Artist of the Week, 02.02.10

Betty Davis, second wife of jazz legend Miles Davis, was a serious queen of funk in the 1970s, though her 3 kick ass albums have been largely forgotten about. Also a fashion model, Betty divorced Miles after less than a year (he said she was "too wild" for him) and launched her musical career with help from Sly and the Family Stone, the Pointer Sisters, Tower of Power, and other more well known musicians of the era. How she fell through the cracks is somewhat of a mystery, especially considering the progressive nature of her sound, stage attire and live performances. You might call her a funky predecessor to Lady Gaga, minus the tremendous fame. Just check out this outfit from the cover of her 1974 album, They Say I'm Different:


And, Betty hails from Durham, further re-enforcing my hypothesis that many of America's greatest humans have come from North Carolina. Nina Simone was another.

I initially learned about Betty from this October 2009 NPR story. I was reminded of her recently when I saw and later interviewed Boston local Shea Rose who has a similar flair about her.

Here are some tracks:
Betty Davis, You won't see me in the morning, Nasty Girl and Anti-Love Song
Shea Rose, Free Love