A contribution to the history of the blues and of Afro-American culture in general. Writing from a black/feminist standpoint, Harrison shows the joys, trials, heartbreaks and enduring influence of such singers as Victoria Spivey and Alberta Hunter.

A contribution to the history of the blues in particular and of Afro-American culture in general, new information about a remarkable set of assertive, creative women as well as new insights into the musical heritage they have left behind. Sippie Wallace, Edith Wilson, Victoria Spivey and Alberta Hunter are the collective focus of this work - four influential blues singers with diverse styles, who were big in the 1920s and were still performing in the 1980s. Writing from a firm black/feminist standpoint, Harrison shows the joys, trials, and heartbreaks in the lives of the first popular women blues artists.