Black History Month: Barbara Lynn

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Barbara Lynn (born January 16, 1942 in Beaumont, TX) is a left-guitarist, songwriter and vocalist best known for the song “You’ll Lose a Good Thing“, which was recorded and released in 1962. The single was a number 1 on the US Billboard R&B Charts, as well as a Top 10 single in the Billboard Hot 100 list of 1962. The song was re-recorded by Aretha Franklin, as well as country musician Freddy Fender. Barbara Lynn played piano as a child, but later switched to guitar. Before making her big break she played in an all-female band called Bobbie Lynn and Her Idols. She was given a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues foundation in 1999. (Wikipedia)

Black History Month: Mary Lou Williams

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Mary Lou Williams (born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs in Atlanta, GA on May 8, 1910) was a jazz pianist, arranger, and composer. Mary Lou wrote and arranged compositions for jazz heavyweights such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman, in addition to hundreds more compositions and arrangements. She taught herself to play piano at six years old, and supported her family by playing at parties while still a child. She recorded hundreds of records in her professional career, and was the first black woman to have a composition (Zodiac Suite) played at Carnegie Hall. Mary Lou died in Durham, NC in 1971 from bladder cancer. She was the mentor and friend of many well-known jazz musicians, including Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, and more. (Wikipedia)

See Also: Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band

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Sometimes I forget that some people don’t know the full impact that black women had on rock n roll. If you didn’t know it was epic. Without the talent and energy of many wonderful women the state of music today would be blander than Cliff Richard eating a cucumber sandwich.

Read More: Mixtape Alert | History of Black Female Guitarists | Don’t Dance Her Down Boys