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SISTER ROSETTA THARPE GOSPEL LEGEND AND GODMOTHER OF ROCK AND ROLL

FULL NAME: Sister Rosetta Nubin Tharpe

BORN: MARCH 20, 1915, COTTON PLANT, ARKANSAS, U.S.A.

DIED: OCTOBER 9, 1973, PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A.

NATIONALITY: AMERICAN

“She would sing until you cried and then she would sing until you danced for joy.”

FROM SISTER ROSETTA THARPE’S GRAVESTONE

MUSICAL PRODIGY

By all accounts, Rosetta Tharpe (born Rosetta Nubin) was a musical prodigy. Her mother was a talented singer, mandolin player, and preacher for the Church of God in Christ. This predominantly African-American Church encouraged music and the work of female preachers.

At the age of four, Rosetta started playing guitar and singing on stage with her mother. Two years later, little Rosetta was a regular performer with her mother’s group, traveling across the South before settling in Chicago. Rosetta gained fame as a musical prodigy, as well as for being a rarity as a black female guitarist. She would go on to become one of the greatest gospel singers of all time.

FABULOUS FIRSTS
	FIRST COMMERCIALLY SUCCESSFUL GOSPEL SINGER
	ROCK STAR BEFORE THERE WAS ROCK AND ROLL
A 1998 U.S. postage stamp featuring the godmother of rock and roll, Sister Rosetta Tharpe

GODMOTHER ROSETTA OF ROCK

In 1938, at the age of 23, Rosetta became the first commercially successful gospel singer. She signed with the now-legendary Decca Records label and recorded four songs. These were the first gospel songs ever recorded for the label. The songs were instant hits and brought gospel to a wider audience. That same year, Rosetta was asked to perform with a group at the illustrious Carnegie Hall, New York City. Later, she also performed with such icons as Cab Calloway, Benny Goodman, and Muddy Waters. At the time, it was new and incredible (and controversial) to see gospel music performed for a non-religious audience, especially by a female guitarist. Over the next decade, Rosetta continued to record and perform both gospel and secular (non-religious) music. Due to her upbringing, her style was unique, mixing together gospel, blues, folk, and jazz—and even using an early electric guitar. One of those first four hit songs, “That’s All,” is believed to have had a strong impact on later music legends Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. Decades ahead of her time, the little black girl with a gospel voice and guitar in hand had created the earliest rock and roll. Rosetta’s appeal was wide: religious and non-religious, black and white, young and old. Search YouTube for videos of her tremendous performances. In 2015, Rosetta was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Rosetta sang, recorded, strummed, and performed for over 50 years. Today, she remains one of the most influential musicians of all time. Quite simply, she was a rock star before there was rock. So, regardless of which bands are currently on your playlist, chances are they owe a big “thank you” to Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the godmother of rock and roll.

Rosetta was famous for playing a 1961 Gibson Les Paul Custom guitar, similar to this one.