Week 29
Various Artists, Men are Like Street Cars: Classic Women Blues Singers 1928 - 1969
(MCA 11788)

Compiled from the extensive recording catalog of MCA Records, this double-disc set provides a masterful and entertaining overview of four decades of female blues singers.

The collection includes 46 tracks from 1928 through 1969, from artists both famous and obscure. Whether a smash hit or a near-miss, the songs stand as testament to each singer's ability to carve out a spot for herself in an industry and society that presented a myriad of obstacles to her race and gender.

In addition to its important social significance, the music also stands on its own as an enjoyable overview of blue styles through the years. Listeners are treated to everything from vaudeville-inflected "classic blues" to the driving rhythms of Memphis Minnie and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and from blues-inflected big band jazz to gritty R&B and soul. Along the way are snappy double entendres, songs of heartache, tales of retribution, and irresistible grooves.

With licensing issues preventing the inclusion of such seminal figures as Bessie Smith, and a time frame that ends before the rise of such modern blueswomen as Marcia Ball and Deborah Coleman, this set wisely does not present itself as comprehensive. Nonetheless, it succeeds where few others have in presenting the diverse contributions of women to the blues, while simultaneously offering a simply great collection of music.

Listen: Betty James - "I'm A Little Mixed Up"
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