Blues Monarchs
Mamie Smith was billed as the "Queen of the Blues"; Bessie Smith outdid her with the billing "Empress of the Blues". In a later era, Dinah Washington was also billed as the "Queen of the Blues". B. B. King called himself the "Blues Boy" or "Beale Street Blues Boy" beginning early in his career and fellow bluesmen Albert King (born Albert Nelson) and Freddie King share a last name with him. They are now known as the "Three Kings of the Blues".
Read more about this topic: Jazz Royalty
Famous quotes containing the words blues and/or monarchs:
“The blues women had a commanding presence and a refreshing robustness. They were nurturers, taking the yeast of experience, kneading it into dough, molding it and letting it grow in their minds to bring the listener bread for sustenance, shaped by their sensibilities.”
—Rosetta Reitz, U.S. author. As quoted in The Political Palate, ch. 10, by Betsey Beaven et al. (1980)
“O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend
The brightest heaven of invention!
A kingdom for a stage, princes to act,
And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)