Shout, Sister, Shout!

Summary

The untold story of 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Sister Rosetta Tharpe, America’s first rock guitar diva

Long before “women in rock” became a media catchphrase, African American guitar virtuoso Rosetta Tharpe proved in spectacular fashion that women could rock. Born in Cotton Plant, Arkansas, in 1915, Tharpe was gospel’s first superstar and the preeminent crossover figure of its golden age (1945–1965).

Shout, Sister, Shout! is the first biography of this trailblazing performer who influenced scores of popular musicians, from Elvis Presley and Little Richard to Eric Clapton and Etta James. Tharpe was raised in the Pentecostal Church, steeped in the gospel tradition, but she produced music that crossed boundaries, defied classification, and disregarded the social and cultural norms of the age; incorporating elements of gospel, blues, jazz, popular ballads, folk, country, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll. Tharpe went electric early on, captivating both white and black audiences in the North and South, in the US and internationally, with her charisma and skill. People who saw her perform claimed she made that guitar talk. Ambitious, flamboyant, and relentlessly public, Tharpe even staged her own wedding as a gospel concert-in a stadium holding 20,000 people!

Wald’s eye-opening biography, which draws on the memories of more than a hundred people who knew or worked with Tharpe, introduces us to this vibrant, essential, yet nearly forgotten musical heavyweight whose long career helped define gospel, r&b, and rock music. A performer who resisted categorization at many levels—as a gospel musician, a woman, and an African American—Tharpe demands that we rethink our most basic notions of music history and American culture. Her story forever alters our understanding of both women in rock and US popular music.

Audiobook Credits

Read by Leslie Uggams, Shawn T. Andrew, and Anthony Heilbut

Produced and directed by Elizabeth Healy

Recorded at CDM Studios in New York City by Michael Bognar, Brian Ramcharan, Cathleen Conte, and Charles D. Montebello

Post production by Heather Scott and Ted Scott of 50 Nugget Wash Productions

Music

“Didn’t It Rain”
by Marie Knight and Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Regent Music Corporation (BMI)
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe with The Sammy Price Trio
(P) 1947 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Courtesy of Universal Music Enterprises
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Courtesy of GHB Jazz Foundation

“I Looked Down The Line (And I Wondered)”
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe
(P) 1939 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Courtesy of Universal Music Enterprises

“Rock Me”
by Thomas A. Dorsey
Unichappell Music, Inc. (BMI)
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe
(P) 1938 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Courtesy of Geffen Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises

“There Will Be Peace In The Valley For Me”
by Thomas A. Dorsey
Warner – Tamerlane Publishing Corporation (BMI)
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe
(P) 1952 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Courtesy of Universal Music Enterprises

“Up Above My Head I Hear Music In The Air”
Words and Music by Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Copyright © 1947 Princess Music Publishing Corporation (ASCAP)
Copyright Renewed

All rights Reserved. Used by Permission
Reproduced by Permission of Hal Leonard LLC
Recording: Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Recording courtesy of Historic Films