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Bessie Smith
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“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
Introducing Vocalist Kate Kortum
by Sanford Josephson
Growing up in Houston, Texas, Kate Kortum shared a computer with her five siblings. Somehow, the Ella Fitzgerald recording of 'How High the Moon' from her Live in Berlin album ended up on the computer," she recalled. I had no idea you could sing like that. I heard that and became obsessed." Despite her ...
The Philosophy Of Jazz
by Ian Patterson
The Philosophy Of Jazz Kevin Le Gendre 105 Pages ISBN: 978 0 7123 5503 2 British Library 2025 If you had to recommend just one book on jazz history to a neophyte, which would it be? Ted Gioia's The History of Jazz (Oxford University Press, ...
The Black Entrepreneurs of Early Jazz
by Karl Ackermann
Preamble: In 2020, I published A Map of Jazz: Crossroads of Music and Human Rights (WS Publishing), a book that looks at the culture of jazz on a timeline with cultures of the world. At more than 500 pages, the book is incomplete by necessity; there is no well-marked path, and the history is sometimes nebulous. ...
Taj Mahal & Keb' Mo': Room On The Porch
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 ...
Trilogy, Jose Luiz Martins, Jeff Libman, Medler Sextet, Nancy Kelly Plus Celebrations For Carline Ray, Bessie Smith & More
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 ...
Stomp Off, Let's Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong
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 ...
The Jazz Worlds of James Baldwin - Part 2
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)" ...
The Blues According To Rory Block
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 ...
Madeleine Peyroux At Barbican Hall
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 ...


