This is the third page of a quick look at some bluesy wimmin singers and musicians who rock my world. I'll try to keep these recommendations a little off the beaten track, just so the page will be a little more fun. But I'm sure I'll work in a gal or two whose name will ring a bell as well... The first page of this section is here.
Some other pages of interest:
Jo Ann Kelly "Jo Ann Kelly" (Epic, 1969)
Jo Ann Kelly "Jo Ann Kelly" (Blue Goose, 1972)
An important forebearer of Bonnie Raitt (and pretty much all female blues revivalists who came in her wake...), acoustic guitarist Jo Ann Kelly is one of the forgotten greats of the British blues revival. Kelly was kicking around in the early 'Sixties, along with John Mayall, Eric Clankton, and all those other dudes. She had a marvellously growly, dangerous voice, with phrasing swiped directly from Memphis Minnie's old repertoire, and she could pick like the devil herself. These are two of her best, and best-known, albums -- she's also enjoyed several great CD retrospectives and reissues in recent years, all of which are worth looking for. Sure... her uptempo country blues style gets to sounding a little repetitious after a while, but it's still awesome music. (You might also want to check out this German fan page, which has a more complete discography...)
Jo Ann Kelly "Key To The Highway" (Moon Crest, 2000)
Jo Ann Kelly "Talkin' Low -- Rare Unissued Recordings: 1966-1988" (Moon Crest, 2000)
Jo Ann Kelly "Tramp 1974: Rare & Unissued Recordings, Vol. 3" (Moon Crest, 2001)
Julia Lee "Kansas City Calling" (Jasmine, 2005)
Pianist Julia Lee was the queen of the Kansas City swing-blues scene, leading a powerful big band packed with some of the best KC musicians of the post-WWII era. She specialized in raunchy, even scandalous novelty songs in which sexual matters were dealt with in honest appraisal. This is a generously-programmed single disc retrospective, with nearly two dozen tracks culled from Lee's career... Plenty of her well-known raunchy novelty songs are included -- "My Man Stands Out," "King Size Papa," "Snatch It And Grab It," "Chuck It In A Bucket," "I Didn't Like It The First Time," etc. and a couple of less-salacious numbers added in the margins. Odd that they included "Don't Save It Too Late," but didn't pair it with the companion number, "Don't Come Too Soon." Still, a pretty good introduction to her work... If nasty novelty blues tunes appeal to you, you'll definitely want to check Ms. Lee out.
Julia Lee "Kansas City Star" (Bear Family, 1995)
This extensive, 5-CD box set offers a fuller version of Lee's work than the standard compilations of her risque novelty hits... Which isn't to say there isn't plenty of smut on here as well, but you also get a chance to hear her cut loose with the groovy blues riffs without the potential distraction of the novelty tropes... Pretty cool stuff!
Julia Lee "Ugly Papa" (Jukebox Lil, 1995)
Julia Lee "The Chronological Julia Lee: 1927-1946" (Classics, 2005)
Julia Lee "The Chronological Julia Lee: 1947" (Classics, 2005)
Nellie Lutcher "The Best Of..." (Capitol, 1995)
A Louisiana native who made it big as a swinging hep chick in postwar Hollywood, Nellie Lutcher was a fine piano player and a slick singer, albeit with a chirpy voice. Not as birdlike or novelty-oriented as, say Rose Murphy, but kind of in the same range, Lutcher is best known for her bouncy jazz jive numbers, although for my money she was most moving on slower ballads. Her first hit was with an cover of the old Isham Jones tune, "The One I Love Belongs To Somebody Else," which again seems a little rushed. Still, this twenty track best-of has plenty of variety, balancing soulful material with slick uptempo tunes. Fans of Nat King Cole oughtta check this gal out.
Ellen McIlwaine "Up From The Skies: The Polydor Years" (PolyGram Chronicles, 1998)
It's kind of hard to place McIlwaine's work -- she's one of the best examples of the more experimental, inclusive aspects of early '70s pop, plus she's one of the most enigmatic, striking figures in the history of female rock and blues singers. This CD combines two LPs she made for Polydor -- Honky Tonk Angel from 1972, and We The People, from '73. To the uninitiated, these recordings might be somewhat bewildering: who the hell was this yodelling madwoman with the funky vibe and the crazy steel guitar? Drawing on sources as diverse as Kitty Wells, Isaac Hayes, Smokey Robinson and Blind Faith, McIlwaine summons the spirit of a coffeehouse folkie dropping acid with Jimi Hendrix (which she probably did, since she was a pal of his...) while laying down some seriously funky, blues-drenched music. She was kind of an avant garde version of Bonnie Raitt, who was also coming into her own around the same time. But McIlwaine is way nuttier than Bonnie would ever dream of being. She's unrestrained and chaotic, completely willing to be either incredibly soulful, or incredibly goofy, as the spirit might take her. One thing's for sure, you'll never come across anyone else like her -- she's a one-of-a-kind kinda gal. Plus, there are a bunch of great, classic tunes on here, including the novelty classics "I Don't Want To Play" and "Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven (But Nobody Wants To Die)", as well as her genuinely spooky version of "Can't Find My Way Home". Worth tracking down!
Ellen McIlwaine "The Real Ellen McIlwaine" (United Artists/Kotai, 1975)
McIlwaine's nutty, yelpy soul sister yodellin' finds its highest expression on this disc, with crazed, funky versions of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground," Fats Domino's "Blueberry Hill," and exuberant originals like "Lazy Day" and "Thirty-Piece Band." Also noteworthy is her wrenching version of "Down So Low," which rivals the Tracy Nelson original. This is a spendid hippie funk album, but you really have to be on her wavelength to appreciate it. Fans of her Polydor albums are strongly urged to track this one down... it's a doozy, too.
Ellen McIlwaine "The Real Ellen McIlwane/Everybody Needs It" (Stony Plain, 1995)
Thankfully, the digital age found room for Ellen McIlwaine's music, in this case an indie reissue of her truly fabulous and idiosyncratic album, The Real Ellen McIlwaine, paired up on a single CD with a 1982 album, Everybody Needs It, which sadly was not up par with her usual high standards. Still, the stuff from '75 is hella fab, so this is worth tracking down.
Memphis Minnie "Hoodoo Lady (1933-1937)" (Sony Legacy, 1991)
Great stuff. This disc opens up with the marvellously raunchy "Down In The Alley," and continues along with a generous selection of twenty of the best recordings made by this vigorous, dynamic, groundbreaking blues picker. A completely arresting performer, Memphis Minnie was the first gal to excel at the same game as the boys: hot guitar playing, the kind of stuff that rock'n'roll comes from. Great singer, too. This disc is one of the highlights from the outstanding Roots & Blues series which inaugurated Sony's real commitment to quality archival releases in the CD era. It's great stuff.
Bonnie Raitt - see artist profile
Anita Tucker "Hop Skip And Jump" (Capitol)
I don't know much about this gal, only that I picked up this reissue of a 10" EP she put out in the late '50s, and it's pretty smoking. I've never seen mention of her in books or articles... although I think she may have recently popped up on a few compilation albums. One thing I can tell you: she sure did rock!
Dinah Washington "A Slick Chick On The Mellow Side: The Rhythm & Blues Years" (Polygram Classics, 1983)
Best known as a swanky pop singer, Dinah Washington was sort of an old-school R&B equivalent to Patsy Cline's as a honkytonker... pretty slick, but completely compelling. There are multi-CD retrospectives which trace her progress from a bluesy jazz singer to a pop diva, and those collections have their charms. This double LP set is pure gold, though -- Washington's best R&B material from the '40s and early '50s, playing with hotshot bands led by Lionel Hampton, Cootie Williams and Tab Hunter, as well as swinging jazzcats such as Wynton Kelly, Ben Webster and Wardell Gray. Hard to go wrong here! Dinah gets down and dirty, yet also proves herself a classy dame. Highly recommended!
Dinah Washington "20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection" (Universal/Hip-O, 2002)
Kind of a no-nonsense, bare-bones hits package, including her biggest hit, "What A Difference A Day Makes," along with similarly swank, pop-oriented material such as "Unforgettable," "Baby, You've Got What It Takes" and "Baby, Get Lost." Sure, there's plenty more Dinah Washington worth checking out, but for a quick, inexpensive look at her best known stuff, this overview of her later years is pretty darn efficient.
Various Artists "MEAN MOTHERS: INDEPENDENT WOMEN'S BLUES" (Rosetta, 1980)
One of the greatest collections of classic female blues ever set to wax, and one of the jewels from the Rosetta Records catalog. The bent of this collection is on women who are sick and tired of taking crap from their men, and aren't hesistant to let them know that things are about to change. There are so many great Depression-era blues tunes on here, it's kind of silly to single any out in particular -- suffice it to say that this is a must-have record. Highly recommended... pity it appears to be out of print.
Various Artists "TOUGH MAMAS" (Krazy Kat, 1989)
Upping the ante a bit is this hard-rocking collection of postwar R&B tunes, songs full of raunch and sass, such as Big Bertha Henderson's "Ain't I Talkin' To You Baby?" and Ann Carter's "You Oughta Quit It." The highlight is the boisterous, outrageous sexual double-entendre tune, "Drill, Daddy Drill", by Dorothy Ellis, which could easily be the theme of the entire Bush-Cheney presidency, if it weren't so damn nasty! Sadly, I don't think Krazy Kat has reissued this on CD, but the LP is a must-have item!
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