Female vocalists are the focus on this week's blues program airing at 11pm, Saturday, October 3rd. The show begins with Bettye LaVette, Abbey Lincoln, Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, and Etta James in the first set.
Bettye LaVette's going to start touring again in December. Abbey Lincoln was married to legendary drummer Max Roach for 8 years, and Etta James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.
The second set starts off with Aretha Franklin's version of Adele's "Rolling in the Deep," followed by Bonnie Raitt, Janis Joplin and Shemekia Copeland.
NatGeo's filming a docu-series about Aretha Franklin, "Genius: Aretha" which is finally wrapping up in Atlanta due to a pandemic stoppage. Bonnie Raitt was part of Farm Aid 2020 last Saturday, 9/26, and Shemekia Copeland is scheduled to perform in a festival up in Michigan, Saturday, 10/3.
Songs from Marcia Ball, Cassandra Wilson, Irma Thomas, and Koko Taylor end this edition of "The Blues." Marcia Ball's got a really fun website which includes a recipe for "Emergency Chicken Gumbo."