Betty Harris
b. 1943, Orlando, Florida, USA. A former maid to Big Maybelle, with whom she would duet onstage, Harris was subsequently signed to Jubilee Records where her version of Solomon Burke's hit, Cry To Me, reached the US R&B Top 10 and national Top 30 in 1963. A follow-up, His Kiss, was a minor success, but this expressive singer matured upon signing to the New Orleans’ outlet, Sansu. She proceeded to record a series of exemplary Allen Toussaint songs which combined the Crescent City kick of Lee Dorsey with traces of uptown soul. Indeed, Irma Thomas notwithstanding, it could be argued that Toussaint's work reached an apogee with such excellent records as What A Sad Feeling, I Don't Want To Hear It and What'd I Do Wrong. Paradoxically a simpler ballad, Nearer To You (1967), was Betty's only other hit and this accomplished singer sadly has not achieved the commercial success her talent deserved.