Etta James Obituary

Written by Dean Taylor | 26 January 2012
Posted in Features - News

Photography: slowdevil

She was known as Miss Peaches; the Queen of R&B.

Jamesetta Hawkins was born in Los Angeles 1938 and the early years of her life were far from stable – her absent father and promiscuous mother meant that her upbringing was spent with numerous caregivers.

It was at the age of five where her effusive talent began to develop as she began receiving vocal training for the voice that would later come to be known for its deep husky hue. Again, despite being a popular singer, the treatment at the hands of her teacher James Hines was symptomatic of the difficult childhood James endured: he beat her, forcing her to sing for his friends. The trauma that this caused had a long lasting effect on James and made sure that performing on demand was never easy.

From these dark beginnings, the career of James was to be spent in the limelight – both for the right reasons as well for the wrong ones.

The early beginnings of her professional career took inspiration from the Doo–wop style. In 1950 she formed a group The Creolettes who later changed their name to The Peaches. The group was taken under the wing of Johnny Otis and in 1955 Dance with me, Henry was released reaching number one on the Hot Rhythm & Blues Track chart. James’ period with The Peaches gave rise to a spot on Little Richard’s tour as a support act.

After her early years at Modern records, she departed from the label to sign with Leonard Chess at his eponymous label. It was the period from 1960 onwards which brought James her mainstream success and this began following the release of her debut album At Last! in 1961. The take away song At Last only reached number two in the charts but is oft cited as the song that people recognise James’ famous voice by.

The album was an embodiment of James’ proficiency at singing and weaving together elements of Jazz, Pop, R&B, Doo-wop and Blues. As stated, when she arrived as a professional music artist, she was billed as a Doo-wop/R&B singer. But as her career advanced her style began to change and so too did the sound – subsequent releases saw James dipping in to several genres at will.

Her popularity following the release of At Last! waned and so she returned to the scene reverting back to her R&B roots. She released the album Tell Mama which spawned the Blues’ classic I’d Rather Go Blind. In the 1970s James’ career saw her delving into a more Rock/Funk sound with the releases of Etta James, Etta is Betta Than Evah, and Deep In The Night. The popularity she enjoyed in the early 1960s was never replicated and the 1970s saw her personal troubles overtaking her music career.

Despite being feted for her singing ability, James had deep personal troubles. Drug addiction was the spectre that haunted her continually. In the early 1970’s, her addiction to heroin initiated a period of legal problems. Her husband was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for the possession of heroin. She escaped prison – instead being sentenced in 1974 to go into a drug treatment programme and she recalled in her autobiography that this drug treatment was the time that turned her life around. However, in the 1980’s she relapsed and had to seek treatment at the Betty Ford Centre.

Again in 2010, she sought treatment for painkiller addiction; though even in the face of failing health (James had been diagnosed with dementia and leukaemia) James released her final album The Dreamer in November 2011 to critical acclaim.

Recognition

It is one of the more curious aspects of James’ career that she was often overlooked for major awards. Nominated several times yes but it was a long time coming before she was conferred an award for what she has done for music.

It was the late 1980s which precipitated a period where James received numerous awards from several different institutions. From 1989 onwards, she was recognised by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Rhythm and Blues Foundation (for her “lifelong contributions [which] have been instrumental in the development of Rhythm & Blues music) and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame amongst others. The one award that she cites as being especially dear to her heart was the award conferred by the NAACP conferred for "outstanding achievements and performances of people of colour in the arts”.

James was (finally) awarded a Grammy Award in 1995 for Best Vocal Jazz Performance for Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holliday. She was further recognised with a Grammy Hall of Fame Award – James was inducted with an award for “qualitative or historical significance” for At Last in 1999. Similarly in 2008 James was inducted again with an award for “qualitative or historical significance”, this time for Dance with me, Henry. In 2011 a popular music poll saw James voted as one of the top 11 Best Singers on Earth as voted by the public – despite the eons it seemingly took for official recognition, James had long endeared herself to her legion of admirers and fans.

In death there is still life – James’ two musician sons, Donto and Sametto (who have toured with her) survive her. But above all, the legacy and legend that is Etta James will live on.