Note: Africa is the most musical continent -- harmony and counterpoint originated there and it is the home of the most complex rhythmic patterns. In this hemisphere, African-Americans adopted the solo unaccompanied four-line European ballad form, producing songs like "John Henry," " Boll Weevil," "Casey Jones," "Down In The Valley," etc. Almost all the best known American songs came out of this creative adaptation of the European four-line strophic song.