Billie Holiday - my favourite singer. I chose this clip over others such as Fine and mellow for it captures her in her prime. And Louis' presence is a beautiful thing.

Rosa Eskenazi, the greatest rembetika singer.
A good web site to her life is here.

The genius, Ray Charles.  What'd I say. A rare clip from a British movie, Ballad in blue.

Bessie Smith, 1929. The only known footage of the Queen of the Blues.

Edith Piaf - Les trois cloches. Recorded in 1956 when she was 41. Magnifique. With English subtitles.

Sly and the Family Stone - Everyday people.

John Lee Hooker in 1965, performing Hobo blues.

Leonard Cohen in 1967 performing The stranger song. Love the intro.

Howlin' Wolf. Live in England 1964. Smokestack lightning. A classic.

Son House, 1967, Death letter blues.

Skip James, 1967. Crow Jane.

James Brown - "a human package of dynamite". Excellent dancing by the super star.

Cat Power - Cross bones style.

Patsy Cline, 1957, aged 24. I've loved and lost again.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five - The message.

Oum Kalsoum, live in Morocco, 1969. Improvisation par excellence. There is a part 2 to this clip here.

The Seeds - Pushin' too hard. Classic garage punk.

Iggy Pop - I'm bored. Performed live on Australia's "Countdown", here is Iggy in all of his magnificence. The school girls in the audience are plain scared by his performance, though the camera loves him with a great pan from toe to top.

Five Blind Boys of Alabama - Too close.

Archie Roach & Sara Storer - From little things (big things grow.

Bulgarian women's choir.

Gregory Isaacs - The Cool Ruler - performing "Tune in".

İzzet Altınmeşe - Yazımı Kışa Çevirdin. One of the better tracks from 1981's "Dolan gözler", the album which followed the brilliant "Hanimey".