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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Whom does Marcus claim puts the pieces together to find meaning in the music?
(a) Artists.
(b) Rock 'n' rollers.
(c) The critic.
(d) The audience.

2. In "The Band," Marcus tells that groups are images of what?
(a) Family.
(b) Democracy.
(c) Community.
(d) Hope.

3. From what feeling does Robert Johnson pull his images?
(a) Fear.
(b) Desolation.
(c) Hope.
(d) Anger.

4. What religious group does Marcus compare blues singers to in "Robert Johnson -1938"?
(a) Satanists.
(b) Catholics.
(c) Puritans.
(d) Voodoo.

5. From what song does Marcus quote to introduce the chapter "Robert Johnson -1938"?
(a) "Love in Vain."
(b) "Rip It Up."
(c) "Me and the Devil Blues."
(d) "All Shook Up."

6. In "Robert Johnson - 1938," why do some of Robert Johnson's contemporaries say that Johnson sold his soul to the devil?
(a) He learned to play the blues quickly.
(b) He bragged about it in his songs.
(c) He practiced voodoo.
(d) He began speaking in tongues.

7. What "spirit" does Harmonica Frank have that Marcus believes is truly American?
(a) Unrepentant and free.
(b) Crazy and chaotic.
(c) Tender and free.
(d) Cruel and truthful.

8. According to Marcus, what problem does the storyteller of Stage Fright face?
(a) He cannot find home.
(b) He has lost his love.
(c) He resents his success.
(d) No one helps him when he reaches out.

9. In "The Band," what problem does Marcus reveal about The Band's sense of community?
(a) They struggle to live in it.
(b) They lose themselves in each other.
(c) They had a false sense of community.
(d) They are isolationists.

10. In "The Band," Marcus tells that Robbie Robertson believed the "music" came from where?
(a) The land.
(b) God.
(c) Within.
(d) Nowhere.

11. The Prologue states that Marcus wants to discuss rock 'n' roll in what context?
(a) As American culture.
(b) As youth culture.
(c) As music in general.
(d) As a counterculture.

12. According to the critics Marcus references in "The Band," who was Robbie Robertson's "foil"?
(a) The audience.
(b) Robert Manuel.
(c) The manager.
(d) The Band.

13. What is ironic about rock 'n' roll and democracy?
(a) Each asks people to be something better than they are.
(b) They are both individual and a community.
(c) Neither works in a specific way.
(d) They demand work and play.

14. According to Marcus in "Harmonica Frank -1951," what do both Ahab and Huck have in common?
(a) They go on adventures for the sake of adventure.
(b) They try to escape restraints and authority.
(c) They have aunts who try to civilize them.
(d) They are after a dream that is not real.

15. How did Marcus feel when Elvis was drafted?
(a) Relieved.
(b) Sad.
(c) Angry.
(d) Disappointed.

Short Answer Questions

1. What happened the first day of The Band's first concert after releasing The Band?

2. What song does Marcus claim is Robert Johnson's most terrifying song?

3. According to Marcus, what was country music doing in the early 50s?

4. What type of music did Harmonica Frank sing?

5. Which of the following performers will NOT be discussed in Mystery Train?

(see the answer keys)

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