Location via proxy:   [ UP ]  
[Report a bug]   [Manage cookies]                
Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Billie Holiday and Etta James: The Lives and Legacies of the Famous Jazz Singers
    Billie Holiday and Etta James: The Lives and Legacies of the Famous Jazz Singers
    Billie Holiday and Etta James: The Lives and Legacies of the Famous Jazz Singers
    Audiobook2 hours

    Billie Holiday and Etta James: The Lives and Legacies of the Famous Jazz Singers

    Written by Charles River Editors

    Narrated by Michelle Humphries

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    If Billie Holiday wanted to become a jazz singer, she chose the best of all eras in which to attempt it. A wave of great jazz and jazz/pop crossover artists swept over the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s, generating a golden age for the genre. This wondrous jazz era was well represented by both black and white master artists, men, women, vocalists, and instrumentalists, and Billie Holiday has stood the test of time as well as any, despite struggling with an environment that easily could have doomed such aspirations. Holiday “rewrote the rules” of jazz singing by using her voice not to imitate other singers, but by taking on the style of movement and sound common to jazz instruments. On top of that, she took the moderately employed practice of singing off the beat and brought it to the rhythmic forefront of virtually everything she sang.

    Etta James, the legendary jazz, gospel, rhythm & blues, and soul singer, was perfectly positioned to reign as the supreme artist in the emerging soul genre of the ‘40s and ‘50s in America. No one ever doubted her talent, the highly distinctive and versatile nature of her voice, or her drive to succeed, and yet, she has been “woefully overlooked” in the history of indigenous rock and blues music in the United States. She is famous and recognized for several iconic hits with which she is eternally associated, such as “I’d Rather Go Blind” and “At Last,” but her place in the pantheon of great soul artists is unsteady and not always instantly recognizable by those outside of a knowledgeable group of devotees. For the rest of soul music’s listeners, mention of her name will result in a hasty inclusion into the inner circle of leading artists, as though James had been momentarily forgotten. Once the object of focus, however, she is revered as one of the titans of the genre, and those who had allowed her to slip from their minds are immediately reawakened to her powerful vocal and interpretive gifts.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherCharles River Editors
    Release dateMar 18, 2023
    ISBN9798368965963
    Billie Holiday and Etta James: The Lives and Legacies of the Famous Jazz Singers

    More audiobooks from Charles River Editors

    Related to Billie Holiday and Etta James

    Related audiobooks

    Artists and Musicians For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • UNLIMITED

      Legends Of Jazz

      Feb 27, 2020

      Legends Of Jazz
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Billie Full Of Grace

      Aug 20, 2019

      Billie Full Of Grace
      10 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      mother OF US ALL

      Jul 31, 2021

      mother OF US ALL
      11 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Song Sung Blue

      Jul 14, 2019

      THE STORY of doomed coloratura soprano Mina Foley (1930-2007) is that of the sweetest of voices suffering the saddest of declines. Mystery surrounds much of Foley’s life, especially the early years. She seems to have emerged almost fully formed in he

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Wisdom of Her Years

      Mar 9, 2021

      RELEASED ON MGM Records in 1959, Last Recording closed the chapter of Billie Holiday’s amazing career. We still benefit from the influence of her significant contributions, and of all her recorded work, Last Recording is my favorite Billie album. Des

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Virtuoso

      Feb 10, 2020

      The Virtuoso
      20 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Ella Fitzgerald, Ethel Waters And The Colors Of Sound

      Sep 4, 2019

      Critics, scholars and fans are often caught up in the idea of an ideal black sound, using vocal tone to measure racial identity. What becomes of the black female singer who defies this categorization?

      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Spotlight Peggy Seeger

      Aug 10, 2021

      Spotlight Peggy Seeger
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Pauline Black

      Mar 9, 2023

      I suppose I was 13 or 14 when I first heard it. It was a revelation to me because she wasn’t like all the other black women who were around at that time in groups like The Supremes. She was a fully formed woman in all respects, and she was just so ch

      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Lucinda Transcending

      May 22, 2023

      Lucinda Transcending
      15 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      A Rich Tapestry

      Oct 4, 2024

      A Rich Tapestry
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      A Rich Tapestry

      Oct 4, 2024

      A Rich Tapestry
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Matriarchs Of Music

      Aug 6, 2023

      Matriarchs Of Music
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      H.e.r. Gabi Wilson

      Dec 6, 2021

      H.e.r. Gabi Wilson
      1 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Hope Is Found

      Feb 7, 2020

      Hope Is Found
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Janis Joplin

      Sep 4, 2019

      Janis Joplin
      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      New Albums

      Aug 15, 2019

      New Albums
      4 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Billie Holiday and Etta James

    4/5

    1 rating0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words