Dusty!: Queen of the PostmodsDubbed the "White Queen of Soul," singer Dusty Springfield became the first British soloist to break into the U.S. Top Ten music charts with her 1964 hit "I Only Want To Be With You"--a pop classic followed by many others, including "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" and "Son of a Preacher Man." Today she is usually placed within the history of the Beatles-led "British Invasion" or seen as a devoted acolyte of Motown. In this penetrating look at her music and career, Annie J. Randall shows how Springfield's contributions transcend the narrow limits of those descriptions and how this middle-class former convent girl became perhaps the unlikeliest of artists to achieve soul credibility on both sides of the Atlantic. Randall reevaluates Springfield's place in sixties popular music through close investigation of her performances as well as interviews with her friends, peers, professional associates, and longtime fans. As the author notes, the singer's unique look--blonde beehive wigs and heavy black mascara--became iconic of the mid-sixties postmodern moment in which identity scrambling and camp pastiche were the norms in swinging London's pop culture. Randall places Springfield within this rich cultural context, focusing on the years from 1964 to 1968, when she recorded her biggest international hits and was a constant presence on British television. The book pays special attention to Springfield's close collaboration and friendship with American gospel singer Madeline Bell, the distinctive way Springfield combined US soul and European melodrama to achieve her own musical style and stage presence, and how her camp sensibility figured as a key element of her artistry. |
Contents
Migrations of Soul | |
2 | |
CHAPTER 3 | |
Soul + Melodrama The 1960s Pop Aria | |
4694 | |
27 95 | |
Dusty as Discourse | |
United Kingdom August 1966 104 | |
Appendix A Major Record Releases and Events 1961 | |
Appendix B Index of People | |
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1960s pop aria all’amore appearances artists audiences Bacharach backing singers backing vocals Beatles Bell’s black American Britain British Britpop broadcast Burt Bacharach camp Carole and Moira chapter charts chest voice Club Complete Dusty Springfield cultural Dancing with Demons discourse Doris Troy Dusty fans Dusty in Memphis Dusty Springfield Dusty’s Dusty’s music Dusty’s performances Dusty’s voice early edited elements emotional Eyes and Count fandom film gender genre gestures girl gospel identity interviews jazz journalists Lesbian Lesley Duncan listeners live performances London Madeline Bell Madeline’s Martha Reeves melody Mods modulation musicians O’Brien opera orchestral pop music Popular Music postmodern Queen racial radio recording rhythm Rock Routledge Say You Love seemed sexual Simon Bell singing solo song song’s soul music soul sound soul’s Sounds of Motown stage star style television traditions transatlantic soul U.S. release United Kingdom University Press Vandellas Vicki Wickham woman words York