Strange Fruit: Billie Holiday and the Biography of a Song

Not a book but a double spaced magazine article. My copy was in very poor condition.

Quite a harrowing, but very interesting and well written book. GOOD value too.

A haunting story, beautiflluy told about the darkest days of black american historya top song for every generation also

... this short, but marvellously detailed account of one of the greatest songs of the last century is outstanding. Reminisces from people who heard Lady sing in clubs, or heard the song for the first time on record. The shock and despair it inspired in many people was quite profound. From Eartha Kitt to Cassandra Wilson, and many others who covered the song, it is obvious that this lyric still has much to say to a new generation who may have never heard it before. As a footnote, I've never really like Bob Hope, but there is an anecdote where he was in a club listening to Lady Day sing and this guy was heckling her to the point that she was going to walk off stage (many Southerners didn't appreciate the song), but Bob Hope started to heckle the guy and embarrassed him enough to leave the club and let Billie continue singing. My view of the man has changed!

Fine.

Excellent look at history