ODETTA,
the "Queen of American Folk Music" (anointed by Martin
Luther King, Jr. in 1964) and "Mother Goddess of Folk/Blues" (by
New York Times in 1999) is one of the most influential artists
of the 20th Century, with countless artists indebted to her pioneering
ways. Before Odetta, no solo woman performer (let alone an African
American woman!) singing blues, folk, work and protest songs
had recorded or toured. And, she sang for the masses at the 1963
March on Washington; she took part in the march on Selma; she
performed for President Kennedy and his cabinet on the nationally
televised civil rights special "Dinner with the President";
and along with Marian Anderson and Paul Robeson, she was in the
first group of artists to be honored with the Duke Ellington
Fellowship Award. In 1994, she was appointed an `Elder' to the
International Women's Conference in Beijing; and she was awarded
the Presidential Medal of Arts in 1999 by the President and Mrs.
Clinton. Her 1956 album, "ODETTA Sings Ballads & Blues," was
the soul and inspiration for a young Janis Joplin to become a
singer, while inspiring Bob Dylan to trade in his electric guitar
and amp for a Gibson acoustic guitar and become a folk singer.
She's also acted in films and theater; sung with symphony
orchestras and in operas; hosted the Montreux Jazz Festival and
starred in countless TV Specials. Her 2000 album, "BLUES
EVERYWHERE I GO," was nominated for a Grammy. Her following
album, "LOOKIN' FOR A HOME" was nominated for
two 2002 W.C. Handy Awards, and in 2004, she was nominated for
another W.C. Handy Award, as Best Traditional Female Blues Artist
of the Year.
In 2005, ODETTA celebrated the 60th Anniversary
of her storied career, beginning as a young actress and singer
working alongside the legendary stage and film actress Elsa Lancaster
at the famed Hollywood Turnabout Puppet Theatre, where she stayed
as an active member of the company for four years. In 2005, she
attended the premier of her concert film "Blues Divas" at
the American Film Institute; SONY Pictures released the 30th
Anniversary DVD Edition of "The Autobiography of Miss Jane
Pittman" in which ODETTA co-starred with Cicely Tyson;
she appeared on stage with Maya Angelou and Della Reese at the
Kennedy Center in the presentation "Wisdom of our Black
Elders;" and she was presented with the International Folk
Alliance's Lifetime Achievement Award in Montreal. She
was featured in Martin Scorsese's film "No Direction
Home: Bob Dylan," and starred in BBC-TV's Concert
Special "Talking Bob Dylan Blues" from London's
Barbican Center. In November and early December she made a triumphant
four week tour of Germany, Austria, Italy, Denmark and Sweden,
and on New Year's Eve, ODETTA celebrated her 75th birthday
with a concert at Boston's Berklee School of Music. Her
voice remains as strong and impressive as ever. AND, she also
recorded a Live Album of Negro Spirituals in 2005 – her
first in forty-five years...
In 2006, ODETTA continues to support her new album by touring
across North America and Europe and by appearing with national
and regional media and press. In January she was honored in Oakland
with the "Heritage Keeper Lifetime Achievement Award" from
The Friends of Negro Spirituals, a national organization dedicated
to the preservation of Negro Spirituals; and in February and
March she performed on the national radio concert specials, "ARTIST
CONFIDENTIAL" (XM Satellite Radio) and "WOODSONGS
OLD TIME RADIO HOUR" in addition to appearing as the sole
guest for one hour on Air America's "START THE REVOLTUION
NOW with STEVE EARLE." Not forgetting her social commitments,
in February she was flown by the US Embassy to Riga, Latvia for
a series of events: keynote speaker at a Human Rights Seminar;
to conduct a Master Class with a Latvian Pop-Gospel Choir; to
perform a concert with a specific message of civil rights and
racial harmony for all of Latvia's gov't officials
and the foreign embassies.
For more information, visit www.mc-records.com |
