Alberta Adams

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Alberta Adams sings in Sushi Blues in Hollywood (2006)

Alberta Adams (born July 26, 1917 in Indianapolis , Indiana ; † December 25, 2014 ) was an American blues singer who is associated with the Detroit blues , jump blues and Chicago blues . Sometimes she is referred to as the "Grande Dame of the Detroit Blues".

Life

Alberta Adams was born Roberta Louise Osborn and grew up with an aunt in Detroit , Michigan . She performed as a dancer on the Hastings Street club scene in Detroit in the late 1930s. It was there that she began to sing, and the owner of the club where she performed encouraged her to expand her repertoire. At Club B & C, she performed with later greats such as John Lee Hooker , Big Maceo , Eddie Burns and Eddie Kirkland. Adams named Big Joe Turner , Dinah Washington , Sarah Vaughan, and LaVern Baker as her earliest musical influences, but she'd taught herself most of it.

At the B & C they also heard the Chess brothers and gave her a contract with Chess Records in 1952 , where she recorded with Red Saunders . She recorded a single for the Savoy label (Say Baby Say with the TJ Fowler Band) and toured with Tiny Bradshaw 's Big Band as a member of the Bluesettes, a vocal group . Here she developed a strong voice that could still be heard in heavily occupied wind groups. As her reputation spread beyond Detroit, she sang with various bands including Duke Ellington , Louis Jordan , Wynonie Harris , James Moody , Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson and T-Bone Walker .

After she had largely withdrawn from the public eye and could only be heard in Detroit's club scene, she made a comeback in the 1990s. Albums Born With the Blues (1999) and Say Baby Say: Life's Trials and Tribulations .According to Miss Alberta Adams (2000) were well received by the critics. So was Born with the Blues from Living Blues Magazine voted one of the 25 best blues albums of 1999. When she was over 90 years old, she went into the studio and recorded Detroit is my Home . On this album she sang different styles of blues, but gave each track her own personal touch. Ann Rabson , Cee Cee Collins and Thornetta Davis made guest appearances on the album . Alberta Adams performed regularly at various blues festivals and gave concerts in old age. She was happy about the recognition she had received, but said: "I don't jump up and down like Caesar."

Discography

  • 1999 Born with the Blues Cannonball Records
  • 2000 Say Baby Say Cannonball Records
  • 2004 I'm on the Move Eastlawn Records
  • 2008 Detroit Is My Home Eastlawn Records

Web links

Commons : Alberta Adams  - Collection of Images, Videos, and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Edward Komara (Ed.): Encyclopedia of the Blues. Routledge, New York NY et al. 2006, ISBN 0-415-92699-8 - AMG gives a year of birth in the early 1920s.
  2. ^ Gary Graff: Alberta Adams, the Queen of Detroit blues, dies at 97 . Obituary in: The Macomb Daily, December 25, 2014
  3. ^ All Music Guide biography of Richard Skelly
  4. ^ All Music Guide biography of Richard Skelly
  5. ↑ a b Kalamazoo Blues Festival preview
  6. ↑ CD Universe product information
  7. ↑ The Fox Terrier "Caesar" by Edward VII is probably meant .
personal data
SURNAME Adams, Alberta
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Osborn, Roberta Louise (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American blues singer
DATE OF BIRTH July 26, 1917
PLACE OF BIRTH Indianapolis , Indiana , USA
DATE OF DEATH December 25, 2014