Play It - Clara Smith (1923)

"Play It (Do It A Long Time, Papa)"

Clara Smith

1923

Columbia A3966

Fletcher Henderson, piano

Clara Smith was born on March 13, 1894, in Spartanburg County, South Carolina. She was not related to Mamie Smith nor to Bessie Smith.

Clara was an important blues singer. In the early 1920s. Her Columbia records sold well. She recorded 122 titles for that company--and she worked for no other record company.

She worked with many great musicians, including Fletcher Henderson, Louis Armstrong, and Don Redman.

She possessed a powerful voice but also had a great presence when performing on stage. She was billed as the "Queen of the Moaners."

Josphine Baker, an early fan (and possibly lover), admired Clara's voice but was also impressed by the way Clara used a long silk handkerchief as a prop when performing on stage. Clara was also known for a blue feather boa.

By the mid-1920s, Clara's career was in decline. She died at age 40 on February 2, 1935, in Detroit, Michigan. She suffered from heart disease.