Eclectic Singer/Songwriter Phoebe Snow Dead at 60
Phoebe Snow died April 26, 2011 as a result of a stroke she suffered in January 2010. Her signature hit “Poetry Man,” a lilting guitar-based original song from her eponymous 1974 debut album, catapulted Snow to fame. The song rose to No. 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100, and the album went to No. 4 on the album chart. Released as the singer-songwriter movement was at the peak of its influence, the album led to a Grammy nomination for Snow as best new artist of 1974.
A powerful contralto, Snow’s swooping vocal acrobatics transcended musical genres. She was variously labeled a jazz, blues, pop, funk and gospel artist, depending on the record she released. Few popular singers of her generation combined the technical resources she commanded. She was a renowned interpreter of soul and rock classics.
Phoebe Ann Laub was born in New York City and grew up in Teaneck, N.J. She was raised in a household where folk music, Delta blues, Broadway show tunes, Dixieland jazz and classical music recordings were played around the clock.
As a teenager, she carried her prized Martin 00018 acoustic guitar from club to club around Greenwich Village, playing and singing on amateur nights. Her stage name is the same as a fictional advertising character created in the early 1900s for the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, named Phoebe Snow, who appeared on boxcars traveling near her hometown. She was briefly married to Phil Kearns, and, in December 1975, gave birth to a severely brain-injured daughter, Valerie. Snow resolved not to institutionalize her but instead care for her at home, which she did until Valerie died in 2007 at the age of 31. As you might imagine, Snow's efforts to care for Valerie adversely affected her personal life and her professional career.
Snow was discovered at the Bitter End in Greenwich Village in 1972. The cover of Rolling Stone followed the success of her first album, while she performed as the opening act for tours by Jackson Browne and Paul Simon (with whom she recorded the hit single "Gone at Last" in 1975). 1975 also brought the first of several appearances as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live, on which Snow performed both solo and in duets with Paul Simon and Linda Ronstadt.
Snow performed with a Who's Who of other prolific artists including Lou Rawls, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Billy Joel, Queen, Jackson Browne, Dave Mason, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Boz Scaggs, Cyndi Lauper, Roger Daltrey, Michael Bolton, Thelma Houston, Mavis Staples, and many more.
She lists her influences as Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, Janis Ian, Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, Laura Nyro and Judy Collins.
As her record sales diminished Snow became a highly sought-after voice on commercial jingles for companies like Michelob, Hallmark and AT&T.
Decorating an already vibrant career, in May 1998, Snow received the Cultural Achievement Award by New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. She is also the recipient of a Don Kirschner Rock Award, several Playboy Music Poll Awards, New York Music Awards and the Clio Award.
One of President Bill Clinton's favorite vocalists, she performed for the President, the First Lady, and his cabinet at Camp David in 1999.
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