What do you think?
A Meeting At The Crossroads: Robert Johnson and The Devil
The story of bluesman Robert Johnson and his deal with the Devil at the crossroads is one of the core myths at the heart of both blues and rock 'n' roll.
In A Meeting At The Crossroads, Matt Frederick explores the history and meaning of the myth, from the Mississippi Delta to the crossroads gods of ancient times.
In A Meeting At The Crossroads, Matt Frederick explores the history and meaning of the myth, from the Mississippi Delta to the crossroads gods of ancient times.
158 pages, Paperback
Published March 14, 2022
About the author
Matt Frederick
1 book1 followerMatt Frederick is a writer, broadcaster and DJ based in Melbourne, Australia.
He graduated with Honours from La Trobe University with a BA majoring in Philosophy and Studies in Western Traditions.
A life-long lover of the blues, he hosts the weekly program The Juke Joint on PBS 106.7fm.
He graduated with Honours from La Trobe University with a BA majoring in Philosophy and Studies in Western Traditions.
A life-long lover of the blues, he hosts the weekly program The Juke Joint on PBS 106.7fm.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 23, 2022
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Not what I expected, but well done. The author seems to have strong knowledge in many areas. Here, we've got a book about early blues player Robert Johnson that devotes a long chapter to pretty thorough knowledge of several flavors of "Ancient" mythology (Greek, Roman, Scandinavian, South American, African & American). Plus significant mentions of Blues based rock & a strong primer on other acoustic blues players of the era.
I personally think a meal with Mr Fredrick would be fascinating. I have a reasonable awareness of many of the "offshoot" subjects covered in this book, & I didn't encounter a single factual error to the best of my knowledge.
The book is a bit on the academic side, but not so far that an average person won't enjoy it. The main topics are the entire realm of 20's & 30's Delta blues (though the author also shows a strong knowledge of Blues at least through the 60's & blues based rock through the mid 70's), & the whole Crossroads myth. It did seem at times that too much energy was spent tying almost everything in the book to the Crossroads mythology, though I never get tired of hearing about Cream!
A lot of time was also spent on Robert Johnson, but I would have liked to see more time spent on RJ & less on his contemporaries. On the positive side, if a beginner wants a primer on early acoustic blues, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better place to start.
This is 100% my fault, but before choosing to review this book while glancing at the description, I somehow mistakenly got the impression this was a fictional dramatic biography of RJ. Re-reading the description, I have no idea how I got that impression. The fact is, while I love many of the rock covers of RJ's songs, & I am a fan of blues; I'm not a fan of his original recordings. IMO, the guitar playing just isn't that good.
If you feel differently, you will LOVE this book. As it is, I read it fairly quickly, & due to the author's strong knowledge of his various subjects, I did enjoy it.
Not what I expected, but well done. The author seems to have strong knowledge in many areas. Here, we've got a book about early blues player Robert Johnson that devotes a long chapter to pretty thorough knowledge of several flavors of "Ancient" mythology (Greek, Roman, Scandinavian, South American, African & American). Plus significant mentions of Blues based rock & a strong primer on other acoustic blues players of the era.
I personally think a meal with Mr Fredrick would be fascinating. I have a reasonable awareness of many of the "offshoot" subjects covered in this book, & I didn't encounter a single factual error to the best of my knowledge.
The book is a bit on the academic side, but not so far that an average person won't enjoy it. The main topics are the entire realm of 20's & 30's Delta blues (though the author also shows a strong knowledge of Blues at least through the 60's & blues based rock through the mid 70's), & the whole Crossroads myth. It did seem at times that too much energy was spent tying almost everything in the book to the Crossroads mythology, though I never get tired of hearing about Cream!
A lot of time was also spent on Robert Johnson, but I would have liked to see more time spent on RJ & less on his contemporaries. On the positive side, if a beginner wants a primer on early acoustic blues, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better place to start.
This is 100% my fault, but before choosing to review this book while glancing at the description, I somehow mistakenly got the impression this was a fictional dramatic biography of RJ. Re-reading the description, I have no idea how I got that impression. The fact is, while I love many of the rock covers of RJ's songs, & I am a fan of blues; I'm not a fan of his original recordings. IMO, the guitar playing just isn't that good.
If you feel differently, you will LOVE this book. As it is, I read it fairly quickly, & due to the author's strong knowledge of his various subjects, I did enjoy it.
April 12, 2022
A meeting at the crossroads is a well researched updated version of Robert Johnson and his dealings with the devil. At a lonely cross roads in Mississippi Robert Johnson got the ability to play the guitar and he played it so good the people believed him when he said he sold his soul to the devil. In this book Matt Frederick introduces us to friends of Johnson that I had never heard of before and I read a lot about the guitar player. I think this shines a whole new light on Robert Johnson, his talent end premature death. This is a great book and one that should be in any music lovers library. I will absolutely state if you do not have this book then any collection of Robert Johnson would be incomplete. It was well researched, well told and it’s a book I highly recommend. I was given this book by book sirens and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Please forgive any grammatical or punctuation errors, Because I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are my own.
March 30, 2022
I would like to thank Book Sirens for a copy of this book.
This book was interesting. It was an unvarnished look at the life of Robert Johnson which I have wondered about for some time. I would have preferred more information about the Blues players of this time and less about Norse mythology or any other mythologies. It was still worth the read for the good information
This book was interesting. It was an unvarnished look at the life of Robert Johnson which I have wondered about for some time. I would have preferred more information about the Blues players of this time and less about Norse mythology or any other mythologies. It was still worth the read for the good information
August 9, 2022
A great introduction to the history of The Blues, Robert Johnson and the impact and interrelationships of music, Voodoo and religious culture in the Deep South. A great read
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews