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Article: The 25 Most Important Events In Black Music History.
- Article from:
- Ebony
- Article date:
- June 1, 2000
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2000 Johnson Publishing Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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FOR four centuries, from the arrival of the first Blacks in English America in 1619 to the hip-hops of the Millennium, African-Americans have dominated American music and dance. Black music, in fact, is America's only original music, and the Spirituals-Blues-Jazz-Gospel-Charleston-Twist-Hip Hop gift is the foundation not only of rhythm and blues but also of Broadway, the Grammys and Elvis et al. And we can say of this gift what Virgil Thomson said of jazz: It is "the most astounding spontaneous musical event to take place anywhere since the Reformation." Here, then, in honor of Black (American) Music Month are 25--we could have listed 1,000--of the greatest moments of a ...