Ma Rainey's Black Bottom: Ma Rainey: Amazon.ca: Music

1. Oh Papa Blues

2. Black Eye Blues [Take 1]

3. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

4. Booze and Blues

5. Blues Oh Blues

6. Sleep Talking Blues [Take 1]

7. Lucky Rock Blues

8. Georgia Cake Walk

9. Don't Fish in My Sea

10. Stack O' Lee Blues

11. Shave 'Em Dry Blues

12. Yonder Come the Blues [Take 1]

13. Screech Owl Blues

14. Farewell, Daddy Blues

Product Description

From Amazon.com

The classic blues belter had been singing for two decades before she ever put her voice on record, and it shows on these recordings from the mid- to late '20s. The archetypal blues shouter, Rainey had a voice whose depth and strength is startling and sometimes alarming, even on these scratchy old recordings--one can only imagine what she must have sounded like in real life. Her backup musicians include such notables as pianist Fletcher Henderson, trombonist Charlie Green, guitarist Tampa Red, and trombonist Kid Ory, all performing fairly straightforward 12-bar blues. It's not the material here that's notable, so much as Rainey's voice, a voice that has informed the work of female blues singers ever since. --Genevieve Williams

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars The cream of Ma Rainey's crop, Jul 28 2003

By	Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Gertrude 'Ma' Rainey was billed by her record company as the "Mother of the Blues" (something which pleased her greatly), and although there was blues and blues singers even before her, she was certainly one of the genres most important trailblazers.

"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" is a fine collection of 14 of Ma Rainey's best songs recorded between 1924 and 1928. She was a powerful and expressive singer, and she is backed here by various brass- and/or string bands (Kid Ory, Coleman Hawkins and Tom Dorsey being credited among the musicians).

The sound quality on these recordings, of which some are almost 80 years old, is surprisingly good, and among the highlights are "Shave 'Em Dry Blues", "Yonder Come The Blues" and the title track.
This is highly recommendable to anyone with an interest in early blues, or even jazz.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Ma Rainey Should Sing Forever, May 24 2003

By	A. W. Bellais "Avid Reader" (Savannah, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Here is a hot CD! Ma Rainey is recaptured in all her richness. What a great listening experience, especially for those who love to hear the African American sound the way it was! No wonder August Wilson found such a wonderful tapestry on which to draw his play -- the music on this CD wants to be heard again and again.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Roaring Twenties Personified, Jan 29 2003

By	A Customer - See all my reviews

Gertrude Malissa Pridgett, born in 1886, was THE pioneer blues belter, taking the stage name Ma Rainey following her marriage to vaudevillian William "Pa" Rainey. Everyone who followed - from Bessie Smith on down - owed their success to her paving the way.

Her life [she died on December 22, 1939 at age 53] inspired the 1985 Broadway musical "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" - currently being revived with Whoopi Goldberg in the starring role.

If there's a fault with this 1990 CD from Yazoo Records it's the lack of liner notes and the omission of her one popular charted hit, the immortal, classic See See Rider Blues [# 14 in February 1925] which she did for the Paramount label with Louis Armstrong on coronet and Fletcher Henderson at the piano.

According to the insert, liner notes are credited to Stephen Calt but, rather than providing any background information on Ma Rainey, these are confined to merely a listing of some of the musicians who accompanied her on each track. Immortals in their own right, these include Henderson, guitarist Tampa Red, Kid Ory on trombone, Charlie Dixon on banjo, drummer Kaiser Marshall, and clarinetist Artie Starks.

Given today's technology and computer ability to eliminate the old crackle, hiss and pop, we should soon see more of Ma Rainey's "cleaned up" hits re-released [along with others of that era]. I can't wait. In the meantime, this is how your grandparents or great-grandparents would have heard them

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Ma Rainey is rare!
Ma Rainey was a classic blues singer, whose many songs are over 70 years old, but still highly beautiful and entertaining. This collection shows it all. Read more

Published on Jan 5 2002 by Michael Kierod

5.0 out of 5 stars Hooray for Gertrude "Ma" Rainey's Black Bottom!!!
Usually compilation CD's are not up to par, for collectors standards, however this is an excellent sampler of Gertrude "Ma" Rainey's finest sessions put out by... Read more

Published on Sep 21 2000 by roarin20sGuy

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent overview of "Ma" Rainey's classic performances.
"Ma" Rainey was the Queen of all blues shouters, she was the one who influenced Bessie Smith, and Billie Holiday. Read more

Published on Aug 28 2000 by me@me.com

5.0 out of 5 stars "Ma" is the finest of the 20's blues shouters...
Gertrude "Ma" Rainey was the finest of the blues shouters, she influenced Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday and countless others. Read more

Published on Feb 9 2000 by AARON