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Race, Self-Invention, and Dusty Springfield’s Voice

In the 1960s, Dusty Springfield’s voice earned her frequent comparisons to African American vocalists. This chapter argues that Springfield’s vocal sound reveals how racialized listening processes operate. It shows how the historical reception of Black singers in Britain, assumptions about how white women sounded, and a pop music scene that cultivated excitement through engagement with racial otherness moved listeners to hear her voice in racialized terms. The chapter begins with discussion of how Springfield’s story of vocal transformation has been told by her biographers. Then, it consider two key collaborations between Springfield and Black artists: the “Sound of Motown,” a special episode of the TV program Ready Steady Go!, and her 1969 album, Dusty in Memphis. Although separated only by five years, the two performances in question construct Springfield’s relationship to race and identity much differently, responding, in part, to political, cultural, and musical changes that occurred during the intervening years.