Ladies sing the blues

LADY SINGS THE BLUES: Rhonda Bryant-Corbett’s a cappella rendition of Billie Holiday’s song Strange Fruit was a highlight at an annual Poverty Bay Blues Club Ladies Sing The Blues evening. Picture by Liam Clayton

Ladies Sing The Blues is the name of next month’s Poverty Bay Blues Club evening. Any blues muso is welcome to take the stage at any of the monthly club nights, but the annual Ladies Sing The Blues is all about the women.

“Often it’s the guys on stage so this is a nice opportunity for women to sing,” says club captain Darryn Clyne.

“There are a lot of songs women can sing that men can’t.”

Rhonda Bryant-Corbett’s a cappella (unaccompanied) rendition of Billie Holiday’s 1939 song Strange Fruit was arguably such a song.

“There was dead silence in the whole house,” says Clyne.

Bryant-Corbett, Jasmine Taare, Wendy Wallace and Kathy Te Kani are other blues women regulars and often tend to sing songs by artists such as Nina Simone and Ella Fitzgerald.

“Some really nice stuff comes out,” says Clyne.

“Good blues is good blues. It’s for everybody.”

Poverty Bay Blues Night presents Ladies Sing The Blues, the Dome Room, PBC, Tuesday December 3. Doors open at 7pm, acts start 8pm. Entry $5 on the door.