LG104 Interviews: Brother John Sellers; Joe Bostic (LG104Goreau_Side2)
Description
Side 1: Interview with Brother John Sellers on 1972-12-22 at his New York City apartment. Side 2: Continued interview with Brother John Sellers. Interview with Joe Bostic in his New York City apartment on 1972-12-22, continued on Tape ID: LG072. Abstract for Sellers and Bostic: [00:00–01:01:46] On LG104Goreau_Side1, this December 22, 1972 interview features Brother John Sellers speaking from his New York City apartment, clarifying many dates, people, and places from Jackson's early career. Sellers first describes meeting Jackson at 8 years old – 00:18. He speaks about her first trip to Europe in 1952, clarifying some dates and accompanying players – 01:48. He explains that he was the first to record "Move On Up a Little Higher" – 11:30, and goes on to describe how Jackson came to record it, as she used it for practice while she was recording at Decca Records. They then speak about the first people to record Jackson in Chicago, including Ink Williams – 12:50, and her role in the Johnson Singers – 16:10. He describes how Thomas Dorsey first called Jackson "the Empress of gospel singers," and the beginnings of their relationship – 25:29. He continues with mention of various people and places in her early career through the 1930s and 1940s, including her marriage to Ike Hockenhull – 30:06, her various health issues – 43:26, and a recounting of an incident where Minters Galloway struck her, and his belief that Polly Fletcher stole from the SCLC coffers Jackson held at her house – 48:57. [00:00–27:40] LG104Goreau_Side2 concludes Sellers' interview. He speaks about learning how to cook from watching Jackson, and recalls recipes, home remedies, and hoodoo practices culled from New Orleans. In addition to sharing posters and anecdotes from her early days in Chicago, the interview features Goreau getting clarification on Jackson's fallout with Polly Fletcher – 12:54, and the end of her relationship with Mildred Falls – 19:37. [28:00–01:01:50] On LG104Goreau_Side2, interviewed on December 22, 1972 in New York, Joe Bostic speaks about meeting Jackson and producing her performance at Carnegie Hall. In addition to speaking about Jackson's recording sessions and his plans for concerts at Carnegie Hall and Madison Square Garden, he also describes the racism and discrimination that Black performers faced in the 1950s, sharing how musicians like Jackson, Hazel Scott, and Duke Ellington were seen as "entertainers but not artists" – 30:21. He goes on to speak about other artists he worked with in Harlem, the "intensity of [Jackson's] spiritual conviction," and the television appearances that resulted from her appearance at Carnegie Hall, including her appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show – 50:30. Continued on Tape ID: LG072.