-@ seven colonias in and around the city lost power after muddy floodwaters entered a substation . Throughout Oaxaca , at least a dozen homes lost their roofs due to high winds . Portions of Colima , Chiapas , Michoacán and Jalisco experienced heavy rains ; however , in many areas , the rain proved beneficial in mitigating a severe drought .   = The Bourgeois Blues =   " The Bourgeois Blues " is a blues song by American folk and blues musician , Lead Belly . It was written in June 1937 in response to the discrimination and segregation that Lead Belly faced during a visit to Washington , DC to record for Alan Lomax . It rails against racism , the Jim Crow laws , and the conditions of contemporary African Americans in the southern United States .   The song was recorded in December 1938 for the Library of Congress and re @-@ recorded in 1939 for commercial release . It has been remixed and covered by a number of artists including Pete Seeger , Ry Cooder , Hans Theessink , and Billy Bragg .   " The Bourgeois Blues " is regarded as one of Lead Belly 's best original works , but it also drew controversy . There is doubt over the song 's authorship , with some scholars contending that Lead Belly was unlikely to have written a work in a genre new to him without a collaborator . Questions have been raised over his role in the American Communist Party and whether he and the song were used to further the party 's political goals .   = = Background and creation = =   Most music historians date the writing of " The Bourgeois Blues " to Lead Belly 's June 1937 trip to Washington , DC , when he was invited by the folklorist Alan Lomax to record for the Library of Congress 's folk music collection . On the first night Lead Belly and his wife Martha spent in the city , they encountered racially discriminatory Jim Crow laws similar to those found in their native Louisiana : most hotels refused to rent rooms to African Americans and the few that would were either full or refused to serve him because he was with a white man ( Lomax ) . Lomax , in some versions of the story described as an unnamed " white friend " , offered to let the couple stay for the night in his apartment near the Supreme Court Building . The next morning , Lead Belly awoke to Lomax arguing with his landlord about the presence of a black man , with the landlord threatening to call the police .   While in Washington , Lead Belly encountered several other incidents of segregation that are believed to have contributed to the impetus of the song . For instance , when Lead Belly , Lomax , and their wives wanted to go out to dinner together , they discovered that it was impossible for the mixed race group to find a restaurant that would serve them . Lead Belly was told that if he returned later without Lomax , he would be served .   In response to one of these incidents , a friend of Lead Belly 's , variously identified as either Lomax or Mary Elizabeth Barnicle joked that Washington was a " bourgeois town . " Though Lead Belly did not know what the word " bourgeois " meant , he was fascinated by the sound of it , and after its meaning was explained to him he decided to incorporate it into a song about the trip . The song came together quickly ; one account claims that it only took a few hours for Lead Belly to write it . Lomax liked it because it was partly based on what happened in his apartment .   = = Lyrics , themes and music = =   " The Bourgeois Blues " is a blues @-@ style protest song that criticizes the culture of Washington , DC . It protests against both the city 's Jim Crow laws and the racism of its white population . Its structure includes several verses and a refrain that declares that the speaker is going to " spread the news all around " about the racial issues plaguing the city . The song , particularly in the refrain , conflates race and economics by referring to Caucasians as " bourgeois " .   The first two verses speak of the segregation that Lead Belly encountered in Washington DC : the first recounts the fact that during the trip , Lead Belly was " turned down " wherever he tried to get served due to his race , while the second recounts the argument between Lomax and his landlord over Lead Belly staying in his apartment . The third verse sarcastically cites " the home of the brave , the land of the Free " , juxtaposed with the mistreatment he received at the hands of white people in Washington , DC . The fourth verse speaks of the racism of the white population of the city , leading to the song 's end , which suggests that African Americans boycott buying homes in the district .   The song 's tone implies that the speaker feels powerless against the discrimination and racism that he encounters ; despite this , by " spreading the news " of
- @ Ġseven Ġcolon ias Ġin Ġand Ġaround Ġthe Ġcity Ġlost Ġpower Ġafter Ġmuddy Ġflood waters Ġentered Ġa Ġsubst ation Ġ. ĠThroughout ĠO ax aca Ġ, Ġat Ġleast Ġa Ġdozen Ġhomes Ġlost Ġtheir Ġroofs Ġdue Ġto Ġhigh Ġwinds Ġ. ĠPort ions Ġof ĠCol ima Ġ, ĠChi ap as Ġ, ĠMich o ac Ã¡n Ġand ĠJal isco Ġexperienced Ġheavy Ġrains Ġ; Ġhowever Ġ, Ġin Ġmany Ġareas Ġ, Ġthe Ġrain Ġproved Ġbeneficial Ġin Ġmitigating Ġa Ġsevere Ġdrought Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= ĠThe ĠB ourgeois ĠBlues Ġ= Ġ Ġ Ġ" ĠThe ĠB ourgeois ĠBlues Ġ" Ġis Ġa Ġblues Ġsong Ġby ĠAmerican Ġfolk Ġand Ġblues Ġmusician Ġ, ĠLead ĠB elly Ġ. ĠIt Ġwas Ġwritten Ġin ĠJune Ġ1937 Ġin Ġresponse Ġto Ġthe Ġdiscrimination Ġand Ġsegregation Ġthat ĠLead ĠB elly Ġfaced Ġduring Ġa Ġvisit Ġto ĠWashington Ġ, ĠDC Ġto Ġrecord Ġfor ĠAlan ĠL om ax Ġ. ĠIt Ġrails Ġagainst Ġracism Ġ, Ġthe ĠJim ĠCrow Ġlaws Ġ, Ġand Ġthe Ġconditions Ġof Ġcontemporary ĠAfrican ĠAmericans Ġin Ġthe Ġsouthern ĠUnited ĠStates Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġsong Ġwas Ġrecorded Ġin ĠDecember Ġ1938 Ġfor Ġthe ĠLibrary Ġof ĠCongress Ġand Ġre Ġ@ - @ Ġrecorded Ġin Ġ1939 Ġfor Ġcommercial Ġrelease Ġ. ĠIt Ġhas Ġbeen Ġrem ixed Ġand Ġcovered Ġby Ġa Ġnumber Ġof Ġartists Ġincluding ĠPete ĠSee ger Ġ, ĠRy ĠC ood er Ġ, ĠHans ĠThe ess ink Ġ, Ġand ĠBilly ĠBr agg Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ" ĠThe ĠB ourgeois ĠBlues Ġ" Ġis Ġregarded Ġas Ġone Ġof ĠLead ĠB elly Ġ' s Ġbest Ġoriginal Ġworks Ġ, Ġbut Ġit Ġalso Ġdrew Ġcontroversy Ġ. ĠThere Ġis Ġdoubt Ġover Ġthe Ġsong Ġ' s Ġauthors hip Ġ, Ġwith Ġsome Ġscholars Ġcont ending Ġthat ĠLead ĠB elly Ġwas Ġunlikely Ġto Ġhave Ġwritten Ġa Ġwork Ġin Ġa Ġgenre Ġnew Ġto Ġhim Ġwithout Ġa Ġcollaborator Ġ. ĠQuestions Ġhave Ġbeen Ġraised Ġover Ġhis Ġrole Ġin Ġthe ĠAmerican ĠCommunist ĠParty Ġand Ġwhether Ġhe Ġand Ġthe Ġsong Ġwere Ġused Ġto Ġfurther Ġthe Ġparty Ġ' s Ġpolitical Ġgoals Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠBackground Ġand Ġcreation Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠMost Ġmusic Ġhistorians Ġdate Ġthe Ġwriting Ġof Ġ" ĠThe ĠB ourgeois ĠBlues Ġ" Ġto ĠLead ĠB elly Ġ' s ĠJune Ġ1937 Ġtrip Ġto ĠWashington Ġ, ĠDC Ġ, Ġwhen Ġhe Ġwas Ġinvited Ġby Ġthe Ġfolk lor ist ĠAlan ĠL om ax Ġto Ġrecord Ġfor Ġthe ĠLibrary Ġof ĠCongress Ġ' s Ġfolk Ġmusic Ġcollection Ġ. ĠOn Ġthe Ġfirst Ġnight ĠLead ĠB elly Ġand Ġhis Ġwife ĠMartha Ġspent Ġin Ġthe Ġcity Ġ, Ġthey Ġencountered Ġracially Ġdiscriminatory ĠJim ĠCrow Ġlaws Ġsimilar Ġto Ġthose Ġfound Ġin Ġtheir Ġnative ĠLouisiana Ġ: Ġmost Ġhotels Ġrefused Ġto Ġrent Ġrooms Ġto ĠAfrican ĠAmericans Ġand Ġthe Ġfew Ġthat Ġwould Ġwere Ġeither Ġfull Ġor Ġrefused Ġto Ġserve Ġhim Ġbecause Ġhe Ġwas Ġwith Ġa Ġwhite Ġman Ġ( ĠL om ax Ġ) Ġ. ĠL om ax Ġ, Ġin Ġsome Ġversions Ġof Ġthe Ġstory Ġdescribed Ġas Ġan Ġunnamed Ġ" Ġwhite Ġfriend Ġ" Ġ, Ġoffered Ġto Ġlet Ġthe Ġcouple Ġstay Ġfor Ġthe Ġnight Ġin Ġhis Ġapartment Ġnear Ġthe ĠSupreme ĠCourt ĠBuilding Ġ. ĠThe Ġnext Ġmorning Ġ, ĠLead ĠB elly Ġawoke Ġto ĠL om ax Ġarguing Ġwith Ġhis Ġlandlord Ġabout Ġthe Ġpresence Ġof Ġa Ġblack Ġman Ġ, Ġwith Ġthe Ġlandlord Ġthreatening Ġto Ġcall Ġthe Ġpolice Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠWhile Ġin ĠWashington Ġ, ĠLead ĠB elly Ġencountered Ġseveral Ġother Ġincidents Ġof Ġsegregation Ġthat Ġare Ġbelieved Ġto Ġhave Ġcontributed Ġto Ġthe Ġimpetus Ġof Ġthe Ġsong Ġ. ĠFor Ġinstance Ġ, Ġwhen ĠLead ĠB elly Ġ, ĠL om ax Ġ, Ġand Ġtheir Ġwives Ġwanted Ġto Ġgo Ġout Ġto Ġdinner Ġtogether Ġ, Ġthey Ġdiscovered Ġthat Ġit Ġwas Ġimpossible Ġfor Ġthe Ġmixed Ġrace Ġgroup Ġto Ġfind Ġa Ġrestaurant Ġthat Ġwould Ġserve Ġthem Ġ. ĠLead ĠB elly Ġwas Ġtold Ġthat Ġif Ġhe Ġreturned Ġlater Ġwithout ĠL om ax Ġ, Ġhe Ġwould Ġbe Ġserved Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġresponse Ġto Ġone Ġof Ġthese Ġincidents Ġ, Ġa Ġfriend Ġof ĠLead ĠB elly Ġ' s Ġ, Ġvarious ly Ġidentified Ġas Ġeither ĠL om ax Ġor ĠMary ĠElizabeth ĠBarn icle Ġjoked Ġthat ĠWashington Ġwas Ġa Ġ" Ġbourgeois Ġtown Ġ. Ġ" ĠThough ĠLead ĠB elly Ġdid Ġnot Ġknow Ġwhat Ġthe Ġword Ġ" Ġbourgeois Ġ" Ġmeant Ġ, Ġhe Ġwas Ġfascinated Ġby Ġthe Ġsound Ġof Ġit Ġ, Ġand Ġafter Ġits Ġmeaning Ġwas Ġexplained Ġto Ġhim Ġhe Ġdecided Ġto Ġincorporate Ġit Ġinto Ġa Ġsong Ġabout Ġthe Ġtrip Ġ. ĠThe Ġsong Ġcame Ġtogether Ġquickly Ġ; Ġone Ġaccount Ġclaims Ġthat Ġit Ġonly Ġtook Ġa Ġfew Ġhours Ġfor ĠLead ĠB elly Ġto Ġwrite Ġit Ġ. ĠL om ax Ġliked Ġit Ġbecause Ġit Ġwas Ġpartly Ġbased Ġon Ġwhat Ġhappened Ġin Ġhis Ġapartment Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠL yrics Ġ, Ġthemes Ġand Ġmusic Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ Ġ" ĠThe ĠB ourgeois ĠBlues Ġ" Ġis Ġa Ġblues Ġ@ - @ Ġstyle Ġprotest Ġsong Ġthat Ġcritic izes Ġthe Ġculture Ġof ĠWashington Ġ, ĠDC Ġ. ĠIt Ġprotests Ġagainst Ġboth Ġthe Ġcity Ġ' s ĠJim ĠCrow Ġlaws Ġand Ġthe Ġracism Ġof Ġits Ġwhite Ġpopulation Ġ. ĠIts Ġstructure Ġincludes Ġseveral Ġverses Ġand Ġa Ġrefrain Ġthat Ġdeclares Ġthat Ġthe Ġspeaker Ġis Ġgoing Ġto Ġ" Ġspread Ġthe Ġnews Ġall Ġaround Ġ" Ġabout Ġthe Ġracial Ġissues Ġplag uing Ġthe Ġcity Ġ. ĠThe Ġsong Ġ, Ġparticularly Ġin Ġthe Ġrefrain Ġ, Ġconf l ates Ġrace Ġand Ġeconomics Ġby Ġreferring Ġto ĠCaucas ians Ġas Ġ" Ġbourgeois Ġ" Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġfirst Ġtwo Ġverses Ġspeak Ġof Ġthe Ġsegregation Ġthat ĠLead ĠB elly Ġencountered Ġin ĠWashington ĠDC Ġ: Ġthe Ġfirst Ġrecounts Ġthe Ġfact Ġthat Ġduring Ġthe Ġtrip Ġ, ĠLead ĠB elly Ġwas Ġ" Ġturned Ġdown Ġ" Ġwherever Ġhe Ġtried Ġto Ġget Ġserved Ġdue Ġto Ġhis Ġrace Ġ, Ġwhile Ġthe Ġsecond Ġrecounts Ġthe Ġargument Ġbetween ĠL om ax Ġand Ġhis Ġlandlord Ġover ĠLead ĠB elly Ġstaying Ġin Ġhis Ġapartment Ġ. ĠThe Ġthird Ġverse Ġsarcast ically Ġcites Ġ" Ġthe Ġhome Ġof Ġthe Ġbrave Ġ, Ġthe Ġland Ġof Ġthe ĠFree Ġ" Ġ, Ġjuxtap osed Ġwith Ġthe Ġmist reatment Ġhe Ġreceived Ġat Ġthe Ġhands Ġof Ġwhite Ġpeople Ġin ĠWashington Ġ, ĠDC Ġ. ĠThe Ġfourth Ġverse Ġspeaks Ġof Ġthe Ġracism Ġof Ġthe Ġwhite Ġpopulation Ġof Ġthe Ġcity Ġ, Ġleading Ġto Ġthe Ġsong Ġ' s Ġend Ġ, Ġwhich Ġsuggests Ġthat ĠAfrican ĠAmericans Ġboycott Ġbuying Ġhomes Ġin Ġthe Ġdistrict Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġsong Ġ' s Ġtone Ġimplies Ġthat Ġthe Ġspeaker Ġfeels Ġpowerless Ġagainst Ġthe Ġdiscrimination Ġand Ġracism Ġthat Ġhe Ġencounters Ġ; Ġdespite Ġthis Ġ, Ġby Ġ" Ġspreading Ġthe Ġnews Ġ" Ġof