"Strange Things Happening Every Day" is an African American spiritual that was most famously, and influentially, recorded by Sister Rosetta Tharpe in 1944. Released as a single by Decca Records, Tharpe's version featured her vocals and electric guitar, with Sammy Price (piano), bass and drums. It was the first gospel record to cross over and become a hit on the "race records" chart, the term then used for what later became the R&B chart, and reached #2 on the Billboard "race" chart in April 1945.[1][2]
"Strange Things Happening Every Day" | |
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Single by Sister Rosetta Tharpe | |
Released | 1944 / 1945 |
Recorded | 1944 |
Genre | |
Length | 3:38 |
Label | Decca |
Songwriter(s) | Traditional |
Audio sample | |
30 second sample of Sister Rosetta Tharpe's "Strange Things Happening Every Day"
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Originally a traditional spiritual, Tharpe recorded the song in 1944 in response to backlash from black religious leaders, who had criticized her for performing and recording gospel music for a secular audience.[3]
The recording has been cited as both an important precursor of rock and roll,[4] and also considered by some to be a contender for the title of first rock and roll record.[5] A National Public Radio article commented that "Rock 'n' roll was bred between the church and the nightclubs in the soul of a queer black woman in the 1940s named Sister Rosetta Tharpe".[6]
the first rock record. In fact, that title is hotly disputed, with contenders including Sister Rosetta Tharpe's Strange Things Happening Every Day (1944), and)