The greatest white female rock singer of the 1960s, Janis Joplin was also a great blues singer, making her material her own with her wailing, raspy, supercharged emotional delivery. First rising to stardom as the frontwoman for San Francisco psychedelic band Big Brother & the Holding Company, she left the group in the late '60s for a brief and uneven (though commercially successful) career as a solo artist. Although she wasn't always supplied with the best material or most sympathetic musicians, her best recordings, with both Big Brother and on her own, are some of the most exciting performances of her era. She also did much to redefine the role of women in rock with her assertive, sexually forthright persona and raunchy, electrifying on-stage
She had become the first African American performer to sign a contract with a major studio, but she wanted to accomplish more than that. She wanted to be a voice for African Americans who were also trying to receive equality. “When I went to the south and met the kind of people who were fighting in such an unglamorous fashion, I mean, fighting to just get someplace to sit and get a sandwich. I felt close to that kind of thing because I had denied it and had been left away from it so long. And I began to feel such pain again.
With her sophisticated style and soulful voice, Carla Thomas was able to make a name for Stax Records of Memphis and aid in the development of an entirely new genre of music. With the help of her father, she began performing at a young age. By the time she was 18, she had become the first woman to chart a top ten hit on the Hot 100 with a song she wrote herself. In the following years, Carla Thomas became known as the Queen of Memphis Soul, the counterpart to the “King,” Otis Redding. Her music greatly influenced the Memphis sound and transformed Southern Soul music forever.
Les Paul was an American Musician and inventor who was credited with the creation of the solid body electric guitar. Paul was born in Waukesha Wisconsin and learned to play three instruments by the age of thirteen. Amazed by the radio and inspired by artists heard on it young Paul was determined to be the one playing to the listeners. He dropped out of high school to play on some local radio stations and then move to New York to perform in his trio. Aspiring to be the best musician he then moved to California to play as Bing Crosby’s guitarist, a goal he eventually achieved.
When she released her first song titled, “Downhearted Blues” her career really took off. She soon became a very successful recording artist and toured extensively. Bessie Smith became an influential figure because of “her magnificent voice, sense of the dramatic, clarity of diction (one never missed a word of what she sang), and incomparable time and phrasing set her apart from the competition and made her appeal as much to jazz lovers as to blues lovers” said Chris Albertson. Her songs were also very meaningful. Bessie’s career continued to flourish as she met many other influential accompanists.
Her style as a vocalist was powerful and energetic. She known for her lively performances, majestic phrasing, and the moan-like tonality of her singing. In 1923 she was discovered by Paramount records at the age of 37, and became the second black female in history to record for a record label. Because of Paramount's below average recording quality, the true, powerful sound of her voice was never fully captured on her records, but are the most prevalent and noticeable in her earliest recordings, "Bo-Weevil Blues" and "Moonshine Blues." Rainey made over 100 recordings for Paramount, and the company made sure to market her extensively, labeling her as "The Paramount Wildcat," "The Gold Neck Woman," "The Songbird of the South," and most impressively, "The Mother of the Blues," a nickname that stuck with Rainey forever.
Johnny Cash had 14 number 1 top hits. He learned to play guitar when he was in the air force, that is when Johnny knew he wanted to join the music business. After he left the air force he joined the Keegan School of Broadcasting to try and get into the music business. Despite the fact that he had a normal American childhood, Johnny Cash became one of the best country singers of all time (“Johnny Cash” Contemporary). Johnny Cash had a pretty normal childhood for his time in age.
“The Man in Black,” country musician, songwriter, and actor, the Identity of this legend is Johnny Cash. The man in question has a mentality stronger than steel, In an interview in 1993 Cash said this, “Someone else said ‘every day in every way I’m getting better and better,’ I didn’t ‘specially believe that about myself, but I said it everyday and I made myself it and it worked”(“Johnny Cash 1993 Interview”). Through his determination, he ensured his success: , “I went and knocked on that door and was turned away, I called back for an interview three or four times, was turned away, so one morning I found out what time the man went to work I went down with my guitar and sat on his steps until he got there.” Because of Cash’s conviction to make it in the music industry, he spoke with the man who could have turned him away, but he said, ‘Come on in let’s listen.’”
Many people admired her for her creative idea of adding other cultures in her music, so that she can connect with diverse
Amy Winehouse is a legend and the music she created was incredible. She sung in the styles of Jazz, Soul, Blues and reggae which made her popular to many audiences and instantly she was different from the rest. In this essay I intend to give you a brief overview on Amy’s background and then I will explore Amy Winehouse’s Vocal and musical influences such as Sarah Vaughan who was an American Jazz singer and many more. Once I’ve covered that topic I will go on to discuss her appeal to a contemporary audience. The resources I will be using are Websites based on Amy Winehouse’s musical influences, Her documentary and books such as ‘’Amy Amy Amy the Amy Winehouse story by Nick Johnstone’’ Amy was a Jewish girl who was born in England.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T, the song that put on her on the charts, Aretha Franklin, one of the most influential female artists of all time is the artist that interest me the most. With her vocals a mixture of jazz and rhythm & blues, Aretha gained fame. Her vocals were so good, that it made her to have hit records over five years, which later on in her career, cause her to be inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame. Also giving her the title “The Queen of Soul”. Like most artists today, Franklin got her career started by singing gospel, and from gospel to pop and R&B.
Women’s Blues music in the 1920s and early 1930s served as liberation for the sexual and cultural politics of female sexuality in black women’s dissertation. Hazel V. Carby explores the ideology of the white feminist theory in her deposition, "It Jus Be 's Dat Way Sometime: The Sexual Politics of Women 's Blues", and critiques its views by focusing on the representation of feminism, sexuality, and power in black women’s blues music. She analyzes the sexual and cultural politics of black women who constructed themselves as sexual subjects through songs in blues music and explains how the representation of black female sexuality in black women’s fiction and in women’s blues differ from one another. Carby claims that these black women
The genre of blues exploded into the blues craze during the 1920’s. During this time, white record producers saw the untapped goldmine that was blues music performed by people of color. Ma Rainey was one of them, and to some, one of the first, giving her the title, ‘The Mother of Blues’. The 1920’s was not only an era of continuing homophobia from the past (although that would change, briefly, into a mild form of acceptance until the more conservative 1930’s), but also of harsh racism. And yet, one singer, Ma Rainey’s, broke these restrictions.
Often referred to as "The First Lady of Song," Ella Fitzgerald was one of the most popular female jazz singers in the United States. Throughout her career, Ella was awarded thirteen Grammys and sold over 40 million albums. With a voice that not only encompassed a large range, but a dynamic and powerful sound, Ella could sing almost anything from scatting to the popular tunes of her day. She performed in the top venues all around the world to packed houses, with audiences as diverse as the music she created. Ella came from a small town and impoverished family, but through her talent and determination, skyrocketed to fame creating a legacy that has withstood the sands of time.
Billie Holiday is one of the most influential jazz singers of her time. Her attitude, determination and most of all her music inspired artists throughout time and inspired major social change. Throughout her lifetime she explored the world of jazz, her identity, and how far the limits of her talent would take her. She exchanged her poor life, full of drugs and scandal for a life of performing the arts and showcasing her talents and abilities. Her incredible determination led her to do what she loved regardless of what anyone thought , which led to her inciting major social exchange; moving black suffering into white consciousness.
In 2016, the Swedish Academy awarded musician Bob Dylan the Nobel Prize in Literature. Immediately, debate sparked amongst people around the world began since it was the first time a musician was awarded this prestigious prize. Some contend that Bob Dylan should not have won the prize because it caused writers to miss the opportunity for deserved recognition. However, singer-songwriter Bob Dylan was properly qualified to win the Nobel Prize in Literature because of his music industry accomplishments and poetic songwriting skills.