TRANSCRIPT:
I’m Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.
Lily Pearl Woodard, better known as Pearl Woods, was born in Saint Matthews, South Carolina, in 1933 and moved to New York City in 1951. Drawn by Harlem's vibrant music scene, she began singing on street corners and with local groups. By 1966, she was with Duke/Peacock Records, promoting and producing music.
Along with her husband, pianist Fred Johnson, she founded Pearl-Tone Records and opened the Soul Shack record store.
Woods returned to South Carolina in the 1970s, contributing to Columbia’s music scene before eventually settling in Arlington, Texas, where she served as a lay minister.
Her song “Something’s Got a Hold on Me” has endured, appearing on soundtracks decades later—a testament to her lasting influence on jazz and blues.
This has been Rapp on Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and South Carolina Public Radio, made possible by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.