LaVern Baker--Shake a Hand, 1995 Live Performance

akeLaVern B in this clip performing live after losing both legs to diabetes and after spending three years in hospital. At this stage she was looking forward to receiving prosthetics from a family run company in Boston who were doing the work pro bono as medical expenses had used up most of Lavern's money. She was rearing to get back on stage and not be wheelchair bound. Unfortunately she died from cardiac arrest due to diabetes before that could be. She recorded much material with Atlantic Records before volunteering to do a performance tour for US soldiers during the Vietnam war. Circumstances led to her being offered the post of resident performer at Subic Bay Naval station. She accepted and only left 22 years later when the Philippines government asked the US to leave. If I had been in the US Navy at Subic Bay I think I would have just kept volunteering for tours of duty to be able to hear a performer of this calibre on a regular basis! The second clip below is from her 3 disc compilation set containing 71 tracks which I have been lucky enough to obtain. It is interesting to to hear how her style and the production quality evolve over the 14 year span of time. Initial tracks had too much noisy horn. It seems the producers realised just what a great voice she had and toned it down on the horns!