{"id":6254,"date":"2021-11-26T11:16:46","date_gmt":"2021-11-26T17:16:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/?p=6254"},"modified":"2021-11-26T11:19:12","modified_gmt":"2021-11-26T17:19:12","slug":"6254","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/2021\/11\/26\/6254\/","title":{"rendered":"Ma Rainey and the Greatest Interpreters of the Blues"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">While the Theater Owners\u2019 Booking Association (or T.O.B.A.) had many high powered stars working on its circuit, Gertrude \u201cMa\u201d Rainey is one of the players that continues to resonate with popular culture today. August Wilson\u2019s mid-1980s play <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/search.alexanderstreet.com\/view\/work\/bibliographic_entity%7Cbibliographic_details%7C3607523\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Ma Rainey\u2019s Black Bottom<\/span><\/i><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> and the 2020 movie adaptation of the same work are just a couple examples of Rainey\u2019s massive influence in the current media whirlwind.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"584\" height=\"329\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ord7gP151vk?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Yet, Ma Rainey\u2019s influence was powerful even among her contemporaries on the T.O.B.A. circuit and her adoring audiences. Below are a couple of performance advertisements and reviews of Rainey\u2019s work, which include nothing but glowing remarks regarding her artistry.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cEverybody is still talking about the glad rags that Ma Rainey displayed. She made about ump-teen changes and looked keener each time. Ma sang until she was out of breath, the audience called her back each time and she really did her stuff. She climaxed the deal by doing a \u2018Paramount Black Bottom.\u2019 This company is good enough far anybody\u2019s house.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.proquest.com\/historical-newspapers\/old-kaysee\/docview\/492166660\/se-2?accountid=351\">&#8220;IN OLD KAYSEE.&#8221; The Chicago Defender (National Edition) (1921-1967), Jan 21, 1928.<\/a> <\/span><\/h3>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cThere are a number of performers singing the \u2018blues,\u2019 but when Ma Rainey sings them, nuff said. She has to take three or four bows every night.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/infoweb.newsbank.com\/apps\/readex\/doc?p=EANAAA&amp;docref=image\/v2%3A12B28495A8DAB1C8%40EANAAA-12CBF43CCB422FD8%402420892-12CBE504B5E950B8%405-12DF53BA389C4388%40Alexander%2BTolliver%2527s%2BBig%2BShow\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">&#8220;Alexander Tolliver&#8217;s Big Show.&#8221; Freeman (Indianapolis, Indiana), January 29, 1916: 6. Readex: African American Newspapers. <\/span><\/a><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Even a blurb from the Kansas <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Plaindealer<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> speaks of her musical appeal transcending race:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201c\u2018Ma\u2019 Rainey is widely known to both white and colored lovers of crooney melodies. She was selected after careful canvas to make phonographic records and also to sing on the radio. Her tones are distinctive and have that peculiar resonance characteristic of color singers.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/infoweb.newsbank.com\/apps\/readex\/doc?p=EANAAA&amp;docref=image\/v2%3A12A7EF1A4AC47F2D%40EANAAA-12CCEC92D923E9C0%402425861-12CCEC92E83F3518%402-12CCEC932B8B4EF0%40%2522MA%2522%2BRainey\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">&#8220;&#8216;MA&#8217; Rainey.&#8221; Plaindealer (Topeka, Kansas) THIRTY FIRST YEAR, no. THIRTY SIX, September 6, 1929: [THREE]. Readex: African American Newspapers. <\/span><\/a><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In an article published long after her death that details the horribly common instance of racism against African Americans across the United States, female journalist <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1979\/10\/29\/archives\/obituary-1-no-title.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Yvonne Gregory<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> writes about Ma Rainey\u2019s extensive artistic reach on her musical contemporaries and her impact on blues music in general.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><div id=\"attachment_6255\" style=\"width: 411px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6255\" class=\" wp-image-6255\" src=\"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM-300x262.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"401\" height=\"352\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM-300x262.jpg 300w, https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM-150x131.jpg 150w, https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM-343x300.jpg 343w, https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/593\/2021\/11\/Screen-Shot-2021-11-26-at-11.13.17-AM.jpg 731w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 401px) 100vw, 401px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6255\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/infoweb-newsbank-com.ezproxy.stolaf.edu\/iw-search\/we\/HistArchive\/?p_product=EAPX&amp;p_theme=eap&amp;p_nbid=Y64O55KJMTYzNzkzOTc1Ni44NDQ3Njc6MToxMzoxOTkuOTEuMTgzLjIx&amp;p_action=doc&amp;s_lastnonissuequeryname=2&amp;d_viewref=search&amp;p_queryname=2&amp;p_docnum=1&amp;p_docref=v2:1387B854F03ABB86@EAPX-138EFD52CEC6D258@2434318-138EF9FC016DE7E0@5-13B551C5391C5506@Pearl%20Bailey%20Incident%20Recalls%20Life%20and%20Death%20of%20Bessie%20Smith\">Gregory, Yvonne. \u201cPearl Bailey Incident Recalls Life and Death of Bessie Smith.\u201d Freedom [New York, New York], 11 November 1952, page 7.<\/a><\/p><\/div><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In her fairly short article, Gregory manages to create a chronology of notable blues artists, which just happen to be women. She describes how Ma Rainey discovered Bessie Smith when she \u201cheard the little girl sing and was so impressed with her voice and personality that she took her as a pupil and started her on her great career.\u201d Then, the author says that this influence and mentorship continues to occur among African American women &#8212; even if less direct than the Rainey and Smith story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cToday it\u2019s [] Mahalis Jackson\u2019s<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/IHOgs5jxG-w\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> gospel music;<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> or it is Pearl Bailey singing <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/rfOcV6Eqk3A\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u2018Tired of the life I lead, tired of counting things I need\u2019<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">; yesterday it was Bessie singing,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/DOaZ37tO3uo\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> \u2018Down in the Dumps\u2019<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">; day before yesterday Ma Rainey sang <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/4gXShOJVwaM\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u2018Backwater Blues.\u2019<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> but yesterday, today, and tomorrow, the blues are an unbreakable thread in the life of our people and in the life of all Americans.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>Side note:<\/strong> I could not find a recording of Ma Rainey singing \u201cBackwater Blues.\u201d I could only find recordings of Bessie Smith singing the tune, because she is the composer. So, I\u2019m not sure if Gregory made a mistake in attributing this tune to Rainey, or if the origin story is different from the commonly accepted one.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">At first, I thought the author\u2019s mentioning of all women blues performers was accidental or merely common name associations. She connects performers that fall within this musical era through their similar sounds and stage personas, creating almost a mini-history of the genre.\u00a0 However, she takes her brief blues music history a step further with a claim that <strong>\u201cNegro women are among the greatest interpreters of this art form.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Simply, this tidbit is exciting for a couple of reasons. First, Gregory\u2019s analysis of this phenomenon in the world of blues music fits almost perfectly with our current mapping project of the T.O.B.A. circuit and the routes of its many powerhouse women performers. Second, even back in the 1950s, women saw the effect of not only Ma Rainey, but also the collective of African American women who contributed in pioneering the popularity of the blues music we know (and even love) today. Here, we see a unique instance of African American women being lifted up, even though the world around them wants to tear them down. Therefore, like Yvonne Gregory, I \u201clook forward to the day that all the people will honor [these African American women],\u201d and I hope that our mapping project will shine a light on some of these powerhouses that many today might not even know.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While the Theater Owners\u2019 Booking Association (or T.O.B.A.) had many high powered stars working on its circuit, Gertrude \u201cMa\u201d Rainey is one of the players that continues to resonate with popular culture today. August Wilson\u2019s mid-1980s play Ma Rainey\u2019s Black &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/2021\/11\/26\/6254\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3503,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s7jEhR-6254","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3503"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6254"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6258,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6254\/revisions\/6258"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}