Sadly, after a prolonged illness, musical icon Etta James passed away this past week, just five days before her 74th birthday. Thankfully her family was by her side.
With a musical style that spanned a variety of music genres including blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, soul, gospel and jazz, Etta was truly a singer’s singer.
She began her singing career in the mid-Fifties and before the decade ended she scored several R&B hits including the rollicking Dance With Me Henry.
Though an incredibly gifted vocalist, Ella was a troubled soul who suffered through some very hard times due to her years of drug abuse. Fortunately, in the 1980s the singer recovered her health and was able to begin a significant and well-deserved comeback.
Etta spent the last decade and a half of her life being thought of as a jazz queen, a soul diva and of course as the Matriarch of the Blues. Her return to the spotlight introduced a whole new audience to her earlier music, including her legendary Chess Records recordings.
Her Blue Gardenia CD was inspired by her life-long idol, Billie Holiday. The disc includes her wonderfully soulful recording of Jimmy McHugh’s Don’t Blame Me.
We send our sympathy and kindest thoughts to her family.
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