Bessie
Bessie by Chris Albertson
Rowdy, powerful, and innovative songstress, Bessie Smith dominated the 1920s blues circuit in America. Her soulful drown out voice reinvented the lyrics of many and captivated her audiences. She toured throughout the south and northeast regions building fan base of all races, and breaking strides in the newly developing black record business.
Like most artist, people only knew the musical genius of Bessie Smith. The background, personality, and struggle of the woman behind the microphone were not mainstream entertainment news. Chris Albertson, however, stepped outside the entertainment realm to discover and illustrate the story of the actual woman they called Bessie Smith. During the time of Bessie Smith and shortly there after, writers did not focus on the life the audience did not know. The entertainment aspect of the artist was all that mattered when documenting their history. Albertson took a different approach in unveiling his biography of Bessie Smith. Bessie was written from a behind the scenes perspective. Albertson interviewed family, friends, associated artist, and inquired old publications from Bessie’s era. The actual commentaries from newscast, interviews, and pictures of documents and people inserted throughout the book gives the reader an even closer insight of Bessie Smith. This biography allows the reader to perhaps venture back into the 1920s and assemble as a fly on a wall throughout the life and career of Bessie Smith. Where most biographies about artist of the 1920s Renaissance begin with their years of stardom, Chris Albertson took the huge leap of tracing Bessie Smith back to birth.
Bessie Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee in April of 1894, because birth certificates were not common for blacks of this time the actual date the world was blessed with the “Empress of Blues” is not for certain; however the her marriage license accredits the fifteenth of April as this day. Bessie was one of seven
Rowdy, powerful, and innovative songstress, Bessie Smith dominated the 1920s blues circuit in America. Her soulful drown out voice reinvented the lyrics of many and captivated her audiences. She toured throughout the south and northeast regions building fan base of all races, and breaking strides in the newly developing black record business.
Like most artist, people only knew the musical genius of Bessie Smith. The background, personality, and struggle of the woman behind the microphone were not mainstream entertainment news. Chris Albertson, however, stepped outside the entertainment realm to discover and illustrate the story of the actual woman they called Bessie Smith. During the time of Bessie Smith and shortly there after, writers did not focus on the life the audience did not know. The entertainment aspect of the artist was all that mattered when documenting their history. Albertson took a different approach in unveiling his biography of Bessie Smith. Bessie was written from a behind the scenes perspective. Albertson interviewed family, friends, associated artist, and inquired old publications from Bessie’s era. The actual commentaries from newscast, interviews, and pictures of documents and people inserted throughout the book gives the reader an even closer insight of Bessie Smith. This biography allows the reader to perhaps venture back into the 1920s and assemble as a fly on a wall throughout the life and career of Bessie Smith. Where most biographies about artist of the 1920s Renaissance begin with their years of stardom, Chris Albertson took the huge leap of tracing Bessie Smith back to birth.
Bessie Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee in April of 1894, because birth certificates were not common for blacks of this time the actual date the world was blessed with the “Empress of Blues” is not for certain; however the her marriage license accredits the fifteenth of April as this day. Bessie was one of seven