The Blues is very simply the purest form of art that I have yet witnessed on this earth. Its meaning and history are something that is very nearly evidence of divine Intervention. For such beauty from such pain, is magic, is glory to the human spirit, how strong it is, how it can find joy in misery, how it always has hope. Glory to the powers of
creation and the reasons for it. Glory to the men and women that gave it to us. Men and women that you will see on these page. Men and women that should never be forgotten, for their example is a needed one.

                                              Max D. Spiegel

Generally speaking, when we speak of the blues it is considered a patriarchal genre, yet few realise it was black women performers who established the blues in the mainstream and were first to be recorded. 

Katie Webter's sassy and sensuous blend of barrelhouse boogie-woogie, New Orleans RnB, Gulf Coast swamp-pop, deep bayou blues and Southern gospel-flavored soul placed her among the most in-demand blues artists in the country and made her a favorite at festivals and concert halls all over the world. As a teen, Webster was already hailed as South Louisiana's reigning piano queen. She recorded on more than 500 singles during the 1950s and 60s. 
 

Janis Joplin was one of the greatest white female blues singers of all time. Although she came from the same mid  60s San Francisco rock scene that spawned bands like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, Joplin's screaming, gut-wrenching vocals were firmly based in the blues. Joplin frequently cited Bessie Smith as her chief inspiration and influence. 
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Along with Bessie Smith, Gertrude 'Ma' Rainey is regarded as the best of the 1920s classic blues singers. She was most likely the first woman to incorporate blues into minstrel and vaudeville stage shows, perhaps as early as 1902. Rainey is often called the Mother of the Blues since she inspired many of the female blues singers who followed her. Her influence was profound, despite the fact that before her recording debut she rarely performed outside the South. 
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Mamie Smith was the first to record blues songs in 1920 with her versions of Perry Bradford's 'Crazy Blues', and 'It' s Right Here for You' on Okeh Records. The recording was a wild success, selling over a million copies in less than a year, and finally selling over two million copies. In the 1930s and early 1940s Mamie  continued to lead a 
successful career singing and recording. Mamie set the standard for female blues singers that followed in her foot steps. Nearly every other Classic Blues singer of the 1920s borrowed something from her act or styled themselves to achieve her success. 

Minnie's roots were in country blues, an idiom dominated by men. An able guitarist and an authoritative singer who packed her notes with punch and rough-edged passion, Minnie was also an excellent composer. During the 1920s she settled into Memphis Beale Street blues scene, and in 1929 she was discovered by a talent scout for Columbia Records. She recorded later that year under the name Memphis Minnie. Her first song, 'Bumble Bee', was one of the most successful of the more than one hundred sides she recorded before retiring in the mid-1950s. 
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Bessie Smith was a rough, crude, violent woman. Her full-bodied blues delivery coupled with a remarkable self-assuredness worked its way in and around most every note she sang. Her sharp sense of phrasing, enabled her to influence virtually every female blues singer who followed. Smith was more than just a blues singer she became a black cultural symbol. To many blacks, her success represented a triumph over white domination in the entertainment business.  She died in 1937, still in the prime of her career leaving behind a legacy that is wonderfully rich and practically unparalleled. Many still consider her the best artists the blues has ever produced. 
 
 
 

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