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Mamie Smith (1883-1946) sold millions of blues records.
Her hit came in 1920 when Billie Holliday was 5 years old.
 With her recording of “Crazy Blues,” Mamie Smith became the first black vocalist to make a commercial vaudeville blues record.
Her recording was a surprise hit, reputedly selling more than 250,000 copies (listen with Real Player). It revealed to record companies a previously neglected market for records, African-American buyers.
Subsequently, thousands of recordings were made of black jazz and blues artists, invigorating the record business and enabling the documentation and preservation of one of the richest eras of musical creativity in the United States. (source: Library of Congress).
The RingBlues.com Home Page.
The life and history of Mamie Smith. the Mamie Smith photo and track on this page originates at REDHOTJAZZ.com.
The Billie Holliday official site.
Black Man, Guitar - mural on a building
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