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A review by jacquiek11
Bessie Smith by Nick Drake, Jackie Kay
5.0
She tells us about Bessie's life and delves into her lyrics but she mostly tells us why Bessie is important to the world and to her.
'My life was changed by Bessie's blues. My soul was converted. Any good art transforms you, makes you ask yourself questions about the world you live in, people, laws, yourself. Any good art can change the way you look at yourself.'
Her life was incredibly dramatic and there is so much missing from what we know about her despite her fame. Partly because of the time and because there was so long before the first biography that much information was lost. Jackie Kay leans into this in the telling and imagines what is missing, in clearly indicated and very beautiful ventures into the version she imagines. In one she describes the contents of a lost trunk of Bessie's effects that have made their way safely to Scotland rather than being lost, among them are
'A bottle of bootleg liquor and a pint glass with a lipstick imprint of the lips of the Empress. A horsehair wig - shiny black hair that once long ago ran all the way down to the round shoulders of Bessie Smith. A strand of pearls and imitation rubies. A satin dress. Headgear that looks like a lampshade in someone's front room with lots of tassels hanging down. A plain dress with beaded fringed.......A reject selection of songs that were never released. A giant pot of chicken stew still steaming, its lid tilted to the side. '
It is a good read and her love pours through the pages and it sends you back to the songs.
'My life was changed by Bessie's blues. My soul was converted. Any good art transforms you, makes you ask yourself questions about the world you live in, people, laws, yourself. Any good art can change the way you look at yourself.'
Her life was incredibly dramatic and there is so much missing from what we know about her despite her fame. Partly because of the time and because there was so long before the first biography that much information was lost. Jackie Kay leans into this in the telling and imagines what is missing, in clearly indicated and very beautiful ventures into the version she imagines. In one she describes the contents of a lost trunk of Bessie's effects that have made their way safely to Scotland rather than being lost, among them are
'A bottle of bootleg liquor and a pint glass with a lipstick imprint of the lips of the Empress. A horsehair wig - shiny black hair that once long ago ran all the way down to the round shoulders of Bessie Smith. A strand of pearls and imitation rubies. A satin dress. Headgear that looks like a lampshade in someone's front room with lots of tassels hanging down. A plain dress with beaded fringed.......A reject selection of songs that were never released. A giant pot of chicken stew still steaming, its lid tilted to the side. '
It is a good read and her love pours through the pages and it sends you back to the songs.