Did you know about Betty Davis?

Because I didn’t – and I wonder how that happened!?

Born in 1945 Betty Davis is an American funk and soul singer (that doesn’t describe it right/do her justice) who was making music and performing in the 1960s and 1970s.

Her music is sexy, powerful, unique, gigantic, unapologetic, empowering and all the rest of the adjectives.

She grew up in Pittsburgh on her Grandma’s farm and apparently she wrote her first song at 12 years old. She then moved to New York at 16 to live with her aunt. While there, she’s said to have been a frequenter come hostess/DJ at Greenwich Village’s nightclub The Cellar in New York – were she was pals with musical greats such as Hendrix . Towards the late 60s she started recording songs at Colombia Records.

She was born Betty Mabry but had a year long marriage to Miles Davis giving her the name Betty Davis. There’s a truck load of conjecture around their relationship but, who knows? (And less about the men she laid and more the music she made huh).

After their split she did a brief stint in London to pursue her modelling career – have ya seen her! Then returned to the US to make the music I’m now listening to.

AND !!! THE MUSIC SHE MADE.

Three albums were released by Light in The Attic Records – Betty Davis (1973), They say I’m Different (1974) and Nasty Gal (1975). And they’re blowing my mind.

She’s repeatedly described as ahead of her time. And a truck ton of artists are said to have stolen from her and been influenced by her.

Apparently she was a stupendous stage presence but I unfortunately haven’t been able to find any footage.  Though people are currently crowd funding to make a documentary about her life called Nasty Gal: The many lives of funk Queen Betty Davis which, here’s hoping, gets made.

I really really super recommend you check her out (if ya fancy). Here’s some of my faves so far:

Nasty Gal: an amazing example of Davis at her best.

Anti-love song: this sounds so good and is Davis at the most vulnerable I’ve heard. ‘That’s why I don’t wanna love you, cause I’d know what you’d do to my heart’.

Don’t call her no tramp: which is basically a feminist anthem ‘you can call her trendy, and superficial, an elegant hustler – but don’t you call her no tramp’.

Dedicated to the Press: a response to negative press she was receiving for being unapologetically herself.

Hope you click and enjoy!

Songbirds – a night of female musicians (and Sula Mae)

‘Celebrating women in Music’ was the tagline and it definitely delivered.

Last weekish I went to a night at 93 Feet East organised by Laid Bare records who, with the upcoming International Women’s day in mind, took the opportunity to showcase and celebrate their female musicians.

They were also promoting Take Her Name – a campaign which aims to highlight the inequality in the music industry by asking male musicians to show solidarity with female artists, and change their names on social media to a female version on Wednesday (IWD).

All the ladies that played are definitely worth checking out if you’re in and around London (I’ve included links at the bottom). But, truthfully, all this was a brilliant coincidence – because I was really there as the label had recently signed one of my best friends,  Sula Mae.

She headlined the night and she was perfect. Her music is a crash of soul, jazz and pop slathered on delicious beats and crinkly ukulele and keys. And, something often over looked, her stage chat really is the best. She was a sparkling sensation and I’m pretty sure she stole the heart of each person watching her.

It was made more mega as I’d seen her, for the last ten years, work her ass off. She’s made difficult decisions. Sacrifices – professionally, socially and financially.  Hundreds of hours, miles, gigs and pounds in the pan. And, though it’s not been easy nor does it ever seem to be, she has always found a way to stay strong – and stay bloody brilliant.

It was a special feeling to see all that work come together – and to see it all having made her the artist she is today. She’d never been better.

But the struggle is real y’all – let’s all support each other.

Go and check her out! This song is the bomb and a good place to start.

The rest of the ladies:

Bee Bakare – is a Nigera born soul singer and songwriter whose voice completely floors you. She’s just won  the Future Music Songwriting competition and is certainly someone you’d want to keep up with.

Polly Money Music – is a younger singer songwriter and musician whose whose confidence and clever lyrics leave you dazzled.

Autumnmusic – worked serious magic on the keys, pedals and with her voice to create a mesmerising sound.

Eilsa Imperilee – her haunting voice covers soft beats to create chill out tunes.

And there was the fab and fun Jennifer Crothers who was dj’ing between the acts.

Record Store Fail

So a few weeks ago a very handsome man I know (wink) bought me a beautiful record player.

And not one of those Crosley suitcase ones – that are strangely confusing and pushed by Urban Outfitters. This was a Audio-Technica masterpiece..

I think a lot of us have the record player dream – and I was glee filled that mine had now come true. (Thank you handsome man, who is much more than just handsome.)

So I told myself, ‘now begins the long awaited mystical journey of collecting records‘.

And I set out that weekend, optimism in hand, to take my first steps on that enchanting road. I had visions of me flicking through the LP’s – looking as cool as a cucumber – while my cumbersome and flighty heart crept out of its chest,  flopped all over the records, and lead me to some new heavenly dream music.

Ahh the sweet optimism of ignorance.

So here  I am, out strolling, throwing in a skip and a jump, smiling at the sky, noticing the wonderful London skyline and I’m heading to two record stores nearby.

Then around 45minutes later I’m trundling home with my heart practically in tatters. Trying not to scowl too much at strangers nor feel too much anger towards a record shop owner who was really just living his own dream and being himself – even though I found ‘himself’ to be a bit of an ass.

So what happened? The first shop was more of a record exchange store – so when the only women I could find were R&B artists who’s albums I already had (and didn’t really have a burning desire to get Jamelia’s first album on vinyl). I felt knocked down but still optimistic.

The second store I was headed to sold things from new – so I still had some good strong positive wind in my sails.

Oh no did the rocks come up out of the surf, capsize the boat and crack those masts clean in half.

In the second shop, I’m perusing and I’m thinking – ‘hang on a moment, there’s not a woman in sight!!?’

After perseverance I noticed that tucked away in a corner of the store was a section called ‘Female Singer Songwriters’ taglined with ’60’s, 70’s, 80’s’. It had 12 LPs in it – 6 of which were Joni Mitchell albums. It had Joanna Newsom who wasn’t 60’s, 70’s or 80’s so I could only conclude that this was just the place in the shop were female artists got cooped.

Slightly dumfounded I gave the place a thorough go over and did find some Aretha Franklin and Nina Simone – but that was it. In this ‘Record Store’, filled with thousands of LPs, there was maybe an optimistic grand total of twenty that I’d be able to listen to this year. It was an unexpectedly emotionally overwhelming realisation – and felt pretty much like crap pants.

As I paid for my Joni Mitchel I was served by a young woman and I asked her ‘how do you feel about the size of the women’s section and the limited women in stock?’

At this point the store owner, hearing my question, sidles over – chest puffed out, obnoxious grin (in hindsight) and says ‘Women’s section! – I didn’t even know we had a women’s section!’. To this I responded nothing, and turned back to the woman I was talking to.

The woman looked fairly embarrassed and said the two guys that run the shop don’t really listen to her.

At which point he guffawed and said ‘yeah, we only let her listen to what she wants on her birthday!’.

I again turned back to the woman who explained the store worked on a recommendation basis – and they didn’t take hers. She didn’t say it in a catty way, she wasn’t having ‘banter’ and joining in with her hilarious boss. She was quiet, humble and serious.

I left the store feeling shitty and confused.

I think having a record player is going to be more complicated than I thought.

I guess record stores do become personal to their owners, and in a  way they are extensions of those owner’s curated record collections. For some reason these guys didn’t really value music made by women and ‘weren’t’ receiving recommendations for their LP’s in store. (But that’s some bullshit).

So now, I’m on a hunt for some different/better people with different/better music taste who have their own different/better record stores. If you can recommend any in London – please give me a shout.

Mitski, Mitski – I love Mitski

Not only is her music objectively amazing – but she is just seriously so cool.

About Mitski (from what I can discern): She’s Japanese and American and she sings and plays the guitar. She released her first two albums on her own (Retired from Sad, News Career in Business 2013 and Lush 2012). And since has released two more albums which everyone agrees are just the absolute shit (Bury Me Out at Makeout Creek 2014 and Puberty II 2016).

I first came across Mitski when my friend sent me a link to the music video for Happy. I was baffled and also instantly taken.

The songs opening is strangely uncomfortable/borderline unbearable – which is then juxtaposed with this killer sweet voice entering that’s saying all the truths in all the right ways. And just when you think you’ve got the lay of the land – in hits a giant, clamouring fan fare, obnoxious and demanding.  Pretty much within the first thirty seconds of just one of Mitski’s songs all your previous musical understanding is in tatters and your brain is completely stretched in mesmorised glory!

I listened to Happy repeatedly for a while and it took me a while to venture beyond it – but as I’ve slowly absorbed more, the more emphatic about Mitski I’ve become.

For me, the enjoyment of Mitski’s music is it’s dangerously playful marriage of barely comfortable gigantic sound with the sweetness of her voice and melodies. She also appears completely fearless – she’s all there in all of it. It gives the impression of complete exposure. In my head I see her vividly ‘being’ and ‘creating’ – she’s 4D and technicolour. Her lyrics also, while feeling unique compared to other artists and unique in their honest recounts of a singular experience, feel powerfully relatable.

She’s making music like I’ve never heard and she’s saying things honestly in a way we all should be doing a lot more of all the time. Go and get her!

Here’s three track recommendations – if you do fancy getting your feet wet.

1. Your Best America Girl – this track is off the newest album and
seems to have everyone talking. It appears an account/working through of Mitski’s feelings towards her dual heritage as she sings ‘Your mother wouldn’t approve of, how my mother raised me – but I do, I think I do’. Boom!

2. Townie – this is off the album Bury Me Out at Makeout Creek.  It sings of the coming of age moments where you’re defying imposed expectations and exploring your sexuality as a young woman – while also painfully becoming aware of the imposed restrictions that sexuality gives you. ‘And change, change, change is gonna come but when, when, when’ she sings. The video is also directed and animated by super cool Faye Orlove who really should have her own post..

3. First Love/Late Spring – again from album Bury Me Out at Makeout Creek – is one of my  personal favourites. This is such a beautiful track in so many ways. It speaks to all of us at that stage of meeting someone special. It’s that moment when you teter on the edge of giving in to ‘love’ but can’t quite understand exactly what’s happened to your brain. And can’t seem to enjoy it either! ‘Wild woman don’t get the blues, but lately I’ve been crying like a tall child’.

I love ya Mitski – and I mean it.