We would be remiss not to mention the passing of Etta James this last week. This famous recovering addict and alcoholic is regarded as having bridged the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and was the winner of six Grammys and 17 Blues Music Awards. She was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, the Blues Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Grammy Hall of Fame in both 1999 and 2008. Rolling Stone ranked James number 22 on their list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time and number 62 on the list of the 100 Greatest Artists.
As an alumni of the Betty Ford Clinic, she wrote about what the 12 Steps meant to her in her autobiography “Rage to Survive”:
I had no trouble admitting that my life was unmanageable. It’d been unmanageable for years. I also loved the idea of surrendering to a Higher Power. That went with what I’d learned as a little girl about a loving and forgiving Jesus. The twelve steps are about making a moral inventory, admitting to yourself, to God, and to your family, the exact nature of your wrongs. The steps are about being honest and understanding that any real recovery has to be spiritual. Amen. I dug the steps because they combined psychology with God, offering a deeper kind of healing.
Although most sites are sharing a vid for her famous “At Last”, We will go with a “Sunday Kind of Love” on this Sunday.
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I know a bit about Etta’s music and that she struggled with addiction. However,I never knew about her Betty Ford experience and her book “Rage to Survive” Thanks
Richard