Blues fans grieve the Queen

Ms. Taylor -- born Cora Walton and nicknamed Koko for her love of chocolate -- had a soulful vigor which made her a wonderful entertainer, and she was tough enough to participate in the integration of blues audiences in the '60s. She tells many stories in an interesting interview conducted by James Plath for Clockwatch Review in 1994-95; she appeared in three movies and on tv with Taj Mahal. In ill health for the past decade, she nonetheless performed at the Kennedy Center last December in honor of Morgan Freeman, and May 9 2009 in Memphis at the Blues Music Awards, where she was named Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year. 

I'm a woman, I'm a rushing wind

I'm a woman,I can cut stone with a pin

I'm a woman, I'm a love-maker

I'm a woman, you know I'm an earth-shaker 

She was an indefatigable road warrior, returning to health after a car crash while on the road in 1989 that was fatal to her husband Robert "Pops" Taylor and almost to her. Nominated for Grammies several times, she wracked up a record 29 wins of W.C. Handy Awards, received an National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts in 2004 and inspired a couple of generations of blues women (and men), black and white, in the same way she spoke of being inspired by Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith.  howardmandel.com
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