Female Blues Singers – Various Artists – Complete Recorded Works – Vol 14 S/T/U/W/Y (1923-1932)

The final volume is full of the mystery and obscurity, along with the great musical moments and surprising discoveries that we have encountered throughout the previous thirteen volumes. None of the singers presented here emerge as a definite personality in blues history; some probably appear under pseudonyms and one is lacking any name at all.

Helen Savage is a fine blues singer assisted by some great back up from Chicago jazzmen. Clementine Smith is almost certainly Josie Miles. Edna Taylor’s woefully short recording career is provided with outstanding accompaniment, probably by Tommy Ladnier and Clarence Johnson. The Georgia Taylor track is made all the more interesting with the presence King Oliver and His Dixie Syncopators. Two raunchy burlesque house numbers are provided by Gussie and Margaret Williams and Billie Young rounds the series off in the company of Jelly Roll Morton.