Songs of Slavery and Emancipation by Mat Callahan

Songs of Slavery and Emancipation by Mat Callahan

Throughout the history of slavery, enslaved people organized resistance, escape, and rebellion. Sustaining them in this struggle was their music, some examples of which are sung to this day. While the existence of slave songs, especially spirituals, is well known, their character is often misunderstood. Slave songs were not only lamentations of suffering or distractions from a life of misery. Some songs openly called for liberty and revolution, celebrating such heroes as Gabriel Prosser and Nat Turner, and, especially, celebrating the Haitian Revolution. The fight for freedom also included fugitive slaves, free Black people, and their white allies who brought forth a set of songs that were once widely disseminated but are now largely forgotten, the songs of the abolitionists. Often composed by fugitive slaves and free Black people, and first appearing in the eighteenth century, these songs continued to be written and sung until the Civil War. As the movement expanded, abolitionists even published song books used at public meetings. Mat Callahan presents recently discovered songs composed by enslaved people explicitly calling for resistance to slavery, some originating as early as 1784 and others as late as the Civil War. He also presents long-lost songs of the abolitionist movement, some written by fugitive slaves and free Black people, challenging common misconceptions of abolitionism. Songs of Slavery and Emancipation features the lyrics of fifteen slave songs and fifteen abolitionist songs, placing them in proper historical context and making them available again to the general public. These songs not only express outrage at slavery but call for militant resistance and destruction of the slave system. There can be no doubt as to their purpose: the abolition of slavery, the emancipation of African American people, and a clear and undeniable demand for equality and justice for all humanity.

Mat Callahan is a practicing musician, and currently lives in Berne, Switzerland, where his day job is as a record producer. As a member of the Looters, pioneers in 'world music, ' he was signed to Island Records, and their self-titled LP sold 100,000. They were the first band ever to tour Nicaragua, following the revolution there, in 1980. Legendary founder of such seminal punk bands as Minor Threat, Embrace, Egg Hunt and Fugazi (Minor Threat and Fugazi have sold literally millions of records!). He is the owner of the fiercely independent Dischord Records, who celebrated their 20th anniversary a few years back. Editor of Rock and Rap Confidential and the most respected political commentators on music. Guitarist and singer in the band Chumbawamba.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781496840189
ISBN 10	1496840186
Title	Songs of Slavery and Emancipation
Author	Mat Callahan
Series	Margaret Walker Alexander Series In African American Studies
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	University Press of Mississippi
Year published	2022-06-15
Number of pages	234
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.