Ladies of Soul

by David Freeland

American soul music of the 1960s is one of the most creative and influential musical forms of the twentieth century. With its merging of gospel, R&B, country, and blues, soul music succeeded in crossing over from African American culture into the general pop culture. Soul became the byword for the styles, attitudes, and dreams of an entire era.

Female performers were responsible for some of the most enduring and powerful contributions to the genre. All too frequently overlooked by the star-making critics, seven of these women are profiled in this book -Maxine Brown, Ruby Johnson, Denise LaSalle, Bettye LaVette, Barbara Mason, Carla Thomas, and Timi Yuro.

Getting started during the heyday of soul, each of these talented women had recording contracts and gave live performances to appreciative audiences. Their careers can be tracked through the popularity of soul during the 1960s and its decline in the 1970s. With humor, candor, pride, and honest recognition that their careers did not surge into the mainstream and gain superstardom, they recount individual stories of how they struggled for success.

Their oral histories as told to David Freeland address compelling issues, including racism and sexism within the music industry. They discuss their grueling hardships on the road, their conflicts with male managers, and the cutthroat competition in the recording business. As each singer examines her career with the author, she reveals the dreams, hopes, and desires on which she has built her professional life. All seven face up to the career swings, from the highs of releasing the first hit to the frustrating lows when the momentum stops.

Although the obstacles to stardom are heartbreaking, these singers are committed to their art. With determination and style these seven have pressed onward with club appearances and recordings. They survive through their savvy mix of talent, hubris, and honesty about their lives and their music.

Genres: Music

232 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

David Freeland is the author of the books Automats, Taxi Dances and Vaudeville: Excavating Manhattan’s Lost Places of Leisure; Ladies of Soul, and American Hotel: The Waldorf-Astoria and the Making of a Century. As a historian and journalist, he has written for the Wall Street Journal, am New York, Time Out New York, New York History, American Songwriter, and other publications. He appeared in episodes of NBC TV’s “Who Do You Think You Are” and NYC Media’s “Secrets of New York.” Freeland lives in New York, where he leads walking tours and gives lectures on the city’s culture and history.

Reviews

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fascinating series of interviews with a fascinating series of performers: this has the effect of sending me to find recordings.
INCLUDING: the new CD by the great Bettye LaVette, interpreting the songs of Georgia's Randall Bramlett: titled, LaVette!
This would have gotten five stars if he had done more than one interview apiece, though what is here is choice.
Recommended. Thanks to publisher University of Mississippi Press and to Fulton County Public Library for the loan.

[Ian]

This book has a fascinating chapter/interview with Bettye LaVette, one of my favorite soul singers. It's entitled "Buzzard Luck," because unlike many great singers of her time who found huge success at Motown, Atlantic, and beyond, she couldn't stay at any label long enough to get any real support. Her songs are scattered across a dozen labels. She's partly to blame. She walked out of contracts for crumbs when she was neglected or just impatient. If she hadn't she probably wouldn't sing with the blood, sweat, and hell-fire that she does, even today, which is why I like her as much as Etta, and more than Aretha.

[Elsbeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just started this book after I found it in the old Black Studies collection from the previous Benning Library. It is about all of my favorite female soul artists.

My favorite line so far?

"Ladies of Soul is based upon an understanding of soul in a historical sense, that is, as a musical development that germinated during the mid- to late-'50s and achieved its musical and artistic flowering by the end of the next decade."

FINALLY! Soul is very specific and DOES NOT cover disco-soul-R&B music from the 70s or ANYTHING we are listening to today! Soul is NOT funk.