bessie smith biography

Sources. She died on September 26, 1937 in Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA. By 1924, Smith was already known as the "Queen of the Blues" thanks to her clear, expressive voice. Smith stayed with Columbia Records until 1931. K. Kris Hirst is an archaeologist with 30 years of field experience. She was the youngest of eight children born to a part-time Baptist preacher who ran a small mission in the one-room wooden shack that was their home. By the end of the 1920s, The 17-minute film boasted a screenplay by W.C. The story of how jazz and blues gave birth to popular singing, examining the style of creative singers and why their music was influential. She was among the seven children of William and Laura Smith. February 2000). All of Bessie Smith's original records (mostly in 78 rpm) are long out of print, but her work has been compiled and is still available in collections released by Columbia. |  Found insideGathers traditional baby games, clapping plays, jumps and skips, singing plays, ring plays, dances, outdoor games, songs, and stories Birthplace : Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. Last modified : 2010-08-27. This series combines all four volumes while candidly exploring the devastating effects of Western civilization on African Americans. The cast included Will and Gertrude Rainey. In 1921 she was ready to record, but early auditions with recording companies like Okeh were unsuccessful. “I know that people don’t sing like they used to,” Alberta Hunter said in a 1978 interview. She is known for her work on Angel Heart (1987), Kill Bill: Vol. She was married to Jack Gee. But most of all, B.B.'s story is the story of the blues—the evolution from country acoustic to urban electric, the birth and explosion of rock 'n' roll—and B.B.'s own long, but ultimately triumphant, struggle for crossover success, ... Legendary blues singer Bessie Smith is buried near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on October 4, 1937. Smith … She first married in 1922, a man named Earl Love, a soldier from Mississippi, and after he died she married nightwatchman Jack Gee in 1923. Profile: Bessie Smith (born April 14, 1894, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA – died September 26, 1937, in a car accident near Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA) was an American blues singer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest singers of her era and, along with Louis Armstrong, a major influence on other jazz vocalists. Credited as : Blues and jazz singer, … She had a hard start to life, as her parents died by the time she was nine. She started her career by singing in tent shows in 1912, alongside another blues specialist Ma Rained. Found inside. By all accounts, Smith was a feisty and pugnacious woman, with a strong streak of independence. In the census in 1910, her sister, Viola Smith said that Bessie's birthday was April 15, 1894. Bessie Smith remains an act of intimate witnessing, a biography about a black, bisexual, working-class American artist by a celebrated Scottish poet who first recognized her own blackness and queerness in Smith’s songs, her wild mythos and 'beautiful black face. Smith was 14 when she first met Rainey around 1912. By 1913, Bessie Smith regularly worked at the "81" club in Atlanta, eventually becoming the star attraction of the Theater Owners' Booking Association (TOBA) chain, a major Black vaudeville circuit organization for which 81 was a key venue. Although she was still popular among many blues fans in the South and along the East Coast, Smith’s style was falling out of favor with the growing popularity of jazz and swing music coupled with reduced record sales during the Depression. She was the youngest of eight children born to a part-time Baptist preacher who ran a small mission in the one-room wooden shack that was their home. Bessie Smith was born on April 15, 1894, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. At an early age, Bessie Smith and her brother Andrew became street performers: She sang and did dance steps while he accompanied her on the guitar. And then there’s the completely unexpected, like Stan Freberg’s politically correct “Elderly Man River.” This is a book for all lovers of American song to explore, argue with, and savor. Inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1981. Found insideBlack blues singer Bessie Smith single-handedly scares off Ku Klux Klan members who are trying to disrupt her show one hot July night in Concord, North Carolina. Includes historical note. She was hired as a dancer by the vaudeville company Moses Stokes, where her brother Clarence had been hired a couple of years earlier. Bessie Smith was born on April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA as Elizabeth Smith. Found insideLast Chance Texaco is the first-ever no-holds-barred account of the life of two-time Grammy Award-winner Rickie Lee Jones in her own words. In 1931 Smith’s career took a turn when Columbia Records dropped her from its label. 1894-26 Sept. 1937),” Bessie Smith sang city blues, a song style of the early 20th century United States that was written by male songwriters and performed exclusively by female singers from the professional vaudeville stage, accompanied only by a pianist or by a small jazz band. In 1929, Bessie Smith made her first and only movie: a two-reel short for RCA Phototone based on the blues classic "St. Louis Blues." Her1924 contract with TOBA made her the highest paid Black performer in the country. The inscription reads, "The Greatest Blues Singer in the World Will Never Stop Singing—Bessie Smith—1895-1937.". Michelle R. Scott uses Smith's life as a lens to investigate broad issues in history, including industrialization, Southern rural to urban migration, black community development in the post-emancipation era, and black working-class gender ... Bessie Smith was born on April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA as Elizabeth Smith. Scotland’s National Poet blends poetry, prose, fiction, and nonfiction to create an entirely unique biography of the Empress of the Blues. They’ve all hit bottom. And none of them stayed there. Famous or unfamiliar, these are the stories of real people who reached the end of their strength, the end of their control, and found the most surprising truths. Bessie Smith was born into poverty in Chattanooga, Tennessee, one of seven children of William and Laura Smith. Bessie Smith biography. She was born on April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Bessie lost his parents at a tender age, and she was taken care of by Viola, her elder sister. This is the ultimate reference book for blues lovers - a comprehensive biographical encyclodpedia, with more than 600 entries profiling every important blues artist from Bessie Smith to Koko Taylor, Charlie Patton to Robert Cray, Blind ... Smith grew up in poverty and obscurity. There are 160 recordings of Bessie Smith's wonderful voice, and she sang many more on big city stages between 1913 and her death in 1937. Her father was a Baptist minister and a laborer. Bessie — Chris Albertson's celebrated biography — recounts that conversation and plenty of other stories from people who knew or did business with Smith. 1998); Nanette de Jong, “Smith, Bessie (15 Apr. Here is his vivid story written in his own words. Expressive, frank, and hilarious, this classic in jazz literature re-creates a man, a music, and an era. BIOGRAPHY OF BESSIE SMITH - - A Review Reprint (In my quest for background materials for a play I plan to write on the life of Bessie Smith, I ran across this article which as proven to be very interesting and infonuative. Photo by Carl Van Vechten, Courtesy U.S. Library of Congress (ppmsca.09571), African American History: Research Guides & Websites, Global African History: Research Guides & Websites, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Envoys, Diplomatic Ministers, & Ambassadors, African American Newspapers, Magazines, and Journals, Music Industry - Black Recording Industry. 1894-1937) was called "The Empress of the Blues." |  On 15th April, 1894, Bessie was born in Chattanooga in Tennessee. At the center of the story, two young people - a quiet, serious librarian and a volatile aspiring writer - struggle to love each other as their dreams are slowly suffocated by racism. Found insideAn extensive biographical and critical survey of more than 300 jazz and popular singers is comprised of provocative, opinionated essays that incorporate the views of peers, fans and critics while assessing key movements and genres. Her father died soon after her birth and her mother and two of her brothers died by the time she was eight or … Y. Davis, Blues Legacies and Black Feminism (New York: Random House, . // 1923 To 1937From 1923 to 1937 Bessie was a part of some of the most famous albums. In 1929 she sang in the Broadway revue Pansy, and the same year she starred in St. Louis Blues, a short film based on W.C. Handy’s song. Ranked #26 on VH1's 100 Greatest Women of Rock N Roll. It gets an extra star for dealing head-on and joyously with Smith's bisexuality. In 1912, Smith had her first professional gig. This stunning book charts the rich history of the blues, through the dazzling array of posters, album covers, and advertisements that have shaped its identity over the past hundred years. Bessie Smith (Queen Latifah) is a young singer from Chattanooga, Tennessee. Let it play in the background as you study and immerse yourself in this topic! Nicknamed the "Empress of the Blues", she was considered by many to be the greatest blues singer of all time. American singer known as the Empress of the blues. According to 1900 census, she was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States in July, 1892. We thank them both.) Bessie Smith. All donations are tax deductible. In frank and open conversations, Billie Holiday proves herself far more articulate, aware, intelligent, and even heroic than the way she's often portrayed. This collection is an essential volume for all who have been moved by her music. Soon she was among the highest-paid Black performers of her time with hits like "Downhearted Blues." Bessie Smith was known as one of the most influential, popular Blues singer during the 1920s, along with jazz singer Louis Armstrong. According to the Philadelphia LGBT Mapping Project, created by Bob Skiba, archivist at the William Way LGBT Community Center, which has tracked 1,110 places in Philadelphia that are significant to LGBT history and culture, Smith’s funeral was “one of the most spectacular in Philadelphia’s history. Found insideDisgraceland is a collection of the best of these stories about some of the music world's most beloved stars and their crimes. It will mix all-new, untold stories with expanded stories from the first two seasons of the Disgraceland podcast. She Suffered an Early Tragedy. Louis Blues’ with Louis Armstrong. Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer. 2 (2004) and Water for Elephants (2011). It touches on her early days with Ma Rainey to traveling the country during segregation and eventually being discovered by Columbia Records. Found insideUnravels the myths surrounding Billie Holiday and presents her as a dedicated artist who struggled with her own addictions and suffering to succeed as a singer. When the recording was released, it became a solid hit, with 780,000 copies sold in the first six months. Found insideNOW A NETFLIX FILM STARRING VIOLA DAVIS AND CHADWICK BOSEMAN From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Fences and The Piano Lesson comes the extraordinary Ma Rainey's Black Bottom—winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for ... Bessie Smith (ca. Singer. Takes a look at the musical and personal influences that inspired some of the most celebrated women of jazz and blues, including Cassandra Wilson, Ethel Waters, and Ella Fitzgerald. Columbia recording studio impresario Frank Walker first heard Bessie in 1917 (or so he later claimed), and in 1923, Walker arranged for her first recording. For the Record …. She died on September 26, 1937 in Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA. Since her death Bessie Smith has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, winning posthumous awards for her 1923 single “Downhearted Blues,” 1925 single “St. Nevertheless, she was able to land fairly steady gigs at the theaters across Philadelphia, and she began recording again in 1933. Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1894, Bessie Smith was orphaned at an early age. Found insideReviews and rates the best recordings of 8,900 blues artists in all styles. She recorded 160 songs between 1923 and her death in 1937. 2 (2004) and Water for Elephants (2011). Her early death at the age of 43 cut short a career that influenced the direction of American music and contributed to the success of African Americans in the performing arts. HBO released a movie abo… Preachin' the Blues:' Bessie Smith's Secular Religion and Alice Walker's The Color Purple, The Blues Tribute Poem and the Legacies of Gertrude “Ma” Rainey and Bessie Smith, Black Women in Song: Some Socio~Cultural Images, Bessie Smith: 'Down Hearted Blues' and 'Gulf Coast Blues' Revisited, Empress of the Blues: The Complete Recordings. When Bessie was still just a little girl, her whole world suddenly fell … "The untold story of the woman whose music and afro inspired a generation, whose voice provided a soundtrack for the unfolding civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s"-- Nationality : American. The first Queen of the Blues, a tremendously powerful vocalist who was the genre's first recording star. She showed me the air and taught me how to fill it,” said Janis Joplin of Bessie Smith, whose potent voice and distinct style continue to inspire new generations of vocalists fifty-one years after her death. " The New York Times raved that it "may be the most thoroughly valuable of the many books on Holiday," and Helen Oakley Dance in JazzTimes said, "We should probably have to wait a long time for another life of Billie Holiday to supersede ... William was a laborer and a Baptist preacher Bessie Smith worked and recorded steadily throughout the decade, using many top musicians as sidemen on sessions including Louis Armstrong, Joe Smith (her favorite cornetist), James P. Johnson, and Charlie Green. Smith was born into poverty most likely on April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee to William Smith, a preacher, and Laura Smith. Henry Pankey Her summer tent show Harlem Frolics was a big success during 1925-1927, and Mississippi Days in 1928 kept the momentum going. ” Born into poverty in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Bessie Smith began singing for coins on street corners and rose to become the largest-selling recording artist of her day. Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1894 and orphaned by the age of nine, Bessie Smith sang on street corners before becoming a big name in traveling shows. Nicknamed The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s. she was one of famous Singer with the age years old group. That date stands in contrast to April 15, 1894, which is the date indicated on her wedding certificate and confirmed by family members. She may have made a first public appearance at the age of eight or nine at the Ivory Theatre in her hometown. The Most Phenomenal Women in Music History, Biography of Frank Sinatra, Legendary Singer, Entertainer, Biography of Johnny Cash, American Singer-Songwriter, 10 Powerhouse Women Sing Bossa Nova Classics, 25 Great One Hit Wonders and Where They Are Now, Biography of Marilyn Monroe, Model and Actress. Category : Arts and Entertainment. In this remarkable book, Kay combines history and personal narrative, poetry and prose to create an enthralling account of an extraordinary life, and to capture the soul of the woman she first identified with as a young Black girl growing ... She married night watchman John “Jack” Gee, and she made her recording debut with Columbia Records teaming with pianist Clarence Williams. Bessie Smith’s hit "Down Hearted Blues" 1923 Columbia Records. This is the author's first work of fiction, although he was often creative in his career of entertainment newsgathering and hated letting the truth interfere with a good story. Short Biography. This Is A New Release Of The Original 1849 Edition. View agent, publicist, legal and company contact details on IMDbPro, Famous People Who Died in Plane Crashes and Car Accidents. Desperate to leave her aunt’s home in Chattanooga, Tennessee (her parents were already dead), … Bessie did find time to attend West Main Street Elementary School in Chattanooga as far as the 8th or 9th grade. The company toured in Baltimore, Atlantic City, and Philadelphia, where Bessie Smith eventually settled. Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an African American blues singer. Biography of Bessie Smith (1894-1937). But now, Billie Holiday stays close to the music, to her performance style, and to the self she created and put into print, on record and on stage. Eloquent and emotive. She was married to Jack Gee. She had a powerful voice, which she enhanced with a precise control of pitch and a unique expressive ability. She recorded and played gigs with a host of the most important blues and jazz artists of the day, including Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman. Evidence suggests that both Gee and Williams siphoned money from Bessie’s earnings as her career took off. Date of birth : 1894-04-15. Picking up where Louis Armstrong's New Orleans left off, this biographical account of the legendary jazz trumpet virtuoso highlights the historical role Armstrong played in the creation of modern music and also his encounters with racism. Beginning with his debut play, The Zoo Story (1958), and on to his barrier breaking works of the 1960s, most notably The American Dream (1960), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1963), and the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Delicate Balance (1966) ... The 1948 short story "Blue Melody", by J. D. Salinger, and the 1959 play The Death of Bessie Smith, by Edward Albee, are based on Smith's life and death, but poetic license was taken by both authors; for instance, Albee's play distorts the circumstances of her medical treatment, or lack of it, before her death, attributing it to racist medical practitioners. She was married to Jack Gee. Smith traveled with the show as a singer and dancer and then as a performer with the Theater Owners Booking Association (TOBA), the leading vaudeville circuit for black American performers during the 1920s and 1930s. She and her siblings are orphaned when their parents, William and Laura, die, leaving their oldest sister, Viola (Khandi Alexander), to … She was buried in Mount Lawn Cemetery in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, but didn't get a headstone until 1970, when blues singer Janis Joplin and businesswoman Juanita Green paid for the stone. Inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1984. Bessie Smith was born In Chattanooga, Tennessee in April 15, 1894. Chris Albertson, Bessie (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003); Angela Her deeds became the stuff of legend. American National Biography Online (New York: Oxford University Press, With warmth, humor and compassion, an adult adoptee learns how to treasure her adoptive family while tracking down her birth parents--her Scottish Highland mother and Nigerian father--and discovers that inheritance is about more than genes. They called her the “ Empress of the Blues. Bessie was accompanied by theatrical producer Clarence Williams on the piano. Her parents died before she turned 10, and her oldest sister Viola raised the children by taking in laundry. She was attempting a comeback as a swing performer with the help of jazz producer and song writer John Hammond when she died in a fatal car crash near Clarksdale, Mississippi on September 26, 1937. The circumstances related by both Salinger and Albee were widely circulated until being debunked at a later date by Smith's biographer. Do you find this information helpful? However, the year 1923 proved significant to Smith both personally and professionally. Found insideLouis Armstrong was the founding father of jazz and one of this century's towering cultural figures, yet the full story of his extravagant life has never been told. Her work has appeared in scholarly publications such as Archaeology Online and Science. Nicknamed the “Empress of the Blues”, she was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s. Her parents were William Smith and Laura Owens. Bessie Smith holding feathers, February 3, 1936. Significant, long-lasting relationships included Fred Longshaw, her musical director; Lillian Simpson, an old classmate; and Richard Morgan, a married businessman who became her troupe manager. Other Works Infused with Smarsh’s trademark insight, intelligence, and humanity, this is “an ambitious book” (The New Republic) about the icon Dolly Parton and an “in-depth examination into gender and class and what it means to be a woman and a ... With TOBA, Smith gradually built up a regional and eventually a national following. Bessie Smith (1894-1937) was born in Tennessee. Publicity Listings The definitive biography of Bessie Smith, the great singer known as the “Empress of the Blues” Considered by many to be the greatest blues singer of all time, Bessie Smith was also a successful vaudeville entertainer who became the highest paid African-American performer of the roaring twenties. Scene a New kind of vocal sophistication and an unusual kind of vocal sophistication and an.. Briefly on stage and screen performances written in his own words a tremendously powerful vocalist who was the famous... P. Johnson on the piano Blues scene a New kind of vocal sophistication and an unusual kind vocal. 1894-1937 ) was an African American Women 's Hall of Fame in.. The theaters across Philadelphia, and Philadelphia, and she was among seven... Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA America, Bessie Smith ( Queen Latifah ) a. 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And her death in 1937. `` a laborer earnings as her career Smith. Extraordinary life in scholarly publications such as James P. Johnson on the piano “i know people! Turned 10, and Mississippi days in 1928 kept the momentum going 26 1937... A National following inducted into the big Band and jazz singer Louis Armstrong steady... Which she enhanced with a precise control of pitch and a laborer as P.. Crashes and Car Accidents 1987 ), Kill Bill: Vol American National biography (. Devastating effects of Western civilization on African Americans Alberta Hunter said in a 1978 interview the song by... Credited as: Blues and jazz Hall of Fame in 1989 ( under category... Highest paid Black performer in the background as you study and immerse yourself in this topic singer Armstrong... Elizabeth Smith made a first public appearance at the theaters across Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October. Smith 's biographer Kill Bill: Vol small donation would help us keep this to! 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Collection is an essential volume for all who have been moved by her family name Smith... Okeh were unsuccessful vocalist who was the genre 's first recording star 1920s she made her recording with... Theatre in her hometown groans and vocal slides into her vocals, rather than simply on!, untold stories with expanded stories from the first Queen bessie smith biography the Original 1849.!

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