HOUSTON, TX – January 20, 2012 – After a long and painful battle with leukemia, legendary vocalist, Etta James, died Friday morning, January 20, 2012. She was 73. She is survived by her two sons, Donto and Sametto, and her husband, Artis Mills.
James will long be remembered by her ardent fans for her incredible vocal talent, soulful songs, and melodic genius. But she will also be remembered as woman who rose to the top by overcoming tremendous odds against her.
"There's a lot going on Etta James' voice," Bonnie Raitt told Rolling Stone in 2008. "A lot of pain, a lot of life, most of all, a lot of strength. She can be so raucous and down one song, and then break your heart with her subtlety and finesse the next. As raw as Etta is, there's a great intelligence and wisdom in her singing."
From infancy, Etta seemed to have been singled out by misfortune. Born in 1938 to 14-year-old Dorothy Hawkins and an unknown father, Etta—originally named Jamesetta Hawkins—was primarily raised by caregivers. She referred to her biological mother as, “The Mystery Lady” because she was absent throughout most of the singer's childhood.
“I'm a little lamb who's lost in the wood
I know I could, always be good
To one who'll watch over me.”
Etta James, Someone To Watch Over Me, on Love Songs
Songwriters: George & Ira Gershwin
Choir director James Earle Hines discovered Etta at the tender age of 5. He provided the girl with vocal coaching and landed her a regular gig at the St. Paul Baptist Church in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, like Beethoven’s father, Hines proved at times a brutal instructor. During late night drinking parties with his friends, Hines would wake Etta up and beat her into singing for the entertainment of his guests.
The trauma of being forced to perform by such a bully would haunt Etta for the rest of her life. The fact that she overcame her emotional scars and was able to sing on the stage is a testimony to her amazing strength of spirit. Nevertheless, her early sorrows and insecurity bled through into her life, manifested by her drug addiction, but also by her developing repertoire of distinctive, emotionally poignant songs.
“Life is bare, gloom and misery everywhere, Stormy Weather,
Just can't get my poor self together,
Oh I'm weary all of the time … So weary all the time.”
- Etta James, Stormy Weather, on At Last
Songwriters: Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler
Launching her career in the mid 1950s – around the same time Martin Luther King Jr. was protesting segregation and vying for black equality – Etta was an icon that neither sexism nor racism were able to repress. Defying the odds against her and overcoming the pain of her childhood, she blossomed into one of the most legendary female vocalists of all time.
“This is a man's world, this is a man's world,
But it wouldn't – it wouldn't be nothing –
Nothing without a woman or a girl.”
- Etta James, It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World, on All The Way
Songwriters: James Brown, Betty Jean Newsome
But Etta's overwhelming success did little to overcome the fallout from her difficult childhood. Throughout her adult life she battled heroine addiction and substance abuse. Despite numerous stints in hospitals and rehab centers, the tragic diva was never quite able to overcome her self-destructive tendencies. This wreaked havoc on both her personal life and her musical career.
“Looking back over my deeds
I can see signs a wise man heeds
And if I just had the chance
I'd never make that same mistake again.”
- Etta James, Looking Back
Songwriters: Brook Benton, Belford C Hendricks, Clyde Otis
In spite of her continuing battles with adversity, and now even after her death, Etta continues to capture the hearts of millions with songs like "All I Could Do Was Cry,” "At Last," and "Trust in Me." She won six Grammy Awards, in addition to 24 other awards including recognition by the NAACP Image Awards and induction into the Blues Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked her #62 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Etta James' star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame. Photo courtesy of Tim Bounds.
Etta's rich vocal style and down-to-earth lyrical excursions have influenced many notable contemporary artists, including such noted divas as Diana Ross, Janis Joplin, Christina Aguilera, Amy Winehouse, Adele, and Beyoncé. In fact, new mommy Beyoncé portrayed Etta in the 2008 film, Cadillac Records.
As a special dedication to Etta, preceding her performance of “At Last” to promote Cadillac Records at the 2008 Fashion Rocks charity gala, Beyoncé paid tribute to “Miss Etta James: A force of nature, music's original bad girl. With your platinum hair, wildcat eyes, your Fellini-esque sexuality, and dangerous voice. A voice that could be raspy with the hardness of pain, and turned into silk on the drop of a dime. The master of jazz, blues, R&B, and rock and roll. We celebrate your unapologetic boldness, your genius, and innovation.”
In a 2011 interview with The Business of Being Diva, Brian Ray, recording artist and guitarist for Paul McCartney, reminisced, “I was so lucky to be introduced to Etta James right after high school, and sort of never looked back! That was in 1974. It was under her wings that I got the opportunity to tour with the Stones in '78 and '79. Since Etta was loved by so many artists ... they would all come see us play, and often would sit in and play with us.
“I just remembered, I played with Big Joe Turner, with Willie Dixon, playing upright bass! These are just a few of the legendary artists who gave us rock and roll,” he said. “Along with The Stones and Led Zeppelin, I was in the company of greats.
“I was just fortunate as hell to be there with Etta.”
About Jennifer Grassman:
Singer, songwriter and pianist, Jennifer Grassman is an award-winning recording artist based in Houston, Texas. Subscribe by RSS feed and read more from Jennifer at www.JenniferGrassman.com. You can follow Jennifer on @Jgrassman or Facebook.com/JenniferGrassmanMusic
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