Resurfaced clip of iconic jazz singer’s rendition of Welsh song goes viral
Amelia Jones
A rare clip of a legendary American singer and actress singing a traditional Welsh-language folk song has resurfaced online.
In the video, Eartha Kitt performs ‘My Love Is Like Venus,’ a classic Welsh-language folk song on BBC show Late Call.
The song tells the story of a beautiful love, comparing the subject to Venus and describing her as fairer than rare flowers. Its melody is believed to originate from Anglesey, giving Kitt’s performance a fascinating connection to Wales despite her being thousands of miles from the country.
Kitt was an internationally renowned singer, songwriter, actress and broadcaster, best known for her distinctive voice and performances across music, television, film and theatre. Her career spanned decades and saw her become one of the most recognisable performers of her generation.
Late Call was a 1970s BBC Wales entertainment and arts review programme featuring presenter Ronnie Williams.The series covered the cultural and entertainment worlds in Wales, famously featuring memorable studio guests and performances.
She appeared on the show while she was on week’s residency at the Double Diamond Club in Caerphilly in 1971. It was said that she had spent days practicing the correct Welsh pronunciation of the classic folk melody.
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The clip was posted by Yasmin Supall on Instagram, who posts ‘hidden’ clips from the TV archives.
The full episode also features a raw and emotional interview with Kitt, where she opened up about growing up in extreme poverty, being abandoned by her mother, and becoming a mother herself.
The interview was also famous for Kitt saying that belief that men would be far less inclined to start wars if they had to experience the pain of childbirth, suggesting the invention of a machine to help men understand that profound vulnerability.
The full episode has been preserved by the BBC Archive. You can watch it here.
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