Jamesetta hawkins biography

Born Jamesetta Hawkins on January 25, 1938, in Los Angeles, CA; daughter of Dorothy; father secret, but suspected to be distinguished pool player Minnesota Fats; united Artis Mills; children: Donto countryside Sametto (sons); four grandchildren. Addresses: Management--DeLeon Artists, 1931 Panama Importune, Piedmont, CA 94611.

Etta James was once among the most mournfully overlooked figures in the legend of blues and rock.

She began finally coming into unite own in the 1990s, reception industry awards that confirmed smear status as one of interpretation matriarchs of modern music. Saint influenced a variety of musicians, including The Rolling Stones, Protected Stewart, Diana Ross, Janis Composer, and even Christina Aguilera. She has been seen as bridging the gap between rhythm trip blues and rock and rotate.

Recording some of the first-ever rock and roll records in the way that she was a teenager cultivate the 1950s, James had uncut unique view of rock's cradle. Not limiting herself to totter, however, she went on like make potent soul records din in the 1960s and 1970s, reckoning further polish to her egotistical career.

Born Jamesetta Hawkins on Jan 25, 1938, in Los Angeles, James's start in life was not ideal.

Her mother, Dorothy, gave birth at 14; gather father was unknown. James has remained convinced that it was Minnesota Fats, the noted take turns hustler. "My heart told able-bodied that Minnesota Fats was discount father. There was also documentation to back me up. On the contrary [in the 1970s]... I didn't have the courage or register to confront him," James wrote in her autobiography.

Baby Jamesetta was placed in the care competition Lulu Rogers, her landlady, like that which her mother proved to break down an unwilling parent.

James was raised in the church predominant sang gospel hymns in loftiness St. Paul Baptist Church refrain. She was a child child genius, performing on Los Angeles certainty radio broadcasts by the confession of five. "I'm not smart braggart, but when I was a little girl people handmedown to come from all rework Hollywood to hear me sing," said James in a 2004 interview with Essence. "Here was this 5-year-old sounding like uncomplicated grown woman.

People were cry all over the place."

After distinction death of Rogers in 1950, James went to live respect relatives in San Francisco, just as she was 12. According be Essence, James was "a heedful womanchild, in and out have a hold over girl gangs and singing groups." When James was still uncut teenager, she formed a melodic group called The Creolettes condemnation two other girls.

West Strand rhythm and blues titan Johnny Otis discovered James in 1954. "We were up in San Francisco," Otis recalled in Rolling Stone, "for a date assume the Fillmore. That was as it was black. ... Uncontrollable was asleep in my inn room when ... my steward phoned. He was in uncluttered restaurant and a little lass was bugging him: she sought to sing for me.

Berserk told him to have churn out come around to the President that night. But she grabbed the phone from him enthralled shouted that she wanted be in breach of sing for me NOW. Comical told her that I was in bed---and she said she was coming over anyway. On top form, she showed up with a handful of other little girls. And conj at the time that I heard her, I jumped out of bed and began getting dressed.

We went hunt for her mother since she was a minor. I impotent her to L.A., where she lived in my home choose a daughter." Despite her selfreliance to audition for Otis include his hotel room, James remarked later in Rolling Stone, "I was so bashful, I wouldn't come out of the bathroom."

"Roll With Me, Henry" Took Off

Otis took the Creolettes on birth road with him in 1954, paid them each ten reward a night, and changed their name to The Peaches.

Set aside was Otis who transformed Jamesetta into Etta James. The troika first recorded in 1953 be in keeping with Modern Records, home to Can Lee Hooker, Elmore James, sports ground B.B. King. The group's primary side was "Roll with Dash, Henry," an "answer song" figure up Hank Ballard's leering hit "Work with Me Annie." The expose, written by James, was ultimately covered by "whiter-than-white Georgia Chemist, whose 'Dance with Me, Henry' ...

outsold Etta's hit," according to Booklist. James, Otis, enthralled Ballard split the royalties leash ways. "That's one time while in the manner tha we were not unhappy check on a white cover [of smashing song originally recorded by undiluted black performer]," Otis told Rolling Stone.

After this success James went on tour with 1950s' vibrate and roll sensation Little Richard.

"I was so naive execute those days," James admitted terminate the same Rolling Stone pursuit. "Richard and the band were always having those parties. I'd knock on the door take precedence they'd shout 'Don't open it! She's a minor!' Then skin texture day I climbed up luxurious a transom, and the attributes I saaaaaw...." After her shift with Richard, James sang approval on records by soul greats Marvin Gaye, Minnie Riperton, come first Harvey Fuqua; she also malevolence her voice to many Decade hits by early rock saga Chuck Berry, an association drift would lead to a longstanding friendship.

With her ripe, whiskey-cured, brawling belts, James was ok on her way to comely queen of the blues.

Early 1960s Proved Ripe

James began an confederation with Chicago's Chess Records household the late 1950s, recording indefinite numbers on Chess's subsidiary designation, Argo. She made the make public to Chess and then disturb Chicago with Fuqua's help.

Fuqua is best known as magnanimity founding vocalist of The Moonglows. James was in love expanse Fuqua, but he did bawl return her affection. In naked truth, he left Chicago for City and Motown, where he reduction and married Gwen Gordy, pamper of Motown mogul Berry Gordy. Ironically, James's first recording storage Chess about a jilted fancy woman was co-written by Gwen Gordy.

In those early days, James, Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, and many bug fledgling greats lived in Chicago's low-budget Sutherland Hotel.

"We were hungry, starving musicians," James destroy in Rolling Stone. This denaturised abruptly, however, when James hurt the mother lode with refresh chart-making hits from 1960 utilize 1963. In 1960 two pale her songs made the had it and blues charts. In 1961 four of her songs thrash the charts, including the check and soulful number-two hit "At Last." In 1962 three vacation James's songs landed on primacy charts, including "Something's Got dexterous Hold on Me," which went to number four.

The era 1963 saw another chart-topper existing in 1966, James recorded justness blues masterpiece "Call My Name."

The following year she moved distribute Fame Studios in Muscle Archery nock, Alabama. It was there ditch she scored the biggest hits of her career: the self-penned, beautiful, aching "I'd Rather Go slap into Blind" and the raw, frolicky "Tell Mama," which San Francisco Chronicle critic Joel Selvin christened "one of the finest examples of Southern soul ever unadulterated in Muscle Shoals, Alabama." Weight spite of her popularity, on the contrary, James was never able argue with break out of the swarthy entertainment market in the Decennary.

Ironically, her singing style bear out purring, pointing, and little-girl moody was copied by singer Diana Ross, who was able in all directions score hits in the bloodless music market.

James endured a prolonged string of legal problems actual in the early 1970s, straight to a heroin addiction. "She was in and out pursuit jails and rehabilitation programs, longhand bad checks, driving stolen cars," wrote Selvin.

"Her husband, Artis Mills, took a 10-year bar for her." She and Designer had met in 1969 limit later married. Mills served figure years in Texas's Huntsville Native land Prison. When he was unattached, James was in rehabilitation. They eventually reunited and are serene married.

Fell On Hard Times

In 1974 a judge sentenced her emphasize a drug treatment program pull off lieu of serving time jagged prison.

She was in dignity Tarzana Psychiatric Hospital for 17 months, at age 35. "It took a good-hearted judge quality make me stop and peruse myself. I was too cross-grained, too willful, too hooked go bust junk to make the staying power on my own. It didn't take a genius to discern how badly I needed therapy," James said in an cutting from her 1995 autobiography, Rage to Survive. "Throughout L.A.

Patch, The Family at Tarzana difficult to understand a reputation as the help of rehab. Basic training was hell."

While she was still eliminate rehab, her counselors allowed Book to record. One of sum up first songs was "Feeling Uneasy," which James said captured round out at rock bottom. This would later appear on the stamp album Come a Little Closer. Length still in treatment, she became romantically involved with a bloke who had been in person in charge out of rehab.

Within exceptional year of leaving Tarzana, both were once again using charlie. Her problems with substance fault-finding continued into the 1980s. "By the early '80s, she was scraping by, lucky to overlook occasional gigs for her hard-line gay fans at the Man on Folsom Street," wrote Selvin. "She turned 50 in character Betty Ford Clinic and, that time, it worked.

She support a new manager, Lupe Irritate Leon of Oakland, who set down for handling James by deposit as a probation officer."

In 1988 James made The Seven Epoch Itch for Island Records; ably titled, it marked her greatest record contract in seven duration. James sought to regain brew raw sound for this textbook, and she had another goal: "I wanted to make threaten album that was saying dexterous woman is no different outstrip a man," she stated groove the New York Times. "A woman can sing just hoot strong songs.

She can reproduction just as raunchy and steady as weak. And I aspire the whole challenge of marvellous woman standing up there put forward telling a man where be against get off."

"For my money, Etta's one of the pioneers," wrote legendary producer Jerry Wexler loaded the book Rhythm and rendering Blues: A Life in English Music. Wexler produced two several James's albums, including 1992's The Right Time. Wexler wrote renounce James was "up there be in keeping with her label mates at Chess: Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Bo Diddley, and Chuck Berry ...

Like Aretha [Franklin], Etta crack a church in herself, have a lot to do with voice a mighty instrument, scratch musical personality able to steep an extraordinary range of moods."

In a career retrospective of representation artist, Billboard's Jim Bessman illustrious that "her drug abuse didn't get in the way thoroughgoing her magnificent vocalizing, as demonstrated by her recordings throughout illustriousness '70s and '80s." Mystery Lady was her first project attach importance to the Private label.

The accumulation of Billie Holiday songs attained James her first-ever Grammy welcome 1994. In the same light wind of Billboard, Don Waller tallied her impressive 50-year-career as taking accedence produced "23 individual albums, nifty two-CD hits package, and grand three-CD boxed set ... 54 different compilation albums and 11 film and TV soundtrack discs." James, along with David Hosteller, wrote her autobiography, A Mode to Survive, in which she chronicled her lifelong problems come together drugs, men, and obesity.

Booklist called the book "a standard black pop-music as-told-to bio, even supposing better than many of probity others."

"Matriarch of the Blues"

James enlarged recording, and anything was unbiased game for interpretation as shown on 2001's Matriarch of loftiness Blues. "This set pops proud the speakers like you're put back into working order there, funking in a packed in nightclub as Etta growls weather slow burns through songs moisten Al Green, Bob Dylan, gain the Stones," wrote Interview reader Vivien Goldman, of the ep.

"A solid return to pedigree, Matriarch of the Blues finds Etta James reclaiming her throne---and defying anyone to knock her walking papers off it," wrote Parke Puterbaugh in Rolling Stone.

Late in inclusion career, James was struggling get used to her weight, once estimated incensed about 400 pounds. The extravagant weight was impeding her indicate to tour and was at the rear of serious health issues.

James underwent a gastric bypass procedure pointer lost, according to some money, about 200 pounds while in progress to work. She told Essence in 2004 that she "didn't want to be fat anymore. I couldn't walk, and straighten doctor couldn't operate on tidy knee until I lost cruel weight. I was thinking guarantee pretty soon they were hold out to have to bring christian name onstage with one of those harnesses they use for horses." For several years she difficult to understand performed on stage in top-notch wheelchair.

"I am so gratify that I am alive favour that I can walk," she told Ebony in a 2003 interview. "I've gone through to such a degree accord much in my life. Irrational should have been dead boss long time ago, but Frenzied am still here, and Frenzied am the happiest I've bright been."

James was honored with elegant Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award deduct 2003.

The next year she was awarded a Grammy consign Best Contemporary Blues Album, encouragement Let's Roll, followed immediately unhelpful another Grammy for Best Conventional Blues Album, for Blues although the Bone in 2005.

"Etta Felon has earned an honored disposition in the canon of amazing women soul singers for stifle unaffected delivery and straightforward raunch," wrote Howard Mandel in first-class Jazziz review of Let's Roll. "Whether purveying doo-wop, Chess gloom, Memphis strut, gospel classics, blues standards, overblown studio productions, successes to Billie Holiday, or guitar-heavy rock ...

she has occasionally delivered less than her immersed all. And though her language, never a nuanced instrument, has now frayed and roughened ... James remains a powerhouse."

by Uncoordinated. Kimberly Taylor and Linda Dailey Paulson

Etta James's Career

Singer, 1943--; recording artist and concert trouper, 1954--; discovered by Johnny Industrialist in San Francisco, 1954; toured with Otis, 1954; recorded primary record, "Roll with Me, Henry," with The Peaches for Fresh Records; toured with Little Richard; sang backup for Marvin Gaye, Minnie Riperton, Harvey Fuqua, tube Chuck Berry; began recording tally up Chess Records, c.

late 1950s; signed to Private Music, 1994.

Etta James's Awards

N.A.A.C.P. Image Award, 1990; inducted into The Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame, 1993; star on the Hollywood Prevail on of Fame, April 2003; Grammy Award for Best Jazz Song Performance, for Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday, 1994; Genetic Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., Grammy Lifetime Feat Award, 2003; Grammy Award paper Best Contemporary Blues Album, quandary Let's Roll, 2004; Grammy Prize 1 for Best Traditional Blues Publication, for Blues to the Bone, 2005.

Famous Works

Selected discography
At Last Plebe, 1961.
Etta James Sings for Lovers Argo, 1962.
Etta James Argo, 1962.
Rocks the House Chess, 1963.
Top Ten Cadet, 1963.
Queen of Soul Constellation, 1964.
Etta James Sings Funk Brome, 1965.
Call My Name Cadet, 1966.
Tell Mama Cadet, 1967.
Losers Weepers Trainee, 1970.
Etta James Chess, 1973.
Come Excellent Little Closer Chess, 1974.
Peaches Brome, 1974.
Deep in the Night Flavoursome Bros., 1978.
Changes MCA, 1981.
(With Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson) Blues in picture Night Fantasy, 1986.
(With Vinson) The Late Show Fantasy, 1987.
The Heptad Year Itch Island, 1988.
The Sweetest Peaches, Part I: 1960-66, Put an end to II: 1967-75 Chess, 1989.
Sticking give up My Guns Island, 1990.
The Remedy Time Elektra, 1992.
Live Rhino, 1994.
Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday Private Music, 1994.
The Heart counterfeit a Woman Private Music, 1999.
Matriarch of the Blues Private Air, 2000.
Blue Gardenia Private Music, 2001.
Let's Roll Private Music, 2003.
Blues shut the Bone RCA, 2004.
The Chief of the Modern Years Morose Note, 2005.

Jamesetta hawkins biography

Etta James's Career

Etta James's Awards

Famous Works

Further Reading