Professor Brown Shoes Teaches the Blues
a novel by David Mutti Clark
Professor Browns Shoes, Purveyor of the Blues, is an ancient black man who teaches piano. He whispers to his students, " . . . listen for the melody, that tune way deep inside." The Professor is mythical and magical; he represents the bluesmen who came before rock and roll, the ones who enriched our musical heritage and died in the poor house.
As a modern-day griot, as a troubadour for troubled times, Professor Brown Shoes travels a circuit in the West, teaching the blues. In a small, white Idaho town, he meets a suicidal man, Robert Workman, who can't shake his funk. Robert has never recovered from that fateful day when he was downsized; the day he lost his wife, his daughter, his home, and his job in California. Robert relocated to Idaho to work for a government laboratory. He thought he'd be able to return home in a year. But he never did. It's been ten years. So he thinks he might as well kill the pain by killing himself. Robert makes a final, desperate cry for help and meets Professor Brown Shoes. With the helps of the Professor, Robert attempts to regain his life.
Professor Brown Shoes Teaches the Blues is available as an ebook from