The sad news is in - Etta James finally lost to her multitude of ailments and passed away at the age of 73. Etta was up there in my pantheon of favorite singers, and I had the privilege of seeing her live several times - two or three times in Newport at the Rhythm & Blues Festival and the Newport Jazz Festival, and one memorable occasion at the original House of Blues in Cambridge, MA. I thought I'd include a couple of my favorites for this tribute - her version of Jimmy Reed's "Baby What You Want Me to Do" and her big hit "I'd Rather Go Blind"; when she did this one at the House of Blues they damned near tore the roof off the place! Go in peace, Etta. We'll miss you!
Schoolyard Divinations
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[image: Schoolyard Divinations]
"Like a lot of folk love divination, I don’t know where this came from,"
writes Lauren Parker. "It’s nonsense, it’s silly, ...
6 hours ago
Oh, damn. I hadn't heard. Oh, damn.
ReplyDeleteyou are a lucky man indeed Roy...Wow I am jealous getting to see this wonderful singer live! hopefully she is at peace, but still singing the blues!
ReplyDeleteI saw this on the news. Sad. And I just love that first photo of her. Gosh, 73 sounds younger all the time, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteA great singer--"I'd Rather Go Blind" is truly a killer song, especially when she sang it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the clips Roy. Whilst there were a fair number of short obituary pieces on TV over here, the clips they used to illustrate her work just didn't do her justice. That is a great photograph as well.
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