At first glance, Bettye LaVette’s new album Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook, would appear to be just another collection of song covers. But “interpretations” is the key word here, because LaVette, a Detroit soul veteran and a contemporary of more famous peers like Aretha Franklin and Smokey Robinson, is no run-of-the-mill singer, and she takes these classic British Invasion tracks and gives them new dimension, making them in every sense and nuance her own. That’s not an easy task, since every one of these tracks is a well-known song, seemingly immutable in the original ve… read more
At first glance, Bettye LaVette’s new album Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook, would appear to be just another collection of song covers. Bu… read more
At first glance, Bettye LaVette’s new album Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook, would appear to be just another collection of song covers. But “interpretations” is the key word h… read more
Bettye LaVette (born Betty Jo Haskins, January 29, 1946) is an American soul singer-songwriter who made her first record at sixteen, but achieved only intermittent fame until 2005, with her album I've Got My Own Hell to Raise. Her eclectic musical style combines elements of soul, blues, rock and roll, funk, gospel, and country music. With one of her first singles turning into a national hit, 1962's "Let Me Down Easy", Detroit-raised LaVette would seem a natural soul star, but she was never able to cut an album deal. In 1972 her album A Child of the Seventies was … read more
Bettye LaVette (born Betty Jo Haskins, January 29, 1946) is an American soul singer-songwriter who made her first record at sixteen, but achieved only intermittent fame until 2005, with her… read more
Bettye LaVette (born Betty Jo Haskins, January 29, 1946) is an American soul singer-songwriter who made her first record at sixteen, but achieved only intermittent fame until 2005, with her album I've Got My Own Hell to Raise. Her… read more