In Her Own Words
© Copyright-Betty Johnson
(820360130427)
Record Label: Bliss Tavern Music
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In Her Own Words - The Audiobook
Betty Johnson
Singer Betty Johnson’s extraordinary voice lifted her from the arduous cotton fields of North Carolina to the luxury of Park Avenue. From the sweet sounds of the Johnson Family Singers, America’s first family of gospel, to the elegant rhythms of her solo career in top venues around the globe, music was the saving force in a difficult life filled with personal hardships and devastating secrets. The Cinderella tale of this hard-working, determined woman leaves you cheering as the triumphs of her later life overshadow the pain of her early life. This is a story of tremendous faith and even greater love, but above all, it is a story of music, told by the author in her still beautiful voice, with actual recordings spanning over seventy years of her career.
A Brief Word About Betty Johnson
Betty Johnson’s first career in music coincided with the music career of her family, The Johnson Family Singers. Starting in 1938 and throughout the 1940’s, this young soprano sang hymns with her parents and three brothers at churches, military bases and on a daily radio broadcast throughout the South. As the 1950’s dawned, Betty began her second career, a solo career that took her from NYC to San Francisco and Chicago to New Orleans with live performances on a regular basis. Frequent appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show and Jack Paar’s Tonight Show coincided with the recording of several hit songs for RCA, Bell Records, and Bally Records in Chicago. In 1958, Betty joined Atlantic records and hit the pop charts with 3 hits in her first year alone. Fast forward 50 years and Betty is well into her third career in music. If you ask her how it’s going, she’s likely to respond...”Life is good and it just keeps getting better.
REVIEWS
"I enjoyed every word.... every song ... could not find the words to tell you... so I have just been playing back parts. I can only say... this is more special to those of us who were fortunate enough to have known all The Johnson Family."
- Gordon Stoker of The Jordanaires
"What a heart rending and wonderful story." "...this package of CD's telling your life story, with your MUSIC included, is just superb."
- Wink Martindale
"It is so much more emotional to hear a story told by the person herself, than to just read it. It made me feel like I was there and watching it for myself. And the music... the music added so much to the CDs."
- N. Derosier
"I just finished listening to the first disc and I am hooked. How beautifully you speak. How eloquent the words. How amazing the story. I have just spent one of the best hours I've ever had. Your family was so complex and so fascinating. The journey you traveled was amazing and I could see and feel your homes and the situations, good and bad, down to the depths of my soul. Your speaking voice pulls in the listener like a magnet. Thank you so much for sharing this with me. This set of CDs is a real treasure."
- E. M. Carlton, Leesburg, VA
Recorded and Edited by Dave Gilliss, Wave Creative Services on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands - Winter 2006
Graphic Design: Sergio Sandino for Play-It Productions, NYC
Audio Mastering: Charles DeMontebello, CDM Studios, NYC
Produced by: Betty Johnson
Executive Producer: Betty Johnson
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Inspiring and Uplifting
author: Stormy Hunter
Dear Betty: I just finished listening to your audio book "In Her Own Words" and I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for writing and recording this. After hearing you tell your life story, I feel as close to you as if you were my own aunt or grandma. And knowing some of what you've been through and risen above, my admiration for you has grown a hundred fold. Your speaking voice is as beautiful as your singing voice; it is a very comforting and reassuring voice. And your reading style - even in the most harrowing passages - is very graceful and dignified. I adore this recording. Your words have inspired and uplifted me. Thank you again for telling your story.
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Wonderful
author: Stephen E. imon
This is a masterpiece!!. The story is fascinating and her voice telling the story makes it so authentic. Her story is so real. She had good times and bad times--but always GOOD music. You can tell that her husband and children love and respect her--her fans do too. Give a listen to an
interesting life--it will keep you listening right to the end. "I Dreamed" of a book worth listening to--and here it is!!
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In My Own Words
author: Sid Linton
For those who remember the long gone era when CBS Radio sprinkled magic dust over it's owned and operated station, WBT in Charlotte, NC, Betty's audio book is a must.
Betty is an icon of that period, when people held certain broadcasting stations and certain of their live performers in a awe. She embodies style and grace, humility, and sparkling star quality.
Her story is poignent, but so real and so genuine that you can smell it.
From rural roots in North Carolina--in the days when MANY folks didn't have central heat and indoor plumbing--to her comfortable and well desrved life at Bliss Tavern, I enjoyed the audio book to the max. I think you will too.
From her early gospel singing as a youngster with her travelling family...to the New York stage, Las Vegas and national television, her singing is superb. If I've left any doubt, I recommend the book and all of her cd's.
Sid Linton
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