Books: "He's A Funny Cat, Ms. High" by Martha High with Tony Moore
I am always very interested in biographies, especially autobiographies. After reading the autobiographies of James Brown, Fred Wesley and Maceo Parker, I was curious about the book of Martha High. How would this woman in the band have experienced the James Brown era?
Interesting to learn how everyone experienced the same time from different perspectives.
Fred, Maceo and Martha have different personalities and had each different relationship with James Brown, also due to their position in the band.
I got to know Martha High as the always good-looking, smiling backing vocalist of Maceo Parker. Maceo has been featuring her for many years in the song "Think". She always makes this song sound brand new. She's always radiating so much positivity.
In James Brown's band, Martha High started as a young girl in the 60's, having learned from the strictest and hardest working man in showbusiness. Working together is always give and take.. So she must have been one of the stable factors during his career. Without a good band JB certainly couldn't have done his thing. I needed to read this book!
First of all, her book is very entertaining; and I finished reading the more than 300 pages within 2 days and I am sure I will read it again, soon. It made me giggle and laugh out loud quite a few times.
It gives a good insight about how life must have been, on tour and in the studio with James Brown. Martha's desciptions are funny and very human.
Throughout challenging years, Martha became "family" of James Brown, a man who had problems to trust people, from early age on.
Supported by her family, she was able to support James Brown for almost his entire career and that's how she again could support her family.
Definitely a must-read for fans of James Brown and funk/soul music!
Special thanks to Martha for the personal inscription :-)
Here's the official description as seen on
bol.com and
amazon.de:
Martha Highs fascinating story spanning her thirty two years of singing on stage with James Brown, The Godfather of Soul from her beginnings as a singer while still at school, at age seventeen; helped by her lifelong friends Bo Diddley and Maceo Parker. Martha shows us what it takes to become a true Diva. Marthas story will take you through never told before stories, the tragic losses, the funny side of show business and the very special relationship she shared with Mr. James Brown. Marthas story takes us behind the scenes; life on and off stage, performing with The Jewels, The Flames, The Bittersweets and the JBs before starting her incredible solo career still performing all over the world! ''He's A Funny Cat Ms. High'' an expression James Brown often used, in reality described Mr. James Brown himself and his relationship with his 'sister' Martha High who spent more time with James Brown, than anybody else over the course of their long professional and personal relationship. These stories are told in her unique style with compassion, humor and above all with truth! Watch her new work here:
And someone from Japan made a nice James Brown overview compilation:
Go to her
website.
Tourdates are supposed to be
here
on 22/04/2017
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