This musical legend’s first professional partnership was with her mother, a Baptist singer and evangelical preacher in rural Arkansas. By the age of 6, little Rosetta was playing guitar and accompanying her mother on tours across the American South, playing to audiences who were spellbound by her prodigious talent. In 1938, Tharpe was invited to play in a gospel concert at Carnegie Hall in a style that sowed the early seeds of rock ‘n roll. She went on to perform at the Cotton Club with Cab Calloway, recorded songs in the 1940s featuring electric guitar and would have a profound influence on the likes of Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. While many may claim the title of Father, Sister Rosetta Tharpe is truly the Mother of Rock ‘n Roll.
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Sister Rosetta Tharpe
This musical legend’s first professional partnership was with her mother, a Baptist singer and evangelical preacher in rural Arkansas. By the age of 6, little Rosetta was playing guitar and accompanying her mother on tours across the American South, playing to audiences who were spellbound by her prodigious talent. In 1938, Tharpe was invited to play in a gospel concert at Carnegie Hall in a style that sowed the early seeds of rock ‘n roll. She went on to perform at the Cotton Club with Cab Calloway, recorded songs in the 1940s featuring electric guitar and would have a profound influence on the likes of Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. While many may claim the title of Father, Sister Rosetta Tharpe is truly the Mother of Rock ‘n Roll.
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