# 'BESSIE SMITH: ST. LOUIS BLUES' w/ Joseph Keckler

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/revolutions-per-movie-6604757/bessie-smith-st-louis-blues-w-joseph-keckler
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/revolutions-per-movie-6604757/bessie-smith-st-louis-blues-w-joseph-keckler.md
Podcast: [REVOLUTIONS PER MOVIE](https://stenobird.com/podcast/revolutions-per-movie-6604757)
Published: 2026-05-28T09:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/revolutionspermovie/episodes/joseph-keckler
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/64de4e5db2838f0011a11fce/e/69cb3d1d03f0e158302527d3/media.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/revolutions-per-movie-6604757/episodes/bessie-smith-st-louis-blues-w-joseph-keckler
Duration seconds: 2710

## Resource

My guest this week is NYC-based musician, author, and performance artist Joseph Keckler ( NPR's Tiny Desk, tours with Lydia Lunch & Sleater-Kinney ), who chose the 1929 two-reeler short St. Louis Blues , which is the legend Bessie Smith 's first and only film appearance.  We discuss Joseph’s iconic performance on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert Series, how he came to unleash his powerful vocal range on a wide range of audiences, choosing to write and sing in German about the adult moments where he was relapsing into a teenage Goth, befriending and touring with Lydia Lunch, Bebe Hansen , the current No-Wave scene in NYC, the excitement of having a standoff with an audience, opening for Sleater-Kinney, confusing but life-altering concert billings, where we both were when first hearing Bessie Smith and the imprint it left on us, why this 1929 short film of Bessie Smith was almost destroyed in the 50s, tape trading with The Residents , hearing Aretha Franklin 's voice coming up through the floorboards and being obsessed with Cab Calloway & Bessie Smith as a child, Bessie’s acting chops and the unique direction of this performance & more. So let's sing at the top of our lungs into the bottom of our beer mug on this week's Revolutions Per Movie. Joseph will be performing on May 31st 2026 in NYC at TV EYE w/ Genre Is Death Tickets available at tveyenyc.com/calendar JOSEPH KECKLER: josephkeckler.com/ BESSIE SMITH in ST. LOUIS BLUES: youtube.com/watch?v=xIGscPYfEGs REVOLUTIONS PER MOVIE: Host Chris Slusarenko ( Eyelids , Guided By Voices , owner of Clinton Street Video rental store) is joined by actors, musicians, comedians, writers & directors who each week pick out their favorite music documentary, musical, music-themed fiction film, or music videos to discuss. F…

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