Sippie Wallace | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Beulah Belle Thomas |
| Born | November 1, 1898 Plum Bayou, Jefferson County, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Died | November 1, 1986 (aged 88) Detroit, Michigan |
| Genres | Blues, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, pianist, organist, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Piano, organ |
| Years active | ca. 1918–1986 |
| Labels | Okeh, Victor, Alligator, Storyville, Atlantic, Spivey |
Sippie Wallace (born Beulah Belle Thomas, November 1, 1898 – November 1, 1986)[3] was an American blues singer, pianist and songwriter. Her early career in tent shows gained her the billing "The Texas Nightingale". Between 1923 and 1927, she recorded over 40 songs for Okeh Records, many written by her or her brothers, George and Hersal Thomas.[4] Her accompanists included Louis Armstrong, Johnny Dodds, Sidney Bechet, King Oliver, and Clarence Williams. Among the top female blues vocalists of her era, Wallace ranked with Ma Rainey, Ida Cox, Alberta Hunter, and Bessie Smith.
In the 1930s, she left show business to become a church organist, singer, and choir director in Detroit and performed secular music only sporadically until the 1960s, when she resumed her performing career. Wallace was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1982 and was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 1993.[5]
- ^ "Sippie Wallace and Bonnie Raitt Prove That Blues Birds of a Feather Can Flock Together". People.com. Retrieved 29 December 2018.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (6 June 1982). "Blues Singer: Sippie Wallace". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 December 2018.
- ^ Eagle, Bob; LeBlanc, Eric S. (2013). Blues: A Regional Experience. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 505. ISBN 978-0313344237.
- ^ Santelli, Robert (2001). The Big Book of Blues. Penguin Books. p. 486. ISBN 0-14-100145-3.
- ^ "The Michigan Women's Hall of Fame - Virtual Gallery of Honorees". 4 June 2003. Archived from the original on 4 June 2003. Retrieved 12 November 2017.