Odetta's 1962 blues album strips away the folk veneer to reveal a voice of raw, unvarnished truth. Backed by a small combo of jazz veterans, she reimagines blues standards with a contralto that sounds centuries deep. Essential for anyone who thinks they know American roots music.
The first time you hear Odetta sing “Sweet Georgia Brown,” you might laugh. Not at her—but at yourself for thinking you knew the song. She slows it down, drags it through the mud, and lets the words hang like laundry in a humid yard. That’s what she does to every track here. She takes back what the pop charts had borrowed.
Riverside Records sent her into Plaza Sound Studios in the early spring of 1962. Engineer Ray Fowler set the levels for a voice that needed no reverb. Producer Orrin Keepnews had the sense to get out of the way. He pulled in a small ensemble of jazz session men who knew when to stay quiet and when to lean in.
Buck Clayton’s trumpet answers Odetta’s lines on “Empress of the Blues” like a man tipping his hat. Vic Dickenson’s trombone slides in behind her like smoke. Dick Hyman’s piano is all elegance and salt—he plays the blues like a man who has seen the inside of a lot of hotel bars. Al Hall holds the low end, and Cliff Leeman’s brushes are the soft click of a door left unlocked.
This is not a polite record. Odetta sings “How Long Blues” like she’s been waiting since the War. Her guitar is a second voice, fingerpicked and spare. She doesn’t embellish. She doesn’t swoop. There’s nothing theatrical about her delivery. It’s the sound of someone who knows exactly how much weight a syllable can carry.
The album was a left turn from the folk canon that had made her name. She had played Carnegie Hall. She had marched with Dr. King. Here she was, singing “Love Me with a Feeling” in a room full of men who had backed Billie Holiday. You can hear them paying attention. Nobody rushes. Nobody overplays.
“The St. Louis Blues” takes up nearly seven minutes. Odetta shifts from a growl to a clear, high cry in the same phrase. Clayton’s solo is restrained, almost courteous, but it cuts. The whole track feels like a conversation at the end of a long night. The producer let it run.
The record ends with “Empty Bed Blues.” Odetta sings it alone, just her and the guitar. No horns. No piano. The lyrics are direct—no subtext, no metaphor. Her voice cracks on the last line. She doesn’t fix it. That’s the take that went to mastering.
This is not background music. This is the sound of a woman reclaiming what was always hers. The blues had lived in her, and in 1962 she let it out.
What year did Odetta release Odetta Sings the Blues?
The album was released in 1962 on Riverside Records, recorded at Plaza Sound Studios in New York City.
Who played on Odetta Sings the Blues?
The session featured a small jazz ensemble including trumpeter Buck Clayton, trombonist Vic Dickenson, pianist Dick Hyman, bassist Al Hall, drummer Cliff Leeman, and guitarist Skeeter Best.
Is Odetta Sings the Blues a good introduction to her music?
It depends. If you know her only as a folk singer, this blues turn is revelatory. But for a broader introduction, start with her 1960 Carnegie Hall concert, then come here.