Results for Bettye LaVette
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Artist:

Bettye LaVette

Bettye LaVette

Born:
Jan 26, 1946 in Muskegon, Michigan

Representative Songs:

"Let Me Down Easy," "I'm Just a Fool for You," "Only Your Love Can Save Me"

Representative Albums:

Bluesoul Belles, The Very Best of the Motorcity Recordings, A Woman Like Me

Similar Artists:

The Jewels, Carol Fran, Betty Everett, Betty Wright, Baby Washington, Gwen McCrae, Laura Lee, Aretha Franklin, Maxine Brown, Candi Staton, Etta James
  • Birth Name: Betty Haskin
  • Alternative Name: Betty LaVette
  • Genre: Rhythm & Blues
  • Active: '60s - 2000s
  • Instrument: Vocals

Biography

A perennial cult favorite in Northern soul circles, singer Bettye LaVette was born in Muskegon, MI, on January 29, 1946. Raised primarily across the state in Detroit, at 16 she cut her first sides for the local Lupine label, with a test pressing of the disc making its way to Atlantic Records. After signing with Atlantic, she scored an R&B Top Ten hit out of the box with her debut single, "My Man -- He's a Loving Man," only to fail to reach the same commercial heights again. After one more Atlantic release, 1963's "You'll Never Change," LaVette moved back to Lupine for her third record, "Witchcraft in the Air." After a stint as a featured vocalist with the Don Gardner & Dee Dee Ford Revue, she recorded the long-unreleased "One Thin Dime" for Scepter before resurfacing on Calla with the 1965 lost classic "Let Me Down Easy," her only other record to crack the R&B Top 20. Two more Calla efforts -- the fine "Only Your Love Can Save Me" and "I'm Just a Fool for You" -- preceded a shift to Big Wheel, where after just one single, "I'm Holding On," LaVette again moved along, this time to the Karen imprint for "Hey Love."

Following stays at Silver Fox ("He Made a Woman Out of Me," "Do Your Duty"), SSS International ("Take Another Piece of My Heart"), and her own TCA imprint ("Never My Love"), LaVette returned to Atlantic, signing to their Atco division for 1972's Neil Young cover "Heart of Gold." An LP, Child of the Seventies, was also recorded at Muscle Shoals Studios, but Atco opted against its release after the failure of the single "Your Turn to Cry" (the album was reissued, complete with bonus tracks, in limited copies by Rhino in 2006). After joining the touring company of the Broadway musical Bubbling Brown Sugar, LaVette briefly signed to West End for a disco effort, 1978's "Doin' the Best I Can."

She did not record again until 1982, landing at Motown and rechristening herself "Bettye." However, despite a heavy promotional push, neither the LP Tell Me a Lie nor the single "Right in the Middle (Of Falling in Love)" proved her long-awaited chart breakthrough, and outside of a handful of recordings for Motor City during the 1990s, she focused primarily on live appearances in the years to follow. The 2000s found her in the recording studio more frequently with new albums A Woman Like Me being released by the Blues Express label in 2003 followed by I've Got My Own Hell to Raise in 2005 on the Anti label. In 2006, Take Another Little Piece of My Heart, a collection of Silver Fox singles as well as other material, all of which had been recorded in Memphis between 1969 and 1970, came out on Varèse Sarabande. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
 
 
Wikipedia: Bettye LaVette

Bettye LaVette (born Betty Haskins in Muskegon, Michigan, 1946) is an American soul singer who cut her first record at 16, but achieved only intermittent fame until her 2005 record, I've Got My Own Hell to Raise. Her style combines elements of country, rock, soul, funk, and gospel, which has prevented her from being easily marketed.

Life and career

LaVette grew up in Detroit, where she was discovered by Johnnie Mae Matthews, a Detroit record producer. In 1962, aged 16, she recorded a single, "My Man - He's A Lovin' Man" with Matthews, which became a national hit after Atlantic Records bought distribution rights. This led to a tour with rhythm and blues musicians Clyde McPhatter, Ben E. King, Barbara Lynn and then-newcomer Otis Redding, and then a stint touring with James Brown. Her next single was "Let Me Down Easy", which has become her theme song. She would cut numerous other singles for various labels, without an album contract.

An album to be titled Child of the Seventies was produced in 1972, but it was shelved and was not released until 2000. Despite drawing enthusiastic live crowds across the country, LaVette continued to be rebuffed by labels. She spent six years on Broadway and touring with the musical Bubbling Brown Sugar opposite Cab Calloway. During the disco era, she managed a small hit with the ironically titled "Doin' The Best That I Can".

In 1982 Motown finally offered her a contract to fill the void left by the departing Diana Ross, and LaVette recorded Tell Me A Lie, with the single "Right in the Middle of Falling in Love" which was a modest hit. Still her career languished, though she found steady work on the European festival circuit.

In 1999, Gilles Petard, a French soul collector, discovered the masters of Child of the Seventies. He licensed the album from Atlantic and released it on his Art and Soul label as Souvenirs (2000). (Child of the Seventies was reissued by Rhino Handmade in 2006 with additional tracks.) This led to a LaVette revival which has so far included a live album and two brand new albums, including 2005's I've Got My Own Hell to Raise, an album whose title is taken from the lyrics of the Fiona Apple hit Sleep to Dream, which is covered on the album. Other notable songwriters on the album were Sinead O'Connor, Lucinda Williams, Joan Armatrading, and Dolly Parton. [1] The album was relased by ANTI- Records and produced by Joe Henry.

Her 2007 album, The Scene of the Crime, was recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. She recorded Child of the Seventies not at FAME but at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios, which ceased operation in 2005. LaVette talks about her experiences at Muscle Shoals Sound and FAME in a Knoxville Voice interview conducted by Edd Hurt in September 2007. Rock/Alt-Country outfit Drive-By Truckers served as the back-up band for the album. Drive-By Truckers frontman, Patterson Hood, produced the album alongside LaVette. The album also features one song co-written by LaVette and Patterson Hood. [1]

Discography

References

  1. ^ a b Schneider, Jason (October 2007). Soul Survivors: How Classic Rhythm and Blues Has Become Vital Once Again. Exclaim.ca. Retrieved on 2007-09-26.

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

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Artist. Copyright © 2008 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ® , a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bettye LaVette".  Read more

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