Mamie Smith

500 Greatest Songs of all time - Updated! (262 items)
list by Happy Vader

Tribute...We miss you...Patriarchs of Hollywood (266 items)
list by omnivorousrex

Mamie Smith (née Robinson) (May 26, 1891 – September 16, 1946) was an American vaudeville singer, dancer, pianist and actress, who appeared in several films late in her career. As a vaudeville singer she performed a number of styles including jazz and blues. She entered blues history by being the first African American artist to make vocal blues recordings in 1920. Willie "The Lion" Smith (not her husband) explained the background to that recording in his (ghosted) autobiography, Music on My Mind.