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Bessie Audiobook
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Publisher Description
Bessie Smith, the great singer known as the "Empress of the Blues," is considered by many to be the greatest blues singer of all time. She was also a successful vaudeville entertainer who became the highest-paid African American performer of the Roaring Twenties.
Chris Albertson's revised and expanded edition of the biography of this extraordinary artist debunks many of the myths that have circulated since her untimely death in 1937. Albertson writes with insight and candor about the singer's personal life and her career, supplementing his historical research with dozens of interviews with her relatives, friends, and associates, including Ruby Walker Smith, a niece by marriage who toured with Bessie for over a decade.
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“Robertson Dean offers a solid reading of thisbiography of Bessie Smith…This book, an update of an earlier version, shines alight on Smith and offers perspective on the era’s artistic community as wellas Smith’s rise and untimely death.”
— AudioFile
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The most devastating, provocative, and enlightening work of its kind ever contributed to the annals of jazz literature.
— Los Angeles Times -
“The most devastating, provocative, and enlightening work of its kind ever contributed to the annals of jazz literature.”
— Los Angeles Times -
“"A remarkably clear-eyed examination of Smith’s personality (and sexuality) and, more important, of the gritty and greedy music business.”
— Atlantic Monthly
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About Chris Albertson
Chris Albertson is the acknowledged authority on Bessie Smith. A longtime contributor to Stereo Review, Down Beat, Saturday Review, and other publications, he has written extensive liner notes for jazz and blues albums and has produced a wide array of recordings, including radio and television programs.
About Robertson Dean
Robertson Dean has played leading roles on and off Broadway and at dozens of regional theaters throughout the country. He has a BA from Tufts University and an MFA from Yale. His audiobook narration has garnered ten AudioFile Earphones Awards. He now lives in Los Angeles, where he works in film and television in addition to narrating.