ABSTRACT
Hot Lips Page’s hopeful outlook in the face of adversity could not save him from obscurity. This is particularly ironic when one considers that artists such as Ray Charles, Louis Jordan, Hal “Cornbread” Singer, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins—not to mention Big Joe Turner—were all to break out nationally in the middle 1950s with R & B recordings that crossed over to white audiences. The real stability and celebrity that Lips sought eluded him. His lack of success is attributable to a number of factors.
