The lady sings the blues for TCC students
Singer-actress performs for Black History Month
by Brian Shults, se news editor

    Everyone has the blues, a singer-actress told a SE audience last week.

   Catherine Whiteman’s narrative and musical presentation, Birth of the Blues, was repeated this week on South Campus.

   “The blues cry out to be released—released from pain, released from suffering, released from that ‘D’ you received on your test. Everybody gets the blues whether it’s I-just-lost-my-job blues, my-baby-done-left-me blues or that-‘D’-on-my-test blues,” Whiteman said.

   Whiteman began her show with Maya Angelou’s poem Skylark from her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The poem was set to music, as were all of Whiteman’s songs, with piano played by Manny Rodriguez.

   “Probably the person I have found that describes the blues the best is the poet Maya Angelou,” she said.

   Stony Monday by Ethel Waters, known to some as Sweet Mama String Bean, was her first song. Other songs performed included works by jazz, ragtime and blues legends Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington, Ma Rainy, Bessie Smith, George Gershwin and Billie Holiday.

   Whiteman described Holiday’s unruly personality. While Holiday was touring the South with Artie Shaw’s band, she needed to use the restroom. No matter where she went in the hotel where they were performing, no one would allow her to use the facilities. Impatient and temperamental, Whiteman said, Holiday had heard enough snide racism from the hostess and relieved herself on the hostess’ shoes.

   “That hostess was jumpin’ around like she was being scalded with hot lead,” Whiteman said.

   Following her presentation, Whiteman spoke about the need for youth today to be exposed to the jazz legends.

   “I think it’s absolutely vital everyone hears them because the only way music can die is if it dies in people’s memories and their hearts. The only way to keep it alive is for them to hear it,” she said.

   Whiteman would like for young people to expand their musical interests.

   “Today many young people are really interested in hip-hop, which is a fabulous type of music, but there are other things out there. I think hip-hop musicians could stand to listen to some jazz too so they can stop sampling each other,” she said.

   Jazz music broke down many color barriers and substantially affected race relations during the 20th century, Whiteman said.

   “Hip-hop has the chance to do the same. At one time, hip-hop was the province of black musicians. Now everybody is involved, she said.

   “Hip-hop is now a shared form between black and white musicians. It bridges a gap,” she said.