Etta James Bio
Etta James
Etta James
Few R&B singers have endured tragic travails on the monumental level that Etta James has and remain on earth to talk about it. The lady's no shrinking violet; her autobiography, -Rage to Survive, describes her past (including numerous drug addictions) in sordid detail.
But her personal problems have seldom affected her singing. James has hung in there from the age of R&B and doo wop in the mid-'50s through soul's late-'60s heyday and right up into the '90s and 2000s (where her 1994 disc Mystery Lady paid loving jazz-based tribute to one of her idols, Billie Holiday). Etta James' voice has deepened over the years, coarsened more than a little, but still conveys remarkable passion and pain.
Jamesetta Hawkins was a child gospel prodigy, singing in her Los Angeles Baptist church choir (and over the radio) when she was only five years old under the tutelage of Professor James Earle Hines. She moved to San Francisco in 1950, soon teaming with two other girls to form a singing group. When she was 14, bandleader Johnny Otis gave the trio an audition. He particularly dug their answer song to Hank Ballard & the Midnighters' "Work With Me Annie."
Against her mother's wishes, the young singer embarked for L.A. to record "Roll With Me Henry" with the Otis band and vocalist Richard Berry in 1954 for Modern Records. Otis inverted her first name to devise her stage handle and dubbed her vocal group the Peaches (also Etta's nickname). "Roll With Me Henry," renamed "The Wallflower" when some radio programmers objected to the original title's connotations, topped the R&B charts in 1955.
The Peaches dropped from the tree shortly thereafter, but Etta James kept on singing for Modern throughout much of the decade (often under the supervision of saxist Maxwell Davis). "Good Rockin' Daddy" also did quite well for her later in 1955, but deserving follow-ups such as "W-O-M-A-N" and "Tough Lover" (the latter a torrid rocker cut in New Orleans with Lee Allen on sax) failed to catch on.
James landed at Chicago's Chess Records in 1960, signing with their Argo subsidiary. Immediately, her recording career kicked into high gear; not only did a pair of duets with her then-boyfriend (Moonglows lead singer Harvey Fuqua) chart, her own sides (beginning with the tortured ballad "All I Could Do Was Cry") chased each other up the R&B lists as well. Leonard Chess viewed James as a classy ballad singer with pop crossover potential, backing her with lush violin orchestrations for 1961's luscious "At Last" and "Trust in Me." But James' rougher side wasn't forsaken -- the gospel-charged "Something's Got a Hold on Me" in 1962, a kinetic 1963 live LP (Etta James Rocks the House) cut at Nashville's New Era Club, and a blues-soaked 1966 duet with childhood pal Sugar Pie De Santo, "In the Basement," ensured that.
Although Chess hosted its own killer house band, James traveled to Rick Hall's Fame studios in Muscle Shoals in 1967 and emerged with one of her all-time classics. "Tell Mama" was a searing slice of upbeat Southern soul that contrasted markedly with another standout from the same sessions, the spine-chilling ballad "I'd Rather Go Blind." Despite the death of Leonard Chess, Etta James remained at the label into 1975, experimenting toward the end with a more rock-based approach.
There were some mighty lean years, both personally and professionally, for Miss Peaches. But she got back on track recording-wise in 1988 with a set for Island, Seven Year Itch, that reaffirmed her Southern soul mastery. Her following albums have been a varied lot -- 1990's Sticking to My Guns was contemporary in the extreme; 1992's Jerry Wexler-produced The Right Time, for Elektra, was slickly soulful, and her most other '90s outings have explored jazz directions. In 1998, she also issued a holiday album, Etta James Christmas. She was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2001, and in 2003 received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. That year also saw the release of her Let's Roll album, followed in 2004 by a CD of new blues performances, Blues to the Bone, both on RCA Records. James then shifted gears and released an album of pop standards, All the Way, on RCA in 2006.
In concert, Etta James is a sassy, no-holds-barred performer whose suggestive stage antics sometimes border on the obscene. She's paid her dues many times over as an R&B and soul pioneer; long may she continue to shock the uninitiated. ~ Bill Dahl, All Music Guide
Reviews
Etta James i was a lil girl when you started singing.My mother have all your records she loves your music sooo much.My mother and i sit down together and listen to your music.She tells me where she was working when you made different songs,and i relly enjoy listening at her talk about you.Now Mrs. Etta James your music is all i listen to.My husband tells me baby not Etta James again,he says you know you love some etta James music.But he knows it is nothing he can do about it so he goes with the flow.Mrs. James i was sadden to hear about you being very sick,I'am praying for you to get well.I feel like you are a second mother to me and i don't want anything to happen to you.So i'am praying God heals you,get better my dear Etta James.With all my love Debbie.
Honey, this is the closest I can get to you, I hope someone relays the message. It's not time, there's something more to do, something to help the world, sorry, I don't know what. Take my word for it, I've followed you since forever (you're an Idol of mine), it's not your time now.
I'm not crazy, well - only as crazy as most people! LOL
Kick some donkeyrear, honey - get well, and get busy with the rest of it!
It seems like we grew up together. I have adored your music and your strenghts forever. I send you get well wishes and loads of prayers. The blues genre has been my favorite form of music and no one sings it better!! You are loved.
--
Marsha
Etta, i was a very lonely child raised in a house with no love.
But, your songs " at last" and " sunday morning ", remind me of the only time i was truly loved. I lost him during Vietnam, but, when i listen to you sing we are back in europe, in the warmth of love.
thank you for giving me a way to celebrate that time.
i hope your health improves, you will be in my prayers tonight.
God Bless You
--
to be able to look into my own eyes at the end of each day
Etta you are one of a kind. For many years now I've loved your music and admired the rare talent you possess. Please take care and know that WE LOVE YOU.
God bless you Etta.
Etta, you totally rule. I hope you're well. I don't think I've ever heard a voice that moved me so much as yours. Your voice slays me. Please think about touring Australia, if you're well enough. I'd love to see you play - just once. My friends would too. You're my most favourite singer in the world. Take care of yourself. Love from Australia lovely lady.xxxx
Hey Aunt Etta This is Lil Larry and I really hope you Are doin better. Who ever's reading the post If it is Donto please email me at Nettlesentertainment@hotmail.com thanks. Much Love...
--
Nettles Kidd
Dear Etta,
I am 39 years old and married with 5 children. In my youth I played piano in southern gospel bands in my local area. I now just play at home and play guitar with my oldest son who is getting pretty good for a 12 year old. Anyway, I am trying my best to educate him on the history of music. I want him to know where today's modern music came from. You are one of the artist I want him to know about. In my humble experience as a musician I have played with many singers. I know when people are singing off key and such and there are people out there that can sing and have natural talent but a true artist like yourself is at a whole different level. When I hear you my heart flutters and chills run down my spine. Your songs truly touch people deep inside. I want to thank you for making people feel that amazing feeling. Thank you Etta. You have touched and inspired me. I wish you many more years of good health. Never stop singing.
Donnie
Dear Ms. James,
I just found out you're still alive! I'm so glad. I found out thanks to today's online news article.
In fact, I only found out your name in 2009 while I was in a homeless shelter. That wonderful luxurious car commercial came on -- I always make time for it -- and I just kind of blurted out, "I LOVE that song! I wish I knew who the singer was." Anyway, another resident at the shelter (Thanks, M!) told me it's Etta James. I wrote your name down so I'd never forget.
At Last is so beautiful, so stunning, so classic, that I thought whoever sang it must surely be long gone. But now that I know you're still here with all of your loving fans, I wanted to let you know that you made a homeless man and a dear woman smile that day. And your lovely voice washed over me with a heavenly feeling that made the day memorable.
Thank you, Ms. James, for being so good to us!
