Devil Sent the Rain

In his first book of nonfiction since the seminal post-Katrina meditation Why New Orleans Matters, acclaimed cultural critic Tom Piazza offers a new collection of essays and writings on music, film, literature, and politics, in Devil Sent the Rain. Named for a blues song by the legendary Charley Patton, Devil Sent the Rainfuses Piazza’s passion for and knowledge of American music with his brilliance as a literary writer in a collection of essays, articles, criticism, and interviews. Ranging across the American landscape, Piazza offers profiles of cultural icons and literary pioneers including:

• Reverend Willie Morganfield, cousin to Muddy Waters, who explains the often inscrutable distinction between the sacred and the secular.

• Jimmy Martin, a promethean bluegrass singer explored in Piazza's unforgettable portrait—a finalist for the Ralph J. Gleason award.

• Charlie Chan, the stoic, subversive film hero who offers a model of wisdom in the face of post-flood chaos.

• Norman Mailer, in a discussion of new journalism and national character.

• The heroes of the blues, in a Grammy Award-winning essay written to accompany the boxed audio recordings of Martin Scorsese Presents: The Blues.

• Jimmie Rodgers, Charley Patton, Jelly Roll Morton, Joe Liggins, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and more, in searching profiles.

As Piazza probes the contemporary American landscape, his contextual commentary illuminates the time, place, and cultural moment surrounding each piece in the collection. With flashing insight, style, and wit, Piazza ties together a collection of outstanding journalistic writing with a penetrating understanding of American cultural traditions and the questions we face as readers, listeners, and citizens.