Victoria Spivey

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Victoria Regina Spivey (born October 15, 1906 in Houston , Texas , † October 3, 1976 in New York City , New York ) was an American blues singer, piano player and composer.

Spivey's father had a band in Houston , Texas . Very early on, she played the piano at parties, soon also in bars and clubs, sometimes with well-known blues greats like Blind Lemon Jefferson .

In 1926 she went to St. Louis , Missouri , where she made her first recording with the Black Snake Blues . Other hits followed, accompanied by stars like Louis Armstrong , Lonnie Johnson and Henry "Red" Allen .

In 1929 Spivey played "Missy Rose" in the musical film Hallelujah (directed by King Vidor ) and recorded with JC Higginbotham and George "Pops" Foster . In the 1930s and 1940s she was successful as an actress and in stage shows. She often performed with her husband, vaudeville dancer Billy Adams.

In 1951 Spivey retired from the stage and led a church choir. She made a comeback during the blues revival of the 1960s. With Len Kunstadt she founded the record company "Spivey Records". She made recordings with her friends Sippie Wallace , Lucille Hegamin and Hannah Sylvester , but also with young artists such as Luther Johnson , Sugar Blue and Bob Dylan . In 1973 she performed with Roosevelt Sykes at the Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festival .

Discography

  • 1961 Woman Blues! Bluesville / Original Blues Classics
  • 1961 Songs We Taught Your Mother with Lucille Hegamin and Alberta Hunter Original Blues Classics
  • 1962 Victoria Spivey and Her Blues Spivey
  • 1962 A Basket of Blues Spivey
  • 1963 Three Kings and the Queen Spivey
  • 1965 The Queen and Her Knights Spivey
  • 1965 Spivey's Blues Parade Spivey
  • 1972 Victoria Spivey and Her Blues, Vol. 2 Spivey
  • 1990 Victoria Spivey & the Easy Riders Jazz Band GHB Records
  • 1995 American Folk Blues Festival: 1962-1965 with Big Joe Williams, Lonnie Johnson, Otis Spann, Willie Dixon, Matt "Guitar" Murphy, Memphis Slim Evidence
  • 1996 Grind it! The Ann Arbor Blues Festival Vol.3 with Roosvelt Sykes Sequel
  • 2000 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 1 (1926-1927) Document
  • 2000 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 2 (1927-1929) Document
  • 2000 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1929-1936) Document
  • 2000 Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 4 (1936-1937) Document
  • 2001 The Essential Classic Blues
  • 2003 Queen Victoria 1927-1937 EPM
  • 2004 The Legend Ida Cox Victoria Spivey Saar
  • 2006 Dope Head Blues Ad Blues Images
  • 2006 Idle Hours with Lonnie Johnson Obc
  • Blues Is Life Folkways Records

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Spivey, Victoria
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Spivey, Victoria Regina (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American blues singer, piano player and composer
DATE OF BIRTH October 15, 1906
PLACE OF BIRTH Houston , Texas
DATE OF DEATH 3rd October 1976
Place of death New York City , New York