Sweet Emma Barrett
| Sweet Emma Barrett | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Emma Barrett |
| Also known as | Bell Gal |
| Born | March 25, 1897 |
| Origin | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
| Died | January 28, 1983 (aged 85) |
| Genres | Dixieland jazz |
| Occupation(s) |
Singer Pianist Bandleader |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1920s–1983 |
| Labels | Riverside |
| Associated acts | Papa Celestin |
"Sweet Emma" Barrett (March 25, 1897, New Orleans, Louisiana – January 28, 1983) was an American self-taught jazz pianist and singer who worked with the Original Tuxedo Orchestra between 1923 and 1936, first under Papa Celestin, then William Ridgely. Also active with Armand Piron, John Robichaux, and Sidney Desvigne, Sweet Emma Barrett was at her most powerful in the early 1960s and became an iconic figure with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.
In 1947, she accepted a steady job at a local club, Happy Landing, but it was her 1961 recording debut, with her own album in the Riverside Records New Orleans: The Living Legends series, that brought her recognition from beyond the Crescent City. Although most of the songs on the album were instrumentals, others featured vocals by Barrett that the liner notes described as her first recordings as a vocalist.
She was nicknamed Bell Gal because she wore a red skull cap and garters with Christmas bells that jingled in time with her music. She was featured on the cover of Glamour magazine and written up in publications on both sides of the Atlantic. When the Preservation Hall Jazz Band began to "hit the road", she took it on international tours. Barrett toured in the United States as well, including a stint at Disneyland in 1963.
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