• Track Listing

Known at her peak, and forevermore as 'The Empress of the Blues,' Bessie Smith was possibly the first and greatest of the Blues divas and certainly the first to have hit records. A protégé of the great Ma Rainey, by the early 1920s, Bessie Smith was already a superstar, backed on record by the likes of Louis Armstrong, Joe Smith, James P. Johnson, and Charlie Green. Her elaborate live shows Harlem Frolics and Mississippi Days were smash hits throughout the decade; the Blues were in and trendy, and Bessie was at the top of her game. Features 'Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out', 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find', 'Summertime', 'Baby, Won't You Please Come Home', 'Empty Bed Blues (pts. 1&2)', 'Alexander's Ragtime Band', 'Aggravatin' Papa', 'After You've Gone' and many more. Rev-Ola. 2007.