From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Wed May 1, 2002  1:14 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Big Maybelle
 
BIG MAYBELLE (By Jean-Marc Pezet)

Born Mabel Louise Smith, 1 May 1924, Jackson, Tennessee
Died 23 January 1972, Cleveland, Ohio

As a child, Big Maybelle presented a powerful voice when singing for
friends and at the local church. By 1936, she was discovered by Dave Clark
(later record promoter and producer for Chess, Vee-Jay, Duke-Peacock).
She joined a swing band, touring the South and Midwest prior to becoming
the featured vocalist with Christine Chatman's Orchestra in NYC.
As Maybelle Smith she recorded for Decca (1944) and King (1947) with
not much success before signing with Okeh Records in 1952.
Her first single "Gabbin' Blues" was a hit, rising to # 3 on the R&B chart,
soon followed by two others, "Way Back Home" and "My Country Man".
She also recorded in 1955 the original version of "Whole Lotta Shakin'
Goin' On", written by a country boy in disguise (Roy Hall) that soon would
become a huge hit for another country boy from Ferriday, Louisiana.
By 1956, hit records had come to an halt and Mabel moved to Savoy. She
recorded sweeter sounds and even made a name for herself with the jazz
aficionados, appearing at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958.
She continued to record in the early 1960s for Brunswick, but her health
declined due to a long-term addiction to heroin. She managed to have her
sole pop hit with a cover of "96 Tears" (which, appropriately, got to # 96)
in 1967 before dying from diabetic coma in 1972.

Recommended listening:
"The Complete Okeh Sessions 1952-55" Epic/Okeh Legacy EK 53417