Up next, is the story of how a band from Cincinnati name Ram Jam changed an African American labor chant, with a debated origin, into a rip-roaring guitar track that became an international smash and is now a standard of 70s classic rock, having been covered many times since. The stunning transformation & history of “Black Betty” NEXT on Professor of Rock.

Thank you to this Episodes Sponsor, Zenni Optical
Incredible Prices on New Glasses - [ Ссылка ]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Executive Producer
Brandon Fugal

Honorary Producers
Jacob Flores, Walter O. Wright II, Tom Stokes, Shayne Smith
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Check Out My Hand Picked Selection Below

Professor's 80s Store

- 100 Best Selling Albums [ Ссылка ]
- Ultimate History of 80s Teen Movie [ Ссылка ]
- 80s to 90s VHS Video Cover Art [ Ссылка ]
- Totally Awesome 80s A Lexicon [ Ссылка ]
- Best In Ear Headphones (I Use These Every Day) [ Ссылка ]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Check Out The Professor of Rock Merch Store - [ Ссылка ]

Access To Backstage Content
Become a Patron - [ Ссылка ]

Purchase The Albums
Help out the Channel by purchasing your albums through our links! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you, thank you for your support.

Purchase Here

Box Set: [ Ссылка ]
Slippery When Wet: [ Ссылка ]

Click here for Premium Content: [ Ссылка ]

[ Ссылка ]

[ Ссылка ]

​#70s​ #RocknRoll​ #Story

Up next, is the story of how a band from Cincinnati name Ram Jam changed an African American labor chant, with a debated origin, into a rip-roaring guitar track that became an international smash and is now a standard of 70s classic rock, having been covered many times since. The stunning transformation & history of “Black Betty” NEXT on Professor of Rock.

Hey music junkies and vinyl junkies Professor of Rock always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest 70s vinyl songs of all time for the music community and vinyl community.
If you’ve ever owned records, cassettes and CD’s at different times in you life or still do this is your place Subscribe below right now to be a part of our daily celebration of the rock era with exclusive stories from straight from the artists and click on our patreon link in the description to see our brand new show there.

The origin and meaning of the term “Black Betty” has been contested for well over a century. Research finds that one of the earliest accounts of the expression “Black Betty” goes all the way back to the ’Newton of Electricity’- Benjamin Franklin.

Yes, one of the first rock star personalities, and founding fathers of the United States, allegedly used the name “Black Betty” in 1736 while referring to liquor. “Black Betty” was also synonymous with a bottle of whiskey as early as 17th century London, and the British coined “Black Betty” as the nickname for a specific old-timey musket with black paint.

The Library of Congress has transcribed notes that ‘Black Betty’ was a ‘tree cutting song’ in the 1700s.

Add to the master list that “Black Betty” was a euphemism in the backcountry of Eastern America, a term for a sultry woman, a wagon transferring convicts, and the nickname for a dreaded whip that was brutally administered in southern prisons.

The provenance of the song “Black Betty” is just as debated and interesting as the origination of the expression.
Many historians claim that “Black Betty” became a marching cadence that was chanted, or sang, by African American slaves in the 18th century.

By the 20th century, there was no doubt that “Black Betty” had become a labor chant with some convicts in prison yards & chain gangs in the south.

The “Black Betty” chant evolved into a song that was first recorded in 1933- performed by blues musician James Baker, who was better known in those days as ‘Iron Head’ Baker. The song was first recorded in the field by U.S. musicologists John and Alan Lomax

свернуть