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Musician

Bessie Smith

Born:

“Empress of the Blues” She embodied the meaning of the blues, living the life she sang about. Bessie Smith set the standard for blues singers on how it should be done. Bessie Smith, born on Apr. 15, 1894, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, was one of ten children. Her parents died by her eighth birthday, and she was raised by her older sister Viola. She was taught to sing and dance by her older brother Clarence, who later arranged an audition for Smith with the traveling Moses Stokes Show where she was hired as a dancer in 1912. She became friends with Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, a blues singer, who became her mentor

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Article: Album Review

Taj Mahal & Keb' Mo': Room On The Porch

Read "Room On The Porch" reviewed by Frank Housh


In 2017 blues legend Taj Mahal and Keb' Mo' recorded TajMo, (Concord Records), which won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album. Eight years later, the two follow up with Room On The Porch, released May 23, 2025, also on Concord Records. Its ten tracks feel like a cool dive into a swimming hole, long forgotten ...

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Article: Radio & Podcasts

Trilogy, Jose Luiz Martins, Jeff Libman, Medler Sextet, Nancy Kelly Plus Celebrations For Carline Ray, Bessie Smith & More

Read "Trilogy, Jose Luiz Martins, Jeff Libman, Medler Sextet, Nancy Kelly Plus Celebrations For Carline Ray, Bessie Smith & More" reviewed by Mary Foster Conklin


This broadcast continues the celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month with new releases from Trilogy, Jose Luiz Martins, Jeff Libman, Medler Sextet and Nancy Kelly, with birthday shoutouts to Carline Ray (100!), Bessie Smith, Madeleine Peyroux, Judy Wexler, Roxy Coss and Tia Fuller, among others. Happy listening and please support the artists you hear--see them live, buy ...

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Article: Book Review

Stomp Off, Let's Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong

Read "Stomp Off, Let's Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong" reviewed by Keith Hatschek


Stomp Off, Let's Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong Ricky Riccardi 466 Pages ISBN: # 978-0-19-761448-8 Oxford University Press 2025 Louis Armstrong's undeniable influence on jazz and popular culture has been the subject of many books, essays, and articles throughout the years, so one wonders will another biography ...

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Article: Radio & Podcasts

The Jazz Worlds of James Baldwin - Part 2

Read "The Jazz Worlds of James Baldwin - Part 2" reviewed by Ludovico Granvassu


Here is the second part of an edition of Mondo Jazz celebrating the birth of James Baldwin, 100 years ago in Harlem, through the countless connections between his life and work, the music he loved and the music he inspired.Happy listening!Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" ...

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Article: Bailey's Bundles

The Blues According To Rory Block

Read "The Blues According To Rory Block" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey


Being a household name depends as much on the household as it does the name. Not all reading this will know who Rory Block is, but in the households with fans of the rural blues, slide guitar and innovative women in music, to not know would be criminal. Born in Princeton, New Jersey, Block grew up ...

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Article: Live Review

Madeleine Peyroux At Barbican Hall

Read "Madeleine Peyroux At Barbican Hall" reviewed by Chris May


Madeleine Peyroux Barbican Hall Let's WalkLondon July 21, 2024 In the early 1990s, still a teenager, US-born Madeleine Peyroux was a member of the Paris-based buskers The Lost Wandering Blues And Jazz Band led by the singer and raconteur Danny Fitzgerald. Peyroux cut her professional teeth travelling around Europe with ...

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Article: Live Review

45th Annual Tri-C JazzFest

Read "45th Annual Tri-C JazzFest" reviewed by C. Andrew Hovan


45th Annual Tri-C JazzFest Playhouse Square Cleveland, Ohio June 20-22, 2024 It has become somewhat of a reoccurring quip on social media to lament that so many so-called jazz festivals have booked acts that stray far from the jazz genre to keep these events afloat financially. Cleveland's Tri-C JazzFest has certainly ...

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Article: Radio & Podcasts

New Releases From Nicole Glover, Alyssa Allgood, Cory Weeds Meets Champian Fulton, A Celebration For Bessie Smith's 130th Birthday & More

Read "New Releases From Nicole Glover, Alyssa Allgood, Cory Weeds Meets Champian Fulton, A Celebration For Bessie Smith's 130th Birthday & More" reviewed by Mary Foster Conklin


Jazz Appreciation Month continues with new releases from Nicole Glover, Alyssa Allgood, Cory Weeds Meets Champian Fulton, Mahogany L. Browne & Sean Mason and a single from Madeleine Peyroux, with birthday shoutouts to Bessie Smith, Michelle Lordi, Wendy Kirkland, Judy Wexler, Carol Fredette, Roxy Coss and Madeleine Peyroux, among others. Thanks for listening and please support ...

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Article: Book Review

Queer Blues: The Hidden Figures Of Early Blues Music

Read "Queer Blues: The Hidden Figures Of Early Blues Music" reviewed by Ian Patterson


Queer Blues: The Hidden Figures Of Early Blues Music Darryl W. Bullock 352 Pages ISBN: 978-1-9131-7252-7 Omnibus Press 2023 The blues is ripe with legends and myths, not least the oft-touted claim that W.C. Handy was the father of the blues. But as Darryl. W. Bullock tells it, there ...


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