Twenty-Five Years after 1956: The Heritage of the Hungarian Revolution

For many commentators in both East and West, 1981-the year of the crushing of Solidarity and the inauguration of military rule in Poland was regarded not so much as the twenty-fifth anniversary of the ruthless and bloody repression of the Hungarian revolution of 1956, as the twenty fifth anniversary of the birth of the Kidir regime, reputedly the most liberal political system in Eastern Europe, or 'the happiest barracks in the camp' as it is often called. At the same time, condemnation of the Polish coup was far more restrained than had been that of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968

The Workers' Council of Greater Budapest

With the second Soviet intervention of 4th November the first phase of the Hungarian revolution was brought to a sudden and violent end. The Government of Imre Nagy collapsed, and he and his leading supporters sought refuge in the Yugoslav Embassy. The leaders and spokesmen of the various political parties disappeared from the scene even more quickly than they had arrived upon it. The armed forces of the revolution put up a last ditch defence in both the towns and the countryside, but soon they were either defeated or forced to flee to the West. The revolution, however, was yet far from over. Instead it was to develop into a new phase, a phase in which the leading role was to be taken by the Hungarian working class

Interview with Big Bill Broonzy on Joe Turner

Blues singer and guitarist Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958) was a major figure in Chicago in the 1930s and \u2740s and brought his music to European audiences in the early 1950s. Alan Lomax, who held Broonzy in high esteem, as did many of his colleagues, spent time with him in Chicago and recorded him at the Decca studios in New York in 1946. In 1952 he and Big Bill met again in Paris, where Bill recorded two hours of songs and talk on numerous subjects, from race and pride to black culture in America. Born in Scott County, Mississippi, on the banks of the Mississippi River, William Lee Conley Broonzy learned the violin on a homemade instrument and was playing for social functions by the age of ten. He was briefly a travelling preacher and did a stint in the Army, after which he moved to Chicago and began playing guitar. His recording career, begun with Paramount in 1927, spanned three full decades, taking him from the heart of the Chicago blues scene to the folk revival of the 1950s. He died of throat cancer in 1958

Black, brown, and white blues

In 1947, using his own Presto disc recording machine, Alan Lomax recorded bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958), Memphis Slim (1915-1988), and Sonny Boy Williamson (1914-1948) at Decca Studios in New York City, after they had given a concert at Town Hall. In a session of candid oral history and song, the three artists explain the origin and nature of the blues. \u27They began with blues as a record of the problems of love and women in the Delta world,\u27 Lomax wrote. \u27They explored the cause of this in the stringent poverty of black rural life. They recalled life in the Mississippi work camps, where the penitentiary stood at the end of the road, waiting to receive the rebellious. Finally, they came to the enormities of the lynch system that threatened anyone who defied its rules.\u27 The interviews were issued in a fictionalized form in Common Ground (1948) under the title \u27I Got the Blues,\u27 but they were deemed so controversial that their album release was delayed for ten years. When United Artists finally issued them on LP as Blues in the Mississippi Night in 1959, Alan used pseudonyms to protect the artists and their families. (See the Blues in the Mississippi night CD [Rounder 1860]

Commentary by Big Bill Broonzy on racism and amorous relationships

In 1947, using his own Presto disc recording machine, Alan Lomax recorded bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958), Memphis Slim (1915-1988), and Sonny Boy Williamson (1914-1948) at Decca Studios in New York City, after they had given a concert at Town Hall. In a session of candid oral history and song, the three artists explain the origin and nature of the blues. \u27They began with blues as a record of the problems of love and women in the Delta world,\u27 Lomax wrote. \u27They explored the cause of this in the stringent poverty of black rural life. They recalled life in the Mississippi work camps, where the penitentiary stood at the end of the road, waiting to receive the rebellious. Finally, they came to the enormities of the lynch system that threatened anyone who defied its rules.\u27 The interviews were issued in a fictionalized form in Common Ground (1948) under the title \u27I Got the Blues,\u27 but they were deemed so controversial that their album release was delayed for ten years. When United Artists finally issued them on LP as Blues in the Mississippi Night in 1959, Alan used pseudonyms to protect the artists and their families. (See the Blues in the Mississippi night CD [Rounder 1860]

In a shanty in old shanty town (false start)

Blues singer and guitarist Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958) was a major figure in Chicago in the 1930s and \u2740s and brought his music to European audiences in the early 1950s. Alan Lomax, who held Broonzy in high esteem, as did many of his colleagues, spent time with him in Chicago and recorded him at the Decca studios in New York in 1946. In 1952 he and Big Bill met again in Paris, where Bill recorded two hours of songs and talk on numerous subjects, from race and pride to black culture in America. Born in Scott County, Mississippi, on the banks of the Mississippi River, William Lee Conley Broonzy learned the violin on a homemade instrument and was playing for social functions by the age of ten. He was briefly a travelling preacher and did a stint in the Army, after which he moved to Chicago and began playing guitar. His recording career, begun with Paramount in 1927, spanned three full decades, taking him from the heart of the Chicago blues scene to the folk revival of the 1950s. He died of throat cancer in 1958

Commentary by Big Bill Broonzy on racism and leaving the South

In 1947, using his own Presto disc recording machine, Alan Lomax recorded bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958), Memphis Slim (1915-1988), and Sonny Boy Williamson (1914-1948) at Decca Studios in New York City, after they had given a concert at Town Hall. In a session of candid oral history and song, the three artists explain the origin and nature of the blues. \u27They began with blues as a record of the problems of love and women in the Delta world,\u27 Lomax wrote. \u27They explored the cause of this in the stringent poverty of black rural life. They recalled life in the Mississippi work camps, where the penitentiary stood at the end of the road, waiting to receive the rebellious. Finally, they came to the enormities of the lynch system that threatened anyone who defied its rules.\u27 The interviews were issued in a fictionalized form in Common Ground (1948) under the title \u27I Got the Blues,\u27 but they were deemed so controversial that their album release was delayed for ten years. When United Artists finally issued them on LP as Blues in the Mississippi Night in 1959, Alan used pseudonyms to protect the artists and their families. (See the Blues in the Mississippi night CD [Rounder 1860]

Interview with Big Bill Broonzy on black men and white women, sex, and relationships

Blues singer and guitarist Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958) was a major figure in Chicago in the 1930s and \u2740s and brought his music to European audiences in the early 1950s. Alan Lomax, who held Broonzy in high esteem, as did many of his colleagues, spent time with him in Chicago and recorded him at the Decca studios in New York in 1946. In 1952 he and Big Bill met again in Paris, where Bill recorded two hours of songs and talk on numerous subjects, from race and pride to black culture in America. Born in Scott County, Mississippi, on the banks of the Mississippi River, William Lee Conley Broonzy learned the violin on a homemade instrument and was playing for social functions by the age of ten. He was briefly a travelling preacher and did a stint in the Army, after which he moved to Chicago and began playing guitar. His recording career, begun with Paramount in 1927, spanned three full decades, taking him from the heart of the Chicago blues scene to the folk revival of the 1950s. He died of throat cancer in 1958

Interview with Big Bill Broonzy on the language and origins of the blues, Southern black identity, and blues musicianship

Blues singer and guitarist Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958) was a major figure in Chicago in the 1930s and \u2740s and brought his music to European audiences in the early 1950s. Alan Lomax, who held Broonzy in high esteem, as did many of his colleagues, spent time with him in Chicago and recorded him at the Decca studios in New York in 1946. In 1952 he and Big Bill met again in Paris, where Bill recorded two hours of songs and talk on numerous subjects, from race and pride to black culture in America. Born in Scott County, Mississippi, on the banks of the Mississippi River, William Lee Conley Broonzy learned the violin on a homemade instrument and was playing for social functions by the age of ten. He was briefly a travelling preacher and did a stint in the Army, after which he moved to Chicago and began playing guitar. His recording career, begun with Paramount in 1927, spanned three full decades, taking him from the heart of the Chicago blues scene to the folk revival of the 1950s. He died of throat cancer in 1958

Commentary by Big Bill Broonzy on his career in the Army

In 1947, using his own Presto disc recording machine, Alan Lomax recorded bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958), Memphis Slim (1915-1988), and Sonny Boy Williamson (1914-1948) at Decca Studios in New York City, after they had given a concert at Town Hall. In a session of candid oral history and song, the three artists explain the origin and nature of the blues. \u27They began with blues as a record of the problems of love and women in the Delta world,\u27 Lomax wrote. \u27They explored the cause of this in the stringent poverty of black rural life. They recalled life in the Mississippi work camps, where the penitentiary stood at the end of the road, waiting to receive the rebellious. Finally, they came to the enormities of the lynch system that threatened anyone who defied its rules.\u27 The interviews were issued in a fictionalized form in Common Ground (1948) under the title \u27I Got the Blues,\u27 but they were deemed so controversial that their album release was delayed for ten years. When United Artists finally issued them on LP as Blues in the Mississippi Night in 1959, Alan used pseudonyms to protect the artists and their families. (See the Blues in the Mississippi night CD [Rounder 1860]