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W C Handy sees a bluesman playing a guitar with a knife at a train station in Mississippi
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U.S. enters World War I which increases the internal migration of African Americans
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Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey make recording debuts
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Blind Lemon Jefferson is first recorderd. He will dominant the blues scene of the 1920's
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Blind Willie Johnson records in Dallas, Tx which blurs the lines between blues and gospel
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The Wall Street Crash of 1929 begins the Great Depression. This cripples the recording industry.
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Robert Johnson a legendary Delta Bluesman begins his recording career.
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The first music is recorded with the electric guitar. This sound is a hallmark of the Chicago/Detroit blues
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Muddy Waters makes first recording at Stovall's Farm in Mississippi.
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The U.S. enters World War II which creates more opportunities for African Americans in the urban centers of the North
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Muddy Waters makes first recording in Chicago which links the Mississippi Delta Blues with urban styles
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Billboard magazine substitutes the term "rhythm and blues" for the older "race" records
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B.B. King has first "rhythm and blues" hit with "Three O'Clock Blues".
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Elvis debuts with a recording of Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's "Thats All Right" which starts the Rock N Roll movement
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Eric Clapton and the Yardbirds record John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom" in England which spreads the Blues to England and Europe
