Bessie Smith : a poet's biography of a blues legend / Jackie Kay.
Material type:
TextPublisher: New York : Vintage Books, 2021Copyright date: ©2021Edition: Vintage books originalDescription: xiv, 205 pages ; 21 cmContent type: - text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9780593314272
- 0593314271
| Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book
|
Main Library | Biography | SMITH, B. K23 | Available | 33111010749048 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
A beautiful genre-bending tribute to the larger-than-life blues singer Bessie Smith. Scotland's National Poet blends poetry, prose, fiction, and nonfiction to create an entirely unique biography of the Empress of the Blues.
There has never been anyone else like Bessie Smith. Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1894 and orphaned by the age of nine, Bessie Smith sang on street corners before becoming a big name in traveling shows. In 1923, she made her first recording for the newly founded Columbia Records. It sold 780,000 copies and catapulted her to fame. Known for her unmatched vocal talent, her timeless and personal blues narratives, her tough persona, and her ability to enrapture audiences with her raw voice, the Empress of the Blues remains a force and an enigma.
In this remarkable book, Kay combines history and personal narrative, poetry and prose to create an enthralling account of an extraordinary life, and to capture the soul of the woman she first identified with as a young Black girl growing up in Glasgow. Powerful and moving, Bessie Smith is at once a vivid biography of a central figure in American music history and a personal story about one woman's search for recognition.
A VINTAGE ORIGINAL.
"Originally published... in Great Britain by Absolute Press, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, Bath, in 1997, and subsequently published in Great Britain by Faber & Faber Limited, London, in 2021."--Title page verso.
Includes bibliographical references.
"Known for her prodigious musical talent, her timeless blues narratives about personal and socioeconomic problems, her tough persona, and her innate ability to enrapture audiences with her raw voice, Bessie Smith--the Empress of the Blues--receives a unique biographical treatment in this special life narrative captured by one of Scotland's finest poets. By masterfully blending research, fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and her own experiences in listening to Bessie Smith, Jackie Kay brings Smith to life, chronicling her humble beginnings in Tennessee to her national touring and recording success to her troubled relationships and her tragic end. The result is a lyrical tribute that not only captures Smith's personality but manages to reproduce her voice as her lyrics echo throughout the text. Bessie Smith lives on, and as Kay argues, she is relevant now more than ever"-- Provided by publisher.
'The red graveyard' -- Introduction -- In the house of the blues -- Chattanooga, 1894 -- In the Ma's footsteps -- The trunk and the no-good man -- Wax -- Ruby on the road -- Tales of the Empress -- The blues -- Mississippi, 1937.