We have talked a lot in class about racial politics in music, and what strange forms this can take, such as the minstrel show, remnants of which can still be found now. When we talked in class about the Rolling Stones and their version of Little Walter’s rendition of “I Hate to See You Go,” I wasn’t sure what I thought about it. Was this a way of paying homage to Little Walter, or were the Rolling Stones (even subconsciously) showing a bit of that derogatory minstrelsy attitude? A while back, I listened to a video on YouTube showing Muddy Waters performing at some kind of night club, and the Rolling Stones came in partway through and sat down. It was a very informal type of club, and when Muddy saw them, he called them up to the stage. MIck Jagger, Keith Richards, and one other went up and sang a song with him. I remember thinking how Mick Jagger seemed to be trying to sound just like Muddy, but at the time I thought he was doing this as some kind of tribute. Now, after hearing them do the Little Walter song, I wonder. The impression I’ve been getting throughout class, as we’ve explored the themes of racial politics and boundary transgression, is that there is no straight-forward categorizing of these phenomena. Humans are so complicated, with emotions and attitudes that go all over the place. I believe there is a very complex and strange mix of homage and racial contempt in portrayals such as the Rolling Stones of Muddy Waters and Little Walter. I believe they truly love the Blues style, and respect the great artists of such music, but at the same time, it’s hard to believe that they weren’t in any way influenced by the past, which was filled with racial politics – segregation, minstrelsy, boundaries, etc. The Rolling Stones got their start in the 1960’s, when the world was framed by racial politics. I think this can’t be separated by their appreciation for the music that came out of the African-American tradition.