Sister Rosetta Tharpe

As we were discussing the roots and early history of blues, R&B, gospel, and rock ‘n’ roll I could help but think of one artist who was one of the biggest and most important influences on all of those genres and I was surprised we didn’t mention her in class. That artist is Sister Rosetta Tharpe who started her recording career in 1938 and was already playing guitar in a rock ‘n’ roll fashion while singing gospel and R&B music. Many of the early rock ‘n’ rollers such as Little Richard have cited her as a big influence on their music, and he especially acknowledged her influence on him for mixing gospel and R&B together similar to how he did in his own career. Her guitar playing and singing style were unique to her at the time which is what made her so popular to audiences and helped her become one of the first cross-over stars of gospel music. While other blues guitar players started playing the electric guitar and incorporating the styles they had crafted on acoustic slide guitar, Tharpe’s rhythmic playing deviated from other blues styles. Her guitar playing could have been speculated to have been influenced by the blues, jazz, and/or folk music but since she picked up the instrument as a child it could have been something she made up just on her own. No matter how she came to craft that style it would definitely become a direct influence on all of the early rock guitarists of the late 40’s-1950’s.
Unfortunately it seems that in our modern world she has been left in the shadows of music history like many of the foundational artists who shaped almost all of the genres we listen to today. It’s confusing to me because of how talented she was but also because many popular artists of the 1940’s-1960’s have openly praised her, and yet somehow she still doesn’t seem to be recognized in the way she should or receive the credit she deserves. Perhaps if the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted her as an early influence, or she received something like a Grammy lifetime achievement award should would start to become more acknowledged in our current era. The fact that the Grammy’s have inducted her songs into their hall of fame but have not awarded her as an artist is quite silly to me. Then again not everything is about awards and fame but it would seem like an injustice to modern music history to just leave her legacy in the dust to be forgotten. Perhaps if her fans spread the word of her music and educated those who don’t know of her she could become more appreciated and acknowledged culturally in that way.

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