Spivey, Victoria

Victoria Regina Spivey (October 15, 1906 – October 3, 1976), sometimes known as Queen Victoria, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and record company founder. During a recording career that spanned 40 years, from 1926 to the mid-1960s, she worked with Louis Armstrong, King Oliver, Clarence Williams, Luis Russell, Lonnie Johnson, and Bob Dylan. She also performed in vaudeville and clubs, sometimes with her sisters Addie "Sweet Peas" (or "Sweet Pease") Spivey and Elton Island Spivey (also known as the Za Zu Girl). Among her compositions are "Black Snake Blues" (1926), "Dope Head Blues" (1927), and "Organ Grinder Blues" (1928). In 1961, she co-founded Spivey Records with one of her husbands, Len Kunstadt. Her recordings are considered important examples of classic female blues, and scholars note that her music reflected the themes and performance styles that were common among major women blues artists of the 1920s and 1930s.