Mississippi Delta. Yet, for decades after his murder in 1938, details of Johnson's life and clues into the genesis of his music consisted of little more than the evocative themes and settings of the songs themselves.

This brief but absorbing meditation on Johnson's life and art, originally published in 1989 in anticipation of the first release of his complete recordings, benefits from the detective work of earlier blues scholars, most notably Mack McCormick, who began piercing the veil surrounding Johnson's life in the '60s. By the '80s, reminiscences from the bluesman's contemporaries, more solid evidence of his shadowy lineage, and even the belated discovery of photographs added more dimension to McCormick's "phantom" Johnson. Yet, possibly by his own design, Robert Johnson remained more outline than flesh, still explained more lucidly in the fevered nightmares and earthy imagery of his songs than by the scattered details of his life.

Guralnick succeeds in conveying the power of Johnson's music and delineating both its origins and, ultimately, singular genius. His debts to delta blues avatars Charley Patton and Tommy Johnson are solidified, yet, more crucially, Guralnick roots Johnson's artistic growth in the specific context of this rural corner of Mississippi, at this particular moment between the world wars. He also frankly addresses the potency of Johnson's myth and an early death that only glorifies the brief, bright arc of his work. No less crucial is Guralnick's ability to convey the dark beauty of the music itself, giving Searching for Robert Johnson a broader sweep as an essential blues primer. --Sam Sutherland

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Plume (August 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452279496
• ISBN-13: 978-0452279490
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #115,558 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

"Peter Guralnick is widely regarded as the nation's preeminent writer on twentieth-century American popular music. His books include Feel Like Going Home, Lost Highway, Sweet Soul Music, Searching for Robert Johnson, the novel Nighthawk Blues, and a highly acclaimed two-volume biography of Elvis Presley, Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Vivid description of the blues great, August 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Searching for Robert Johnson: The Life and Legend of the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" (Paperback)

The 96 pages of this book are pack full of information about legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. Virtually everything that is known about Mr. Johnson is vividly detailed in this work. Makes for excellent reading.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars worth reading, January 9, 2007

By 

J. Parks - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Searching for Robert Johnson: The Life and Legend of the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" (Paperback)

Excellent book. Interesting prospective not only of Robert Johnson, but of his contemporaries.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good read., November 2, 2011

By 

Cochranmusic - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Searching for Robert Johnson: The Life and Legend of the "King of the Delta Blues Singers" (Paperback)

It has been a while since I have read this book. From what I remember, I was disappointed in the book in some ways but loved it in others. It wasn't the read I expected it to be. I was hoping for more info on Robert Johnson but there wasn't. I did however like how the book was written and I liked the info that the book did have. I suppose there isn't very much info on Robert Johnson anyway, but I have heard more on TV shows and magazine articles than what was written in this book. Absolutely worth the read though for Robert Johnson fans.