⬇️
LINDA HOPKINS ⬇️
(Melinda Helen Matthews)
(8LP/CD)
Linda Hopkins (born Melinda Helen Matthews; December 14, 1924 – April
10, 2017) was an American actress and blues and gospel singer. She
recorded classic, traditional, and urban blues, and performed R&B
and soul, jazz, and show tunes.
Hopkins was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, the second
child of the Reverend Fred Matthews, Sr. and Hazel Smith, Hopkins grew
up in the section of New Orleans known by the locals as "Zion City".
She went to school in "Gert Town" which bordered the Xavier University
of Louisiana.
Known as "Lil Helen Matthews" as a child, she was discovered at the
age of eleven by Mahalia Jackson when she persuaded Jackson to perform
at a fundraiser at her home church, St. Mark's Baptist Church. Lil
Helen opened the children's fundraising program with a rendition of
Jackson's gospel hit, "God Shall Wipe Your Tears Away". Jackson was
reportedly so impressed by Helen's determination and talent that she
arranged for the young girl to join the Southern Harp Spiritual
Singers in 1936. Hopkins remained with the group for a decade.
She first saw Bessie Smith perform Empty Bed Blues at The New Orleans
Palace Theatre in 1936. Hopkins greatly admired Smith and later won
critical plaudits for her rendition of Smith in the 1959 theatrical
presentation Jazz Train. Matthews left New Orleans in the 1950s, and,
in 1951, began performing at Slim Jenkins' Night Club in the
Oakland/Richmond area. There she met Johnny Otis and Little Esther
Phillips who created her stage name, Linda Hopkins. In 1952, Hopkins
toured Hawaii and Japan for two years which included a stint with
Louis Armstrong at The Brown Derby in Honolulu. She recorded for the
Savoy, Crystalette, Forecast, Federal and Atco labels and often
appeared at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem.
In 1960, Hopkins first toured Europe in the Broadway Express, the
restaged production of Jazz Train. She recorded "Shake a Hand" with
Jackie Wilson on the Brunswick label, which is her sole hit single
reaching #21 on the US Billboard R&B chart. She also recorded "I
Found Love" and "There's Nothing Like Love" with him on Brunswick in
early 1962. She attended Stella Adler's Acting School in New York
City.
During the 1970s, Hopkins performed in the Broadway musical, Purlie,
and with Sammy Davis Jr. for nine months. In addition, she performed
at President Jimmy Carter's 1977 inaugural ball. In 1972 she was
awarded a Tony and Drama Desk Award for her performance in Inner City.
She sang "Do You Believe" at the political event Star-Spangled Women
for McGovern–Shriver, bringing 19,000 people to their feet.
Hopkins starred in Me and Bessie, a one-woman show paying homage to
blues singer Bessie Smith, conceived and written by Hopkins and Will
Holt. The world premiere was in Washington, D.C., in 1974. After a run
in Los Angeles it transferred to the Ambassador Theatre on Broadway.
The critically acclaimed show ran for thirteen months and 453
performances, and Hopkins was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for
Unique Theatrical Experience.
In 1985, Black and Blue, written by Claudio Segovia and Hector
Orezzoli, premiered in Paris at the Théâtre Musical Paris. The musical
revue opened on Broadway in 1989 and ran for 829 performances. Hopkins
received a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in
a Musical. Wild Women Blues, conceived by Hopkins and produced by Mel
Howard and created by Hopkins and William Lipscomb, premiered in
Berlin in 1997. In 1998 Hopkins celebrated 50 years in show business.
In 2005, Motherin' The Blues: Linda Hopkins — The Continuing Legacy of
The Blues Woman, researched and written by Erany Barrow-Pryor, Ph.D.
through the Department of English at University of California, Los
Angeles, was published.
In October 2005, Hopkins received a star on the Hollywood Walk of
Fame.
Hopkins died in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on April 10, 2017, at the age of
92.
(Wikipedia)