Talk:Etta James

Inconsistency with Chart Rank of First Hit.
"The Wallflower (Dance With Me, Henry)" went to No. 1 on the R&B singles chart according to some sources (including Wikipedia sources), but it's listed as a No. 2 hit in this article. It would be cool if it were No. 1 because none of her other hits went to the top spot. Cheers, Pablo98.210.146.149 (talk) 06:22, 28 November 2011 (UTC)
 * According to Joel Whitburn's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-1995 it reached no. 1 on that chart on 9 April 1955 and stayed there for 4 weeks. I'll check and amend the article accordingly.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 10:07, 28 November 2011 (UTC)

Better Images
I think a legendary Blues singer like Etta James' wiki article requires better pictures. These two pictures that are already are so old and with a low quality!Pouyakhani (talk) 15:11, 4 December 2011 (UTC)
 * Looks like a nice newer image was added a few days ago. Much better.  But could still use some better historical pictures later in the article.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.20.144.229 (talk) 03:51, 18 December 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeah, The new picture is much better! But still needs some picture of her youth.Pouyakhani (talk) 00:51, 19 December 2011 (UTC)

Commons only has four image associated with Etta James, one of which is a vinyl record. Hopefully additional images will be uploaded, which can then be incorporated into the article. -- Another Believer ( Talk ) 19:33, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

I have negative feelings toward the banner photo used here. Admittedly, some of these feelings are personal, but even so: I don't think its a stretch to say that we might now take the time to consider what image would be most appropriate to represent her posthumously. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Aircraftcarryur (talk • contribs) 05:48, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

derogatory comment added to the Etta James entry this morning
Is Wiki working on ways to prevent this sort of "graffiti" ? Just curious. The really ugly line added to the "Illness and Death" section was a new low. I've never seen anything like this on Wikipedia -- it was jaw-droppingly unfunny and contemptible. Whoever cleaned this up: thank you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.79.12.194 (talk) 18:37, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

"American Artist"
Is there any good reason why she is being referred to as an "American Artist" in this article, instead of as: an "[African] American Artist"? Please include this pivotal aspect of her ethnicity, and heritage. Thanks.
 * She was born to an African American mother and an Unknown father who was probably white. Being referred as American artist will not make any confusion I guess.Pouyakhani (talk) 21:57, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

She is being referred to as an American artist because she is an American artist. It doesn't matter that she is black, she is an American. Later in the article it could go into her heritage, but the opening is correct, she is an American artist. White artists are not referred to as European-American at the beginning of their articles. It is correct the way it is. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.251.112.170 (talk) 04:10, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

I agree that "American Artist" is the correct designation for her. Although her ethnicity and heritage may be of interest in the article as a whole, it's not needed in the opening. --Tcxspears (talk) 21:54, 26 January 2012 (UTC)

Edit Request: Comma to be removed
I found this:

"James speculated that her father was the pool player, Rudolf "Minnesota Fats" Wanderone,"

Please remove comma occurring just after "player", because the following text ("Rudolf ...") is restrictive, instead of merely adding information to "the pool player". There are many pool players besides Minnesota Fats. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.63.16.82 (talk) 18:19, 23 January 2012 (UTC)

Which songs did she take credit for?
The grammar and punctuation of the opening section makes it ambiguous whether she took credit for writing all of just the last of the songs listed.RobertGustafson (talk) 06:54, 26 January 2012 (UTC)
 * I think it is really clear that it was "I'd rather go blind". The article says:

"....., and "I'd Rather Go Blind" for which she claimed she wrote the lyrics." That 'which' makes it clear. Pouyakhani (talk) 12:33, 1 February 2012 (UTC)


 * At BMI, she is credited with writing or co-writing 43 songs, including "The Wallflower" and "Something's Got A Hold On Me". They don't include "I'd Rather Go Blind", because she didn't formally claim the credit for that one.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 12:41, 1 February 2012 (UTC)


 * Read about it here :I'd Rather Go Blind, She is not credited for it but she claimed she has written the lyrics.Pouyakhani (talk) 14:16, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just added archive links to 1 one external link on Etta James. Please take a moment to review my edit. If necessary, add after the link to keep me from modifying it. Alternatively, you can add to keep me off the page altogether. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/20080216144006/http://www.montreuxsounds.com:80/history_1967.php to http://www.montreuxsounds.com/history_1967.php

When you have finished reviewing my changes, please set the checked parameter below to true to let others know.

Cheers. —cyberbot II  Talk to my owner :Online 05:45, 30 August 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 2 external links on Etta James. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20090113212847/http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=news&subsect=news_detail&nid=814 to http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=news&subsect=news_detail&nid=814
 * Added archive https://archive.is/20120731033608/http://www.blues.org/bluesmusicawards/index.php to http://www.blues.org/bluesmusicawards/index.php

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

Cheers.— InternetArchiveBot  (Report bug) 08:00, 24 September 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 2 external links on Etta James. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20120123054025/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/19/mjazz.02.etta.james/index.html to http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/19/mjazz.02.etta.james/index.html
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20101206114916/http://www.4music.com/artist/paloma-faith/paloma-faith-facts.html to http://www.4music.com/artist/paloma-faith/paloma-faith-facts.html

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

Cheers.— InternetArchiveBot  (Report bug) 18:49, 27 November 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified one external link on Etta James. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added tag to http://www.noquarterusa.net/blog/870/taters-and-other-fascinating-people
 * Added tag to http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/sns-rt-us-ettajamestre80s00y-20120128,0,3666620.story
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20110525032900/http://www.naacpimageawards.net/42/awards-show/history/ to http://www.naacpimageawards.net/42/awards-show/history/

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

Cheers.— InternetArchiveBot  (Report bug) 07:18, 7 December 2017 (UTC)