Wild Women Don't Have the Blues

The lives, times, and music of Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Ida Cox, Ethel Waters and other legendary women illustrate how the blues became a vital part of American culture.

WILD WOMEN DON'T HAVE THE BLUES shows how the blues were born out of the economic and social transformation of African American life early in this century. It recaptures the lives and times of Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Ida Cox, Alberta Hunter, Ethel Waters and the other legendary women who made the blues a vital part of American culture. The film brings together for the first time dozens of rare, classic renditions of the early blues.

"A superb look at the idiom and its origins." - Los Angeles Times

"Teaches tremendously moving lessons about race, gender and class...Invaluable in women's studies, history and music course." - Pat Gozemba, National Women's Studies Association