Question

Which line from “The Railroad Earth” best illustrates the influence of American blues and jazz on Kerouac’s style?
I put the light out on the sad dab mad grub little diving room and hustle out into the fog of the flow
O well anyway I'll be learning eventually to like the railroad and Sherman will like me some day
I had heard that peanut butter and lettuce contained all the vitamins you should want
But it was that beautiful cut of clouds I could always see above the little S.P. alley

Answer 1

"I put the light out on the sad dab mad grub little diving room and hustle out into the fog of the flow"

This line’s clipped, syncopated cadence, repetitive consonance and improvisatory diction ("sad dab mad grub," "hustle...fog of the flow") echoes jazz/blues rhythms and scat‑like phrasing — a hallmark of Kerouac’s spontaneous, music‑influenced prose.