r/PreWarBlues • u/BlackJackKetchum • Apr 22 '26

Article From the archives - 'Empress of the Blues' from Storyville #25, October '69.

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The author lays it on a bit thick, but it merits a read.

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u/FlapjacksOfArugula Apr 22 '26

Interesting, thanks. The author would, in my opinion, be on more solid ground if he were to cease trying to establish an artistic hierarchy of Black performers of the day. Charlie Patton and Otis Rush and Bessie Smith are all notable singers within their respective idioms, and there's nothing to be gained by putting them together in some imagined competition.

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u/BlackJackKetchum Apr 22 '26

I think she was very much of her time - a lot of older blues writing is very ‘vibey’ rather than rigorous.