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Re-Searching Black Music (review)

Jon Michael Spencer's latest book may be taken as an extended introductory essay to his theory of theomusicology. His tide invites us to "re-search" the subject and nature of black music; that is, Spencer asks his readers to begin again their consideration ofAfrican American musical traditions from a new, and in his opinion, fundamental standpoint—theomusicology. Defining this standpoint takes up much of Spencer's book. He contends that religion or spirituality together with rhythm (and thereby music) are the two pillars of human society and ofAfrican American society in particular. No study of music is complete without this understanding, and all studies ofmusic that do not acknowledge the centrality of religion are flawed. In arguing this point, Spencer shows how even the most secular forms ofAfrican American music, particularly the blues, are manifestations of the sacred, and that in fact the dichotomy between secular and sacred is a false one, that both heaven and hell are God's dominion. In expressing his understanding of the interconnectedness of the spiritual and worldly realms, Spencer employs a number of analogies or metaphors, from the circularity of the African American ring-shout to the return of the prodigal son. This circularity, however, defines Spencer's argument as much as his subject,