Memphis Minnie was among the greatest blues artist of
all time.
________
Mamie Smith, one of the several unrelated Smith women,
had the
distinction of recording "Crazy Blues" in 1920, generally
considered to
be the very first blues recording. She also had a successful
career in films.
________
Bessie Smith's records were invariably made in New York,
where
optimal studio conditions prevailed and where the broad resonance
of her
magnificent voice could best be captured. She rarely used more
than two
or three musicians to back her; often she was satisfied with
simple piano
accompaniments, which allowed minimum distraction from her
singing. Still
her best efforts usually involved larger groups, mostly drawn
from pianist
Fletcher Henderson's orchestra.
________
"Ma" Rainey, (Gertrude Pridgett) one of the most
important and influential of all
female blues artists.
Ida Cox - Although she was not in the same league as
Ma Rainey or
Bessie Smith, Ida Cox was an extremely good singer and
writer who
recorded
a number of outstanding items.
Sippie Wallace - A member of the famous Thomas family
of Texas,
Sippie Wallace enjoyed a good deal of success her second time
around,
during the blues revival of the 1960s.
Hociel Thomas, another member of the famed Thomas
family, was
a boogie-woogie pianist who carried on the tradition of her
short-lived
uncle, Hersal Thomas.
________
Addie (Sweet Pease) Spivey, who also recorded under the
name of
Hannah Mae, was generally found in the company of jazz players
who had a
bent for the blues.
________
Victoria Spivey's recording career started at around age
sixteen,
with her very first effort, "Black Snake Blues," quickly becoming
a blues staple. She made numerous recordings and was accompanied
by such
musical giants as Lonnie Johnson, King Oliver, Louis
Armstrong,
and Henry
"Red" Allen. She enjoyed renewed fame during the blues
revival of
the 1960s.
________
Lucille Bogan, whose recording career spanned 1923 to
1935, was
one of the great blueswomen of all time. A provocative singer and
extraordinarily talented writer, she generally teamed with
Walter
Roland on
piano. Bogan moved to Los Angeles in the mid-1930s and was killed
by an
automobile during her first week in that city. Walter Roland was
never
heard from again after 1935.
________
Alberta Hunter was more a vaudevillian than a blues
singer. She
enjoyed great success during the 1930s in Europe, then dropped
out of sight
for many years until she was rediscovered in her eighties,
becoming the
darling of New York nightclubs.
________
"Wee Bea Booze" (Muriel Nicholls) and Sister Rosetta
Tharpe
both recorded for Decca with substantial success during the late
1930s and
1940s. Tharpe was an extraordinary guitarist.
---
Return to: The Blues Home Page
Click for audio sample
