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First exhibit dedicated to female artists opens Friday
from: examiner.com
by Mike Raymond
Goodbye to the Boss. Say Hello to the Queen...Aretha Franklin. Don't stop there. Say Hello to Grace Slick, Tina Turner, JOAN JETT, Madonna and many more.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum unveils its latest major exhibit this Friday, May 13thcalled "Women Who Rock: Vision, Passion, Power". This massive display will illustrate the important roles women have played in rock and roll from its inception through today, replacing the Bruce Springsteen exhibit which ran for nearly two years on the Hall's top two floors.
"I don't think people realize that women like Ma Rainey and others were actually making blues records before men." Rock Hall curator Jim Henke told me during a phone interview last week. "The problem was they were discriminated against by men who controlled the radio stations and record companies and they couldn't get their records played."
"Visitors are going to walk away from this exhibit with a deeper appreciation of how these artists contributed to the rock and roll art form and changed our society."
The exhibit is arranged in chronological fashion going back to the 1920's (highlighting Ma Rainey and Besse Smith as the first women to record the blues) ascending through the girl groups of the 60's, the counter culture movement, punk, disco and ending in the current millennium with pop artists Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga among others.
In fact, Henke says Lady Gaga was a big contributor to the current exhibit.
"We have her upright piano that she learned to play on when she was just a child. She wrote her first song on it called ÔDollar Bills'."
Among the dozens of collection highlights include:
*A dress worn by Cass Elliot of the Mamas and the Papas in 1967
*A pair of boots worn by Patti Smith in 1975
*A bass guitar played by Tina Weymouth of the Talking Heads in 1978
*An African print outfit worn by Queen Latifah in 1989
*The Runaway's "Cherry Bomb" lyrics from 1976
Once patrons complete the tour of the new exhibit they can enter a recording booth to leave a video message of inspiration related to women in rock. According to Henke, the messages will be delivered to some of the living female artists and others will be posted on the Rock Hall's website.
In opening the world's first museum exhibit dedicated to the most influential females artists, the Rock Hall will feature a Spring Benefit Concert on Saturday, May 14th. The all-star lineup includes Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Wanda Jackson, Mavis Staples and Darlene Love as well as Cyndi Lauper. Tickets are $20.
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