by Parker Gambino
Hazel Dickens was born in West Virginia, one of eleven children in a family shot through with a heavy seam of coal mining and its woes. The vernacular music at the time was bluegrass, and Hazel was steeped in the tradition. By the early 1950’s she relocated to Baltimore with members of her family, but in the words of of David Morris (wire-service reporter and bluegrass storyteller extraordinaire), “Hazel left West Virginia, … but West Virginia never left Hazel.” Her wider exposure to the folk/bluegrass scene in the urban setting fostered an inward and outward blossoming.
Hazel eventually joined with Alice Gerrard to create an unheard-of novelty: a duo of females fronting a bluegrass band! With Hazel focused on double bass, the group featured the genre’s de rigeur high and lonesome vocal harmonies, and also introduced the young mandolinist David Grisman to a wider audience. Original songs comprised a healthy portion of the repertoire – lyrics elegantly straightforward, delivery soulful.
After the demise of the Hazel and Alice combo in 1976, Hazel pursued a solo career fronting her own band as she switched over to accompanying herself on guitar for performance. Her songs became more topical as a response to the insults and tragedies that coal-mining inflicted on her family and acquaintances. She was an especially strong advocate for the coal-miner unions, whose struggles for dignity were met with stiff, at times violent, resistance. Hazel was a forceful, often stark, voice speaking (or singing) truth to power, making the case against the trickle-down injustices loosed by greedy overlords. By just being her plain old self she evolved into a role model, especially for up-and-coming female musicians, within the broader context of activism in the cause of social justice.
The poster sketch was made during the summer of 2006 at an awesome event at Lincoln Center, the “American Blues Raises the Roof” festival. Besides Dickens, the August 18 bill included Bettye LaVette, Guy Davis, and a duo of Chico Hamilton and Buster Williams. Truth be told, I knew little about Hazel Dickens, and was there mostly to see (and sketch) those other acts. Being introduced to Hazel at that time was bonbon gift! The photo accompanying the NY Times obituary (linked below) is from the same gig.
The background photo of coalminers is by Jack Corn.
Selected links:
https://bluegrasstoday.com/hazel-dickens-an-appreciation/
https://artmenius.com/more-recent-publications/hazel-dickens-obituary-for-folk-alliance-international/
https://folkways.si.edu/magazine-spring-2011-remembering-hazel dickens/bluegrass/music/article/smithsonian
https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/23/arts/music/hazel-dickens-bluegrass-singer-dies-at-75.html