American recording artist (1906?1954)
Billie Maxwell
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Also known as
| Billie Maxwell, the Cow Girl Singer
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Born
| 1906
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Died
| 1954
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Genres
| Country music
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Instrument(s)
| Guitar
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Years active
| 1929
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Labels
| Victor Records
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Musical artist
Billie Maxwell
(1906?1954)
was an American guitarist and singer. She is often said to be the first woman recorded in
country music
,
and the first recorded musician from
Arizona
but she was actually neither: Rosa Lee Carson, the daughter of Fiddlin' John Carson (one of the first recorded country music acts) and professionally known as 'Moonshine Kate' cut the first recorded country music records by a woman during a June, 1925 session for Okeh records. Billie Maxwell played guitar with The White Mountain Orchestra and recorded six sides solo for the
Victor Talking Machine Company
in July, 1929 following the recordings made by the White Mountain Orchestra, which made her part of the first recorded country music act in Arizona, and Arizona's first recorded female country singer.
Life
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She was born in 1906 to Curtis Maxwell, a locally known
fiddler
.
She grew up in
Nutrioso
,
near
Springerville, Arizona
.
The family worked primarily as ranchers.
Her father started a folk group called The White Mountain Orchestra while Billie was a child, and they would perform around the area, often playing at dances.
She joined the band as a guitarist while in her teens.
In 1929 she married A. Chesser Warner, a school teacher
and continued playing with the band.
Around the same time,
Ralph Peer
, noted recording engineer and talent scout for the Victor Talking Machine Company, was having auditions held around the southwestern U.S. to find new Victor recording artists.
The White Mountain Orchestra was selected from a local audition in June 1929 to travel to
El Paso, Texas
, to record for him.
The band went to El Paso on 2 July 1929 and recorded four songs, including
Escudilla Waltz
.
While Peer was listening to the session, he asked Billie to sing.
She recorded five songs singing solo, with guitar and violin.
The first song was recorded on July 2, the remainder on July 11.
The discs were published with Maxwell identified as Billie Maxwell, the Cow Girl Singer.
Her songs spoke honestly of the struggles of poorer women.
She continued to perform with the White Mountain Orchestra until the birth of her first child.
She had two children,
and died from cancer in 1954 at age 48.
Discography
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Victor issued three
78rpm
records (six songs) by Maxwell.
Disc One:
- "Billy Venero, pt I"
- "Billy Venero, pt II"
It was issued 22 November 1929 and sold 3125 copies.
Disc Two:
- "The Arizona Girl I Left Behind Me"
- "The Cowboy's Wife"
It sold 2641 copies.
Disc Three:
- "Haunted Hunter"
- "When Your Sweetheart Waits For You, Jack"
It sold 1300 copies.
The Cowboy's Wife
was re-released on the
Banjo Pickin' Girls
album published by Rounder.
Billy Venero
was re-released on
When I Was A Cowboy, Vol. 2: Early American Songs of the West, Classic Recordings from the 1920s and 30s
by Yazoo Records.
Copies of her original Victor discs are valuable collector's items.
Her work was featured in the
Musical Instrument Museum
's
100 Years of Arizona Music
exhibit.
References
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Sources
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External links
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]