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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following performers will NOT be discussed in Mystery Train?
(a) Chuck Berry.
(b) Sly Stone.
(c) Elvis Presley.
(d) Randy Newman.

2. Why does Marcus believe it is important to study the stories of some performers even if the book does not encompass everything?
(a) The truth needs to be told.
(b) The story matters.
(c) It is a glimpse of the future.
(d) It is fun.

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

4. Who wrote the book discussed in the Prologue?
(a) Nicholas Sparks.
(b) Erich Segal.
(c) John Steinbeck.
(d) Irwin Shaw.

5. In "The Band," what does Marcus point to as the reason that The Band had the influences of many different bands and yet had an original sound?
(a) They were inheritors of rock 'n' roll.
(b) They were musical geniuses.
(c) They studied under many different bands.
(d) They stole from the best and pieced it together.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "The Band," what problem does Marcus reveal about The Band's sense of community?

2. What was the original name of the Band in the early sixties?

3. What is Sam Phillips' profession?

4. What does Marcus say failure mean to Americans in "Robert Johnson -1938"?

5. How did Marcus feel when Elvis was drafted?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to the prologue, what is Greil Marcus' purpose in writing Mystery Train?

2. In "The Band," what is one philosophical assumption that Marcus makes in the section "The Righteous Land"?

3. Why might "The Band" be subtitled "Pilgrim's Progress"?

4. Describe Harmonica Frank. What did he do? What did he look like? What made him unique?

5. According to Marcus in "The Band," how are Harmonica Frank and Robert Johnson relevant to The Band?

6. Describe the example of an artist that Greil Marcus uses in the prologue. Who is an artist and why? Why are the other people in the example not artists?

7. According to Marcus in "Robert Johnson -1938," how are Robert Johnson's songs relevant even today? What artist's keep his spirit and music alive?

8. What imagery does Robert Johnson often use in his music? What do these images convey?

9. Marcus analyzes Robert Johnson's "Stones in My Passway" in "Robert Johnson -1938." What is the song about and what are the tools that Johnson uses to create the mood?

10. How does Greil Marcus define "artist" in the prologue?

(see the answer keys)

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