Alberta Hunter was a trailblazing blues singer and songwriter who rose to prominence during the Harlem Renaissance.
She made a name for herself among her contemporaries for her bold lyrical prowess, bawdy songs and witty stage presence. Hunter is most known for penning the hit song “Down Hearted Blues,” which was later popularized by Bessie Smith.
Her story is the latest piece produced by A Call To Conscience, an interactive theater collective in St. Louis.
The new play, “Alberta Hunter: Jazz, Sass, and Spice Live at the Cookery,” follows the life and career of Hunter through her seasoned eyes. In her early 80s, Hunter staged a comeback. She stepped out of retirement to perform a string of concerts at the Cookery, a popular nightclub in New York, before her death in 1984.
St. Louis Public Radio’s Marissanne Lewis-Thompson spoke with the show’s St. Louis-based playwright Mariah Richardson ahead of opening night.
This interview was edited for clarity and length.
Marissanne Lewis-Thompson: Alberta moved to the beat of her own drum. And that started when she was a little girl convincing her teacher to take her to Chicago so she could make money being a singer. How did that spiral into a career?
Mariah Richardson: It really was where she landed when she got to Chicago. Her mother had a friend who had a daughter that was living in Chicago. So, when she made her way there, she made her way to find this person. Where this woman lived [was] over a saloon. Alberta would spend as much time as she could there learning how to be a singer. She only had one song that she could sing. So that's where she started to get her feet wet and understand how the business worked.
Lewis-Thompson: She came up during the Harlem Renaissance. What was her career like during this time?
Richardson: Her career really took off once she got established in place because she would start to build an audience. Then when she got to the Cookery, it was all said and done. Because now she had made it to the big time. And so, once she learned to sing more than one song and she realized that she could write songs, that made her different.
Lewis-Thompson: Alberta didn’t always get her credit. Why are her contributions as a female blues artist overlooked?
Richardson: She became very popular, but then the way she sang began to fall out of favor. Audiences wanted to hear people more like Bessie Smith. That gut bucket blues. But the way she was singing was a lot more refined than that. And then also people were just stealing people's songs. You'd be surprised at how many people sang the same songs, and a lot of them were taking credit for those songs even when they didn't write them.
Lewis-Thompson: She is most known for her song "Down Hearted Blues." How did that song define her legacy?
Richardson: Because she wrote it, and then Bessie Smith ended up singing it. It made Bessie Smith a whole bunch of money and made her famous. [Alberta] is credited for that, but everybody knows of it because of Bessie Smith.
Lewis-Thompson: Her music was a reflection of her life. What song did she write that was the best example of that?
Richardson: A friend of mine, he had gotten to see her twice in New York City live at the Cookery when she made her comeback, when she was 80 years old. He [said] that it was packed. Waiting room only. Two shows. ... In truth he said it was her more soulful, heartfelt songs that really came across. Those are the moments I remember. The one called, "The Love I Have For You." Because she was a blues singer and we know that people who sing the blues are singing songs about the trials and tribulations in their lives. But the bawdy ones were the ones that gave her the name. But it's those softer songs that really speak to who she was.
Lewis-Thompson: What can people expect from the play?
Richardson: Anita Jackson is playing the role [of Alberta Hunter]. Then you've got Phillip Graves on piano. This is about to be one of the best shows that you have ever seen. Just because of those two. It's going to be off the charts. I'm excited to see it.
Lewis-Thompson: The box office hit, Sinners, is putting a spotlight on blues music. Through your play, how do you hope people will remember Alberta’s contributions to the genre?
Richardson: I hope that they see women were part of the genre. So when we think of blues a lot of people think of the guys that were in blues. They think of B.B. King. When they think of women, they do think of Bessie Smith and not Alberta even though they were contemporaries. I hope that when people listen to her they are inspired.
Alberta Hunter: Jazz, Sass, and Spice Live at the Cookery runs May 10-11 at the National Blues Museum.
