Five Classic Albums

Description

Etta James had a difficult life! Born to a 14-year-old mother and without a father, she was raised by adoptive parents who subjected her to physical and mental abuse. Later in life, perhaps unsurprisingly, she followed the all-too-familiar path of drug and alcohol addiction, which led to poor health and numerous visits to rehabilitation centers and psychiatric hospitals. However, at 14, her singing talents were noticed while she was singing in a doo-wop group. At that time, she met Johnny Otis, who took her under his wing, changed her name from Jamesetta Hawkins to Etta James, and the name of the group to "The Peaches," signing them to the Modern Records label. In an attempt to write a song in response to Hank Ballard's hit "Work With Me, Annie," he and Etta wrote "Dance With Me, Henry," which would become a number one hit on the R&B charts and would firmly set Etta James on the path to solo success.