Any Woman’s Blues
CD FROG DGF41
Today it’s time for a Bessie Smith recording. I tend to take her for granted and thus forget to listen often enough to her fabulous output on records.
This is not one of her more spectacular ones, and with just rudimental but effective piano playing provided by Fletcher Henderson. But it’s beautiful in its simplicity and clarity, owing to her strong, beautiful voice, and her good diction, and also to the expressions in the lyrics.
She sings, among other things, “My man’s got teeth like a lighthouse on the sea.” Henderson accentuates her “His voice sound like chimes, I mean the organ kind” by imitating chimes on the piano. The tune is credited to Love Austin.
Everything is in balance and so well delivered, and we can enjoy it on a very good transfer thanks to John R.T. Davies and a bunch of serious collectors who have participated in this edition of her works.