Editors’ Notes Ever since Mamie Smith scored one of the first big blues hits in 1920, women have played a crucial role in blues history. Rockers from Elvis Presley to Led Zeppelin owed a debt to Memphis Minnie and Big Mama Thornton, and the gospel soul of Mahalia Jackson and the earthy grit of Ethel Waters impacted R&B for decades to come.
Papa Better Watch Your Step (Recorded 1923)
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