I Feel So Good: The Life and Times of Big Bill Broonzy
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- Create Date：2021-07-25 08:55:11
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Bob Riesman
- ISBN：022600709X
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Summary
A major figure in American blues and folk music， Big Bill Broonzy （1903–1958） left his Arkansas Delta home after World War I， headed north， and became the leading Chicago bluesman of the 1930s。 His success came as he fused traditional rural blues with the electrified sound that was beginning to emerge in Chicago。 This， however， was just one step in his remarkable journey: Big Bill was constantly reinventing himself， both in reality and in his retellings of it。 Bob Riesman’s groundbreaking biography tells the compelling life story of a lost figure from the annals of music history。
I Feel So Good traces Big Bill’s career from his rise as a nationally prominent blues star， including his historic 1938 appearance at Carnegie Hall， to his influential role in the post-World War II folk revival， when he sang about racial injustice alongside Pete Seeger and Studs Terkel。 Riesman’s account brings the reader into the jazz clubs and concert halls of Europe， as Big Bill's overseas tours in the 1950s ignited the British blues-rock explosion of the 1960s。 Interviews with Eric Clapton， Pete Townshend， and Ray Davies reveal Broonzy’s profound impact on the British rockers who would follow him and change the course of popular music。
Along the way， Riesman details Big Bill’s complicated and poignant personal saga: he was married three times and became a father at the very end of his life to a child half a world away。 He also brings to light Big Bill’s final years， when he first lost his voice， then his life， to cancer， just as his international reputation was reaching its peak。 Featuring many rarely seen photos， I Feel So Good will be the definitive account of Big Bill Broonzy’s life and music。
I Feel So Good traces Big Bill’s career from his rise as a nationally prominent blues star， including his historic 1938 appearance at Carnegie Hall， to his influential role in the post-World War II folk revival， when he sang about racial injustice alongside Pete Seeger and Studs Terkel。 Riesman’s account brings the reader into the jazz clubs and concert halls of Europe， as Big Bill's overseas tours in the 1950s ignited the British blues-rock explosion of the 1960s。 Interviews with Eric Clapton， Pete Townshend， and Ray Davies reveal Broonzy’s profound impact on the British rockers who would follow him and change the course of popular music。
Along the way， Riesman details Big Bill’s complicated and poignant personal saga: he was married three times and became a father at the very end of his life to a child half a world away。 He also brings to light Big Bill’s final years， when he first lost his voice， then his life， to cancer， just as his international reputation was reaching its peak。 Featuring many rarely seen photos， I Feel So Good will be the definitive account of Big Bill Broonzy’s life and music。
Reviews
Phil Gray
，
Great overview of the life of one of my musical heroes。 This second reading helped me to flesh out the man behind so much fabulous music， but even after a gap of eight years or so since the first read， Bob Riesman’s wring style still feels a little too close to a thesis for my taste。 Despite that hindrance， the book is packed with great fax’n’info， and continually lays out the truth and the annotated record of events， alongside Big Bill’s own version of his personal history， which was largely in Great overview of the life of one of my musical heroes。 This second reading helped me to flesh out the man behind so much fabulous music， but even after a gap of eight years or so since the first read， Bob Riesman’s wring style still feels a little too close to a thesis for my taste。 Despite that hindrance， the book is packed with great fax’n’info， and continually lays out the truth and the annotated record of events， alongside Big Bill’s own version of his personal history， which was largely invented。 Great if you want to know more about the man， but not a wonderful reading experience。 I give it four stars for what I got from it， but objectively， it’s only a three。 。。。more
Trev Jones
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Big Bill Broonzy has always been my musical， guitar hero。 Accredited with bringing the blues to Britain。 This book is a biography of his life。 Well written and easy to follow。 A great， well researched history of one of the greatest blues guitar singer/songwriters。
Ronn
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Big Bill was the first blues musician that I listened to extensively， discovering him as a teenager around 1970。 I knew that his autobiography was largely 'augmented' truth， but I didnt know just how little I knew about him until I read this book。 This is an essential read for all fans of blues and folk music。 Big Bill was the first blues musician that I listened to extensively， discovering him as a teenager around 1970。 I knew that his autobiography was largely 'augmented' truth， but I didnt know just how little I knew about him until I read this book。 This is an essential read for all fans of blues and folk music。 。。。more
Al
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Broonzy is maybe not as heralded as other bluesmen， but he is a big influence， so I was excited to see this offered as a free e-book selection from The University of Chicago Press。 Those who have spoke of his influence include Clapton， Townsend （who writes the into here）， Elvis， the Kinks， Rory Gallagher， Steve Howe and many more。 Phil and Dave Alvin just released an album of Broonzy covers earlier this year。 I am going to butcher the quote， but it’s something like Clapton said he loved Broonzy Broonzy is maybe not as heralded as other bluesmen， but he is a big influence， so I was excited to see this offered as a free e-book selection from The University of Chicago Press。 Those who have spoke of his influence include Clapton， Townsend （who writes the into here）， Elvis， the Kinks， Rory Gallagher， Steve Howe and many more。 Phil and Dave Alvin just released an album of Broonzy covers earlier this year。 I am going to butcher the quote， but it’s something like Clapton said he loved Broonzy for his precision， while Ray Davies says it was his ability to go off script。 It seems contradictory， but it shows what Broonzy meant to so many。The most interesting thing to me is the span of Broonzy’s career。 He was born and raised in the Arkansas Delta， starting to play the blues after returning home from World War 1， making him a contemporary of Robert Johnson， Charlie Patton and Son House。 He moved to Chicago in the 1930s and was a mentor and godfather for that city’s famous blues scene， playing with Sonny Boy Williamson I and paving the way for the likes of Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon。 Post-WW2， he found fans within the folk movement， and also comradery with the jazz and gospel scenes。 This brought him into working with the likes of Pete Seeger， Lead belly， Studs Turkel and performing with Mahalia Jackson。 In the 1950s， he toured the UK extensively， and his public figure ended up being a huge influence on all of those great British rock bands that emerged from the blues influence。I tend to like music biographies， but this one tends to be a bit too academic for my liking。 It’s a pretty dry read， though it certainly would be worthwhile for some。 It provides Broonzy’s insight of growing up in the South in the post-Reconstruction era。 Reisman does a good job covering the music business （specifically what they call ‘race music’） as it was in the 30s and 40s。 I also found it interesting that Broonzy spent a couple years in Ames， Iowa， which is a town I have spent some time in。 If you are already well-acquainted with Broonzy， I am sure this will be valuable， but is a bit of a slog otherwise 。。。more
David Burke
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For pre-electric blues fans。 This is a bio that will put the facts in order seeing as Big Bill`s autobiography was less than accurate。 A great read and an inspiration for guitarists and musicians in general。 For pre-electric blues fans。 This is a bio that will put the facts in order seeing as Big Bill`s autobiography was less than accurate。 A great read and an inspiration for guitarists and musicians in general。 。。。more
John
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Interesting subject matter， but I just could not get into the book。 The writing was too flat and factual for me。 The introduction of the characters was always the same。
University of Chicago Magazine
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Bob Riesman， AM'88AuthorFrom our pages （Sept–Oct/11）: Bob Riesman's biography of the early 20th-century Chicago blues star follows his personal life and career， with stories f his performances in jazz clubs and concert halls。 His life is also recounted through interviews with Eric Clapton， Pete Townshend， and Ray Davies， who discuss how Broonzy inspired their music。 Bob Riesman， AM'88AuthorFrom our pages （Sept–Oct/11）: Bob Riesman's biography of the early 20th-century Chicago blues star follows his personal life and career， with stories f his performances in jazz clubs and concert halls。 His life is also recounted through interviews with Eric Clapton， Pete Townshend， and Ray Davies， who discuss how Broonzy inspired their music。 。。。more
Brett Bydairk
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A good biography， although the author is a real apologist for the many biographical "facts" Bill himself gave throughout his life: "He conflated and condensed these events to show his narrative power;" "he restated this event to make a point，" etc。 But at least the author does present the truth as much as we will probably ever know it about the man born Lee Conley Bradley， and so this is a welcome addition to the bookshelf of musical biographies。 A good biography， although the author is a real apologist for the many biographical "facts" Bill himself gave throughout his life: "He conflated and condensed these events to show his narrative power;" "he restated this event to make a point，" etc。 But at least the author does present the truth as much as we will probably ever know it about the man born Lee Conley Bradley， and so this is a welcome addition to the bookshelf of musical biographies。 。。。more
Mark
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Fascinating， if somewhat dry and scholarly， account of one of the most important musicians （and most outsized personalities） in American music。 Riesman does a good job of approximating the truth about the life of a man who cared about telling a good story， including about himself， more than he did about strict fidelity to facts。 Good side portraits of his contemporaries ranging from Muddy Waters to Pete Seeger to Studs Terkel。 A serious but very entertaining biography of a complicated man。
Christopher Klug
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Starts a little slow， but picks up in the middle， and then ends rather abruptly。All in all， a very good book， worth reading。
Phil Overeem
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Haven't listened to much Big Bill--mainly for the reasons that Riesman very skillfully subjects to critical analysis here。 His writing's a bit workmanlike for my tastes， and I've read a lot of these kinds of books， but he succeeds in renovating Broonzy's rep and presenting him as a pathfinder in many respects。 Haven't listened to much Big Bill--mainly for the reasons that Riesman very skillfully subjects to critical analysis here。 His writing's a bit workmanlike for my tastes， and I've read a lot of these kinds of books， but he succeeds in renovating Broonzy's rep and presenting him as a pathfinder in many respects。 。。。more
Nan
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Before reading this， the one Broonzy song I knew was "Hey， Hey" via Eric Clapton。 While reading this， a lot of the book's references went over my head。 However， there's no denying that Bob Riesman had a tough job culling from a pile of possibly embellished oral and written records - which he was able to turn into not just a straightforward biography， but also brief social and cultural histories of Chicago's and the South's music scenes circa Broonzy's lifespan （1903-1958）。 Before reading this， the one Broonzy song I knew was "Hey， Hey" via Eric Clapton。 While reading this， a lot of the book's references went over my head。 However， there's no denying that Bob Riesman had a tough job culling from a pile of possibly embellished oral and written records - which he was able to turn into not just a straightforward biography， but also brief social and cultural histories of Chicago's and the South's music scenes circa Broonzy's lifespan （1903-1958）。 。。。more
Tim
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Big Bill Broonzy proved to be a pliable， accommodating bluesman by changing with the times and giving people what they wanted， from hokum to a more urbane strain of country blues to bigger blues ensembles featuring horns to， finally， a rebirth as a folk/folk blues artist in the 1950s。 Broonzy's reinvention of himself musically mirrored his reshaping of his own history， as Bob Riesman's fine biography， "I Feel So Good，" attests。 Riesman notes that Broonzy's 1955 autobiography， "Big Bill Blues" ha Big Bill Broonzy proved to be a pliable， accommodating bluesman by changing with the times and giving people what they wanted， from hokum to a more urbane strain of country blues to bigger blues ensembles featuring horns to， finally， a rebirth as a folk/folk blues artist in the 1950s。 Broonzy's reinvention of himself musically mirrored his reshaping of his own history， as Bob Riesman's fine biography， "I Feel So Good，" attests。 Riesman notes that Broonzy's 1955 autobiography， "Big Bill Blues" had its way with the facts。 That 1893 date of birth？ Ten years early。 The name Broonzy （the name Bill！）？ Made up。 Serving in World War I？ Not so much。 That Uncle Jerry he learned so much from？ Nobody else heard of him。 Children？ Nobody's really sure how many he actually had。 That second wife？ Who was she again？ Oh well， Broonzy's focus on flavor rather than facts nonetheless managed to give us a good idea of the forces that shaped his life and that which he fought against。 The recasting of these facts， as Riesman attests， was not built on malicious lies but on Broonzy's own truth， true enough in its way。Given Broonzy's fanciful way with his life details， Riesman had quite a task in front of him。 He succeeds very nicely。 The details the author relates of Broonzy's early personal life are sketchy。 When Broonzy moves to Chicago from Arkansas and begins in 1927 what would be a 30-year recording career， the life milestones are more concrete。 Still， here Riesman often is relating recording dates and session musicians and musical contemporaries along with dissections of his songs。 Riesman reproduces many of Broonzy's early lyrics， which is appreciated。 Like a good historian， where details on Broonzy are sketchy， Riesman gives us the flavor of what life was like for African-Americans in Broonzy's time and the recording climate， from the lean Depression years to the 1942 recording ban， and lists societal statistics of the day。Broonzy recorded frequently， feeding his record companies' insatiable hunger for product。 His most enduring song was "Key to the Highway" （Thanks， says Eric Clapton）。 Broonzy's blues legacy went far beyond his prolific recordings as a primary artist， however。 He played guitar as a sideman for almost every major blues star based in Chicago in the 1920s through the 1940s。 As time went on， this genial， well-liked man took many of these younger performers under his wing， nurturing artists， helping them record， boosting their careers。 Washboard Sam， Memphis Minnie， Jazz Gillum， Big Maceo， Memphis Slim， Sonny Boy Williamson No。 1， Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee， Pete Seeger — Broonzy recorded with or toured with all of these and more。 His pallbearers included Studs Terkel， Muddy Waters （who recorded an album of Broonzy-written and Broonzy-associated tracks） and Tampa Red。 Broonzy， seeing which way the wind was blowing in the early 1950s， turned to a folkier musical approach， touring with a folk music review， appearing with Terkel on Chicago radio broadcasts and eventually touring Europe extensively。 Probably because Broonzy's folk years are so well-represented with recordings and writings， Riesman goes into great detail about Broonzy's 1950s life。 As more information about the bluesman is readily available， though， Riesman's analysis and reproduction of song lyrics nearly dries up， other than discussing Broonzy's important "Black， Brown and White Blues" （"They says， 'If you're white， you're all right; If you're brown， stick around。 But if you're black， oh brother， get back， get back， get back'"）。 Riesman sometimes struggles to pinpoint just who Broonzy was， but then Bill seemed to be into clouding the waters anyway。 He's presented as a good， well-loved man， but on a couple of occasions， perhaps understandably， Broonzy shows resentment， notably regarding Chicago music bigwig Lester Melrose and an occasion in Europe when he lets his anger show about how blacks are treated。One of Bill's interesting sojourns was the year he spent as a custodian at what is now Iowa State University in Ames。 Bill sought some healthy country air; he found himself the darling of students and professorial types。For Riesman， the timing of "I Feel So Good" couldn't be better。 Riesman ties in Broonzy's "Just a Dream" lyrics about Bill， as a black man， sitting in the president's chair and shaking his hand （but it was "just a dream"） with having a black man living in the White House in 2010。Riesman's book features some fantastic photos （Bill's always smiling） but precious little in the way of a discography， unfortunately， instead throwing out a few essential discs from Broonzy's various musical periods。All told， a job very well done， though at 255 pages of main text， too short for my tastes。 Hopefully， this work will help spur interest in this fantastic bluesman who undeniably was a giant of the genre but who seems to get shortchanged by the general public， which seems to prefer its bluesmen with hellhounds on their trails。As a final note， I must say that this University of Chicago Press book， a hardcover， is beautiful physically。 My bookseller noted it when I bought it， running her fingers along the inside covers lovingly， saying， in effect， "They don't make books like this anymore。" True。 Nor do they make 'em like Big Bill Broonzy anymore。 。。。more
bertrand
，
This monumental work is one of the very best Blues Bio you can ever own。 Impeccably researched and far reaching in its scope， it is truly a must read for anyone interested in classic and modern Blues history， it's relationship with English Rock'n Roll， Trad Jazz， and the amazing journey of a major African-American American artist。 Much of the Big Bill enigma is revealed， from intimate personal details， to how exactly he was the first solid and long lasting bridge to bring the Blues to Europe in This monumental work is one of the very best Blues Bio you can ever own。 Impeccably researched and far reaching in its scope， it is truly a must read for anyone interested in classic and modern Blues history， it's relationship with English Rock'n Roll， Trad Jazz， and the amazing journey of a major African-American American artist。 Much of the Big Bill enigma is revealed， from intimate personal details， to how exactly he was the first solid and long lasting bridge to bring the Blues to Europe in person and on record。 But what found fascinating is BBB's crucial role in the growth of the early Chicago Blues （and Folk too）scene。 To hear Muddy Waters， Eric Clapton， Little Walter， Ray Davies speak of him with such warmth and emotion is priceless。 I have been a BBB fan for decades。 As with many Europeans in my case， he was my first contact with the Blues， and sparkled a fascination with American music。 I actually moved to the USA and collect， play and teach American Blues and Folk music。 This biography is remarkable in bringing out the Soul of the Man。 Its many surprises and treasures all underline and match what the recordings reveal: a direct honesty， wisdom and self-knowledge we can all draw from。 This outstanding read， while being the best Blues reference book in my collection， is also a deeply soulful， emotional page turner。 I know I will read it again。 With my deepest gratitude， Mr Riesman， thank you。 Bertrand Laurence 。。。more
Jeff
，