Bman's Blues Report

Carrie Louise Smith (August 25, 1925 – May 20, 2012) was an American blues and jazz singer. Smith was born in Fort Gaines, Georgia. She was a member of a church choir that performed at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival. She first won notice singing with Big Tiny Little in the early 1970s, but became internationally known in 1974 when she played Bessie Smith (to whom she is of no relation) in Dick Hyman's Satchmo Remembered at Carnegie Hall. Smith then launched a solo career, performing with the New York Jazz Repertory Orchestra, Tyree Glenn (1973), Yank Lawson (1987), and the World's Greatest Jazz Band in addition to numerous solo albums. She starred in the Broadway musical Black and Blue from 1989 to 1991. She was not well known in the United States but had a cult following in Europe. Harlem on Parade 77 is an album credited to Smith, Buddy Tate, Doc Cheatham, and Hank Jones. It also features Dick Vance, Budd Johnson, Eddie Barefield, and Oliver Jackson. She was also featured on ...