Rosa KingThe early years Rosa was born in Macon (Georgia) on the 14th of March in the year 19… Well, she has kept that year a secret for her whole life. Only very few people know Rosa's real age. One of Rosa's high school friends in Georgia was Richard Peniman, who we now know as the famous "Little Richard". She didn't stay at school for long though: from the age of 14 she was a dancer. At the age of 17 Rosa left her parent's place to work with Charles Taylor & The Bronze Mannikens, a show that traveled through the southern parts of the USA. Later she ended up in New York. After quite some jobs, like waitress, cab driver and wardrobe girl, she got a job as a dancer again. From that day on there was no life without music anymore for Rosa. She bought a guitar, taught herself how to play it. Eddie Coombs noticed this and offered her some work in his band. She always wanted to make music and sing, so she took the offer. A few years later she left the band and went her own way. Next to guitar she had taught herself to play saxophone and some drums by then. From this moment on shestarted a career as front lady in her own bands. For short periods she also played for others, like Little Richard, Cab Calloway, Ben E. King and Lionel Hampton. Rosa's career in Amsterdam In the early 70-ies Rosa came to Amsterdam with a soul show. She liked Amsterdam, a town that had a cosmopolitan feel to it while being much smaller than New York. She met bass player Rainer Bleck who wanted to form a band with her and "Upside Down" was created. Rosa King & Upside Down. Rosa turned out to be a colorful black saxophone player and singer with a love for blues, soul & funk, always making a party everywhere and successful on Dutch and international festivals. Rosa King & Upside Down played mainly own material and some covers. In 1978 her name was finally made when Rosa stole the show at the North Sea Jazz Festival while suddenly jumping on stage where a tenor sax battle was going on with legends like Stan Getz, Archie Shepp, Illinois Jacquet, Fathead Newman, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and David Murray. The organization thought that Rosa didn't belong there and didn't let her play. But she went and did it anyway. "I blew like mad," she said later because these big guys weren't giving their best at all, "they were the greatest tenor players in the world, but they weren't playin' nuttin' ". It upset Rosa a lot, feeling that only Archie and Stan were giving a little effort. Rosa got the crowd going. "Not because it was that artistic and great what I was doing, but just because I was really working and giving my best." Rosa King & Upside Down played all over Europe and beyond. Nine times she played on that North Sea Jazz Festival, she went to Poland for the Pori Jazz Festival in Lublin, to Indonesia for the Bintang Jazz Festival, to Lithuania, Lebanon, France, Switzerland, Norway, etc. In 1981 she had a gig at at Joe's Pier 52 in New York. She and her band were so successful there that they stayed for 2 months, playing at Joe's every night. "We could have stayed for a whole year, 6 days a week", Rosa said, "but that's sooooo long and I don't want to even think about that." So, she hit the roadagain, playing all over Europe. In 1996 Rosa celebrated her 25th anniversary as a band leader and singer/saxophone player here in Holland. There was a big party especially for that at Holland's premier music stage Paradiso in Amsterdam. Her last CD "Still Going Strong" was presented there. Rosa worked hard her whole life and was known to be the hardest working lady in the business. At times she played at least 20 times a month with her band "Upside Down". She was an animal on stage and wanted the crowd to feel that "the band is cooking". The thought of retiring never appealed to her. "Music is in my blood. Sometimes I think: when I get older I am gonna live in Georgia, where my mother and I own a house. But then I think later: I am old already! And probably I have been too bloody long in Amsterdam to be able to return to the USA." Rosa's band turned out to be a stepping stone for many young new musicians. Quite some started their careers under the guidance of Rosa. Candy Dulfer, Saskia Laroo and Alex Britti for instance. Late summer 2000 Rosa was trying to cut down a little on the gigs with the bands, wanting to concentrat on writing and recording music for a new CD. However in the week of December 4th she had severe pains in her chest ending up at the emergency department of the hospital at Wednesday night. They gave her some pills to sleep. Even those pains couldn't stop her from doing a gig all the way in the south of Holland, going to bed late and then getting up early again to fly to Rome for a surprise TV appearance for famous Italian singer songwriter Alex Britti, who played in Upside Down years ago. Rosa gave it all on that TV show and surely left a big impression in Italy. After this TV appearance Rosa died on the 12th of December in Rome of a heart attack, leaving a huge gap in the Dutch music scene that will be felt for very long. |