Shout, Sister, Shout!: The Untold Story of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe » (None)

Gayle F. Wald is a professor at George Washington University and the author of Crossing the Line. She wrote the liner notes for a critically acclaimed 2003 Rosetta Tharpe tribute album. Wald lives in Washington, D.C.

Before “women in rock” became a catchphrase, Rosetta Tharpe proved that women could rock. Shout, Sister, Shout! is the first biography of this trailblazer who influenced scores of popular musicians and defied categorization. Wald’s biography, which draws on memories from more than 150 people who knew Tharpe, forever alters our understanding of women in rock and of U.S. popular music.

"A book like this is long overdue. Rosetta Tharpe was a major star and a huge influence on the musicians of her day. Listen to her recordings and you can hear all the building blocks of rock and roll."—Joan Osborne, singer-songwriter

"Rosetta was one of the most beloved and influential artists ever in gospel music . . . and she blazed a trail for the rest of us women guitarists with her indomitable spirit and accomplished, engaging style. She has long been deserving of wider recognition and a place of honor in the field of music history."—Bonnie Raitt

"Rosetta Tharpe's life is a classic American tall tale, except that it happened, and, in these pages, you are there."—Greil Marcus, cultural critic

"Rosetta Tharpe was one of my first influences, one of the first people I heard sing. I'm glad Gayle Wald has done a book on her because people need to know."—Isaac Hayes

"Absorbing . . . Very much a woman's story, refreshingly free of Svengalis and impresarios."—Laura Sinagra, New York Times

"Wald makes a good case that Tharpe's R&B spirituals played a key role in inventing rock."—Entertainment Weekly

"Rosetta Tharpe's life is a classic American tall tale, except that it happened, and, in these pages, you are there."—Greil Marcus, cultural critic and author of Mystery Train: Images of America in Rock'n'Roll Music

Publishers Weekly

Though Elvis, Ginger Baker, Keith Richards and Jerry Lee Lewis paid her tribute, Sister Rosetta Tharpe's vast contribution to American musical history has nearly faded away. With the publication of this entertaining and enlightening biography, Tharpe-who reputedly played her electric guitar "like a man," withstood failed marriages, racial and sexual discrimination plus economic hardships-should receive the recognition she deserves. George Washington University professor Wald (Crossing the Line) has knit together memories of 150 people familiar with Tharpe and her work. Wald's competent research provides readers with the larger historical framework within which Tharpe's contributions can be appreciated. Born in Arkansas in 1915, Rosetta Tharpe became a well-known child performer, honing her gospel guitar style in Pentecostal churches and tent revivals throughout the South. By the late 1930s Tharpe relocated to Chicago, made the life-altering choice of forsaking Pentecostal church performances and embarked on a secular career, eventually signing with Decca Records. During the 1950s Tharpe's career sagged due to changing musical tastes, but a well-timed European tour in 1957 reignited her career. Tharpe courageously cut across racial, musical and sexual boundaries, defying easy categorization, which may have contributed to her obscurity. Wald's biography of this unique performer will hopefully reawaken interest in her life and music. (Feb.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Preface: The Lonesome Road     vii
Cotton Plant (1915-1920)     1
Got on My Travelin' Shoes (1920-1937)     15
From Spirituals to Swing (1938-1940)     33
Shout, Sister, Shout (1940-1946)     51
Bridge: "She Made That Guitar Talk"     71
Little Sister (1947-1949)     74
At Home and on the Road (1948-1950)     94
"The World's Greatest Spiritual Concert" (1950-1951)     109
Sister in Opryland (1952)     125
Don't Leave Me Here (1953-1957)     135
Bridge: "The Men Would Stand Back"     151
Rebirth and Revival (1957-1964)     156
Riding the Gospel Train (1960-1970)     179
I Looked Down the Line (1970-1973)     198
Epilogue: Vibrations, Strong and Mean     215
Acknowledgments     220
Appendix
Interviews     224
Selected Discography     226
Credits and Permissions     227
Notes     229
Index     241