Fontella Marie Bass (July 3, 1940 – December 26, 2012) was an American R&B and soul singer and songwriter best known for her 1965 hit, “Rescue Me.”Fontella Bass was born in St. Louise, MO, and as the daughter of gospel singer Martha Bass (of the Clara Ward Singers), and the granddaughter of Nevada Carter she was exposed to music at an early age. By the time she was six, she was singing in her church’s choir. Her voice and musical talents were raised in the Black church. As a teenager, Bass was attracted by more secular music. Throughout high school she began singing R&B songs at local contests and fairs, and her uncles would sneak her out to Blues clubs where she would often get up and play with the performers.She was destined for a career in music and the moment finally came: Bass played piano and sang with R&B stars Little Milton and Oliver Sain, and launched her solo career in 1965 with the song “Rescue Me,” a #1 R&B and #4 pop hit.By the end of the 1960s she had moved to Paris with her husband, jazz trumpeter Lester Bowie. During that time, apart from solo albums, she also worked with The Art Ensemble of Chicago (her husband’s jazz group) and with the gospel group From The Root To The Source. Bass returned to St. Louis in 1972 to raise her family.Always sharing her musical gift in local churches, she went on to perform internationally and at Carnegie Hall. Two albums, 1995s Grammy-nominated “No Ways Tired” and 1999s “Speaking in Tongues” showcase the extraordinary talents of Fontella Bass.The next few years found Bass at a number of different labels, but saw no notable successes. After her second album, Free, flopped in 1972, Bass retired from music and concentrated on raising a family (she has four children with Bowie). She returned occasionally, being featured as a background vocalist on several recordings, including those by Bowie. In 1990 she recorded a gospel album with her mother and brother David Peaston, called Promises: A Family Portrait of Faith and undertook a fall tour of the US West Coast, called “Juke Joints and Jubilee”, which featured both traditional gospel and blues performers. During the 1990s she hosted a short-lived Chicago radio talk show, released several gospel records on independent labels; through old friend Hamiet Bluiett, she was invited to perform three tracks on the World Saxophone Quartet album Breath of Life.The original version of “Rescue Me” was utilized in a TV advertising campaign by American Express: Fontella Bass has stated that she was at a low point in her life when on New Year’s Day 1990 she was astonished to hear her own voice singing “Rescue Me” on the American Express television ad. The experience gave Bass the inspiration to set her life in order: it also motivated her to make queries over the commercial use of her recording of “Rescue Me” with the ultimate result a 1993 settlement with American Express and its advertising agency awarding Bass $50,000 plus punitive damages.Like many artists of her time, Bass experienced a revival of interest. She was featured on the PBS Special and accompanying DVD, Soul Celebration. Soul Spectacular recorded live at Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh, PA, November 2001. Her voice can be heard on two tracks on The Cinematic Orchestra’s 2002 album Every Day, and another two tracks on their 2007 album Ma Fleur.Bass received a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame in the Loop in May 2000. She was the older sister of the R&B singer David Peaston.Her health started failing after a series of strokes beginning in 2005. On December 26, 2012, she died at a St. Louis hospice from complications of a heart attack suffered earlier in the month of December 2012; she was 72.
Written by Dianne Washington