Black History Month Music: Sister Rosetta Tharpe

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Ah, CHUY’S!!!!!! I’m in Huntsville after a morning at the Benedictine grotto, admiring the amazing artwork of a monk. More on that later. Right now, you need music, and I’m here to give it to you! Here’s another pioneer with which to celebrate Black History Month in music. Sister Rosetta Tharpe I know. You’ve never heard of her. There are a lot of people that you have heard of who DID hear Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and were profoundly influenced by her. Tharpe was born in the south, where the heavy influence of Pentecostal church singing and the blues infiltrated her from an early age. And I mean early: she was playing guitar and singing in Pentecostal tent revivals from the age of six. There was so much “cross-breeding” in music in those days that it’s really no surprise that you can hear jazz swing and the blues in her gospel music. Her guitar playing was rare, though: electric guitars in the 40s weren’t all that popular (see Charlie Christian, earlier this month, as a pioneer of the electric guitar), and a woman playing electric guitar in a gospel outfit war ridiculous. But that helped Tharpe stand out and flourish, not only in black gospel but in blues and white pop as well. She became the first gospel singer to headline at Carnegie Hall. And her death was reported in national newspapers. Along the way, people who cited her influence included Tina Turner, Little Richard, and even Johnny Cash. Yes, you’ve most likely never heard or heard of Sister Rosetta Tharpe. But her influence is out there, to this day. Sister Rosetta Tharpe Born Rosesther Atkins, March 20, 1915, Cotton Plant, Arkansas Died October 9, 1973, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (stroke) (age 58) HALLS OF FAME: Rock and Roll, 2018; Blues, 2007; National Rhythm & Blues, 2025 Here’s a clip of her singing one of her most famous songs, “Didn’t It Rain”: