ALBERTA HUNTER

ALBERTA HUNTER

Alberta Hunter was born in 1895 in Memphis, Tennessee. She ran away to Chicago at the age of twelve in order to become a Blues singer. She got her first professional start in 1911 at a Southside club called Dago Frank’s. She stayed there until 1913 when the place was closed after a murder on the premise. She saved enough money working elsewhere to bring her mother to Chicago. She supported her for the rest of her life. Alberta was married briefly but never consummated the union. She used her mother as an excuse but was, in fact, a lesbian. She found years of companionship and love with Lottie Taylor, the niece of the famous African-American entertainer Bert Williams. She sang in many Chicago clubs and became quite a star, billed as “The Sweetheart of Dreamland”. One night, her piano player was shot while on stage. In 1921, Alberta moved to New York and launched her recording career with the Black Swan label. She switched to Paramount in 1922. She wrote much of her own material and penned Bessie Smith’s hit “Down Hearted Blues”. In 1923 she became the first African-American singer to be backed up by a white band. Alberta recorded songs under several pseudonyms during the 1920s in an attempt to keep record companies she had signed exclusive contracts with from finding out about this extra income. She went to Europe and toured parts of “Showboat” with Paul Robeson. She was a hit in Paris and went to Russian and the Middle East. During World War II, Alberta was part of the USO entertaining troops throughout Asia and the South Pacific Islands. She quit singing after her mother’s death in 1956. At the age of 59 she enrolled in a practical nursing course and worked for twenty years in a New York City hospital. In the early 1960s she recorded a few albums and then surprisingly took to the stage again in 1977 at the age of 82. She performed until the time of her death in 1984.