"Sister" Rosetta Tharpe (March 20, 1915 - October 9, 1973) was a gospel artist who attained great popularity in the 1930s and 1940s with a unique mixture of Holiness vocals and jazzy guitar accompaniment. Willing to cross the line between sacred and secular music by singing in nightclubs and with big bands behind her, her witty, idiosyncratic style also left a lasting mark on more conventional gospel artists, such as Ira Tucker, Sr. of the Dixie Hummingbirds. While she offended conservative churchgoers with her forays into the world of pop music, she never left gospel music.
Born Rosetta Nubin in Cotton Plant, Arkansas, she began performing at age four, billed as "Little Rosetta Nubin, the singing and guitar playing miracle", accompanying her mother, Church of God in Christ (COGIC) evangelist Katie Bell Nubin, who played mandolin and preached at tent revivals throughout the South. Exposed to both blues and jazz both in the South and after her family moved to Chicago in the late 1920s, she played blues and jazz in private, while performing gospel music in public settings. Her unique style reflected those secular influences: she bent notes the way that jazz artists did and picked guitar like Memphis Minnie.
Rosetta also crossed over to secular music in other ways. After marrying COGIC preacher Thomas Tharpe in 1934 and moving to New York City, she recorded four sides with Decca Records backed by "Lucky" Millinder's jazz orchestra. Her records caused an immediate furor: many churchgoers were shocked by the mixture of sacred and secular music, but secular audiences loved them. Appearances in John Hammond's 1938 extravaganza "From Spirituals To Swing", at Caf Society and with Cab Calloway and Benny Goodman made her even more popular. Songs like "This Train" and "Rock Me", which combined gospel themes with bouncy up-tempo arrangements, became smash hits among audiences with little previous exposure to gospel music.
Tharpe continued recording during World War II, one of only two gospel groups able to record V-discs for troops overseas. Her song "Strange Things Happening Every Day", recorded in 1944 with Sammy Price, Decca's house boogie woogie pianist, showcased her virtuosity as a guitarist and her witty lyrics and delivery. It was also the first gospel song to make Billboard's "race records" Top Ten--something that Sister Rosetta Tharpe accomplished several more times in her career.
After the war Decca paired her with Marie Knight, a Sanctified shouter with a strong contralto and a more subdued style than Tharpe. Their hit "Up Above My Head" showed both of them to great advantage: Knight provided the response to Tharpe in traditional call and response format, then took the role that would have been assigned to a bass in a male quartet after Tharpe's solo. They toured the gospel circuit for a number of years, during which Tharpe was so popular that she attracted 25,000 paying customers to her wedding to her manager Russell Morrison (her third marriage), followed by a vocal performance, at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. in 1951.
Their popularity took a sudden downturn, however, when they recorded several blues songs in the early 1950s. Knight attempted afterwards to cross over to popular music, while Tharpe remained in the church, but rebuffed by many of her former fans. Retreating to Europe, Tharpe gradually returned to the gospel circuit, although at nowhere near her former celebrity. Her performances were curtailed even further by a stroke in 1970 after which she lost the use of her legs. She died in 1973 after another stroke, on the eve of a scheduled recording session.
THANKS FOR THE FRIENDSHIP OF SISTER ROSSETTA SHE WAS ONE OF THE BEST GOSPEL SINGERS SHES DEEPLY LOVED AND MISSED BY MANY INCLUDING ME;;; A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A GLORIOUS NEW YEARTO EVERY BODY AS WE GIVE THANKS FOR THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD AND THE SON OF THE GREAT FATHER JEHOVA SHALOM;;;OUR PEACE;;;THE GREAT EL SHADDAI;;;OUR SUPPLIER;;; MAY THAT YOUR PATHS BE BLESSED COMING IN AND GOING OUT;;;YOUR OL FRIEND FROM ARIZONA;;THE TUMBLEWEED;;;
"Sounds like it was not only recorded live, but recorded live down a tin can to a tape recorder at the other end of a phone, and sounding great for it!" - Mark Lamarr, BBC Radio 2
Eh-up. Just wanted to let you know that our new album, The Strange Cargo Cult of The Bottletop Millionaires is out now. Available to buy on cd baby, i-tunes and amazon.com
Will Scott's new album, GNAWBONE is here!!! The CD is available at CDBaby and other online retailers.
Over three years in the making, GNAWBONE is Scott's fully-produced studio debut and features a crack team of hand-picked musicians as well as guest performances by Jan Bell, Jolie Holland, Samantha Parton, and Preacher Boy (the album's producer).
Hello, it's me, Ruby Jane.To those who don't know me, I am a 14 year old fiddler, songwriter. I have some songs posted that are fresh out of the studio. Let me know if you like the new songs..be one of the first to hear, even before they are released!Thanks! new videos too! Ruby Jane
WhAt'S GoOD FaMiLY? I'm JuSt KeEpIn' BuSy..WoRkInG HaRd aT ThEsE BLuEs... BaCk To ThE StUdIo In JuNe To ReCoRd TuNeS FoR My NeW CD..!! GeTtInG ReAdY To HiT ThE RoAd ThIs SuMmER. HoPe To SeE YoU At A ShOW DoWN ThE RoAD. TiLL ThEn..
If YoU ArE GoInG To TrY.. Go aLL ThE WaY.. Do It...ALL ThE WaY.. DoN'T LeT AnYoNe StEaL YoUr ShIne.. 2009 BeLoNgS To YoU.. MaKe It Do WhAt It Do!!
Hi there my sweet' Just popped by to say thank you for being my friend. I appreciate your friendship greatly and wish you all the best! Have a great Sunday, and feel free to drop by any time.....much love and respect...Mojo!
..
GOOD MUSIC
M A M Y K Ô
