LaVern Baker: Hey Memphis

Lavern Baker is one of my favourite singers, active with Atlantic from 1949 to 1962. During the Vietnam war she went to entertain US troops but caught pneumonia. She was sent to the US naval base at Subic Bay Phillipines to recover. When she had done so she was offered the post of entertainments organiser and resident singer on the base. She accepted and only left 22 years later when the base closed down.She's taking off Elvis here. Memphis was what she called him!

LaVern Baker: Rock and Roll Medley!

I thought it would be appropriate to go back to LaVern Baker and this medley of pure Rock and Roll! I call these the golden years for her, Back in the USA doing exactly what she does best to audiences as large as Madison Square Gardens( this is Montreaux) and before the onslaught of diabetes complications took her legs and ultimately her life. Love the way she lets each member of her band strut his stuff too.

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!

LaVern Baker at Porretta Soul 1996

LaVern Baker. The Porretta Soul Festival is held every year in Rufus Thomas park in the city of Porretta Terme in Bologna, Italy. It was started by Graziano Uliani in 1988, an avid fan of the Memphis Sound , in honour of Otis Redding tragically killed in a plane crash. Elvis also did this song. He had high regard for LaVern too. Her song Hey Memphis is a take off of Little Sister by Elvis.

St. Louis Blues

LaVern Baker. St. Louis Blues

LaVern Baker--Jim Dandy, Saved, 1988 TV with Interview

Here is my celebratory performance from LaVern Baker at the 40th anniversary celebrations of Atlantic Records. AS Phil Collins says in his intro speech, Atlantic showed that it was OK for white kids to listen to black music. They promoted many African American artists and brought them to wider audiences. LaVern was an iconic 50's RnB and pre Rock and Roll singer who was admired by the likes of Elvis and so on. After a divorce she volunteered to go to Vietnam to entertain US troops fighting in that war. While on this tour she caught pneumonia and was sent to a US naval base at Subic Bay in the Phillipines to recover. When she was ready to depart the people on the base asked her to stay as resident singer and entertainments manager. She accepted and only left 22 years later when the base was closed down. Unfortunately she was a diabetes sufferer and had both legs amputated in 1995 due to this. Medical expenses had used up all her money and she could not afford prosthetics. However a family business in Boston offered to make them pro bono. She was all rearing to go back out there and perform without the wheelchair but sadly had a fatal cardiac arrest in 1998. She was buried in an unmarked grave. In 2011 some fans got money together remember her with a tombstone and dignity.

Lavern Baker - 9-8-1996 (PORCC Show)

This is the best footage I've ever seen of any singer! This is LaVern Baker taken about one year before her sad death from diabetes complications and shortly after a long stay in hospital and losing both legs. The indominatable spirit of LaVern Baker! Also excellent audio and well focussed well placed camera!