Eva Taylor
Eva Taylor was born on this date in 1895. She was a Black blues singer.
Born Irene Gibbons in St. Louis, Taylor toured with vaudeville troupes as a child, not only in the U. S. but also in Europe and the South Pacific. In the early 1920s, she moved to New York City, where she became a popular club act and married Clarence Williams. In 1922, Taylor recorded for the Black Swan label; later, she cut sides for Okeh, Columbia, and Bluebird. Her repertoire was blues-based, but she also included jazz and pop pieces in her performances.
Eva Taylor was a classic blues singer who worked in nightclubs and theaters on the East Coast, often appearing with her husband, pianist-arranger-producer Clarence Williams, throughout the 1920s and 1930s. Though her voice lacked the range and dynamics of more popular female blues singers like Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, and Ida Cox, Taylor enjoyed a long and prosperous career. Taylor retired from show business in the early 1940s. After Williams died in 1965, she went back to doing occasional concerts and club appearances until her death on October 31, 1977.
Nothing But the Blues: The Music and the Musicians
Edited by Lawrence Cohn
Copyright 1993 Abbeville Publishing Group, New York
ISBN 1-55859-271-7
