Soul Diva Discovery: P.P. Arnold

Wow! Thanks to Richard Metzger of Dangerous Minds for illuminating me about the heartbreaking voice and staggering genius of L.A. native and former Ikette P.P. Arnold. This spectacularly wigged-out photograph is from a session for P.P.'s second solo album, 1968's Kafunta, recorded for Andrew Loog Oldham's label, Immediate.

Born Patricia Ann Cole, P.P. was a teen mom who went from working the night shift at an egg factory in Fresno to supporting the Rolling Stones with the Ike and Tina Turner Revue. And if you read this interview between the lines, it's possible to infer that she got to know Mick Jagger quite well. She also says that Jimi Hendrix, a fellow black American living in Swinging London, was "like my brother."

Back in London since 1982 after returning to Hollywood for a while in the '70s, P.P. had a couple hit singles, mostly covers (including one of my favorite Bee Gees songs, "To Love Somebody") but never approached the great heights of her former boss. The good news is she's still performing live, and she is also a Reiki healer, without which she says she "would not be the woman she is today."

Here's hoping she comes home for a visit soon.