Her father, a manufacturer's representative for the Allan J. Harris Company by trade, was a clarinetist, with a love for Big Band and Dixieland music.

Shortly after her first birthday, she was humming lullabies back to her parents; six months later, she'd added the lyrics... "and I haven't ever really shut my face since" she told poet John Sinclair in a 1999 interview.

[1] She performed in public for the first time at age 11 in February 1966 singing and playing her guitar at the Tulane University Student Center in their monthly Folk Festival.

By mid-1977, Harris had a regular Monday night set at Tipitina's with keyboardist John Magnie (also known as Johnny Zimple), who later played with The Subdudes.

[citation needed] In March 1980, Li'l Queenie and the Percolators performed for several nights at Kenny's Castaways nightclub in New York City which led to their first national press.

[citation needed] Over the years, Harris performed with other established New Orleans musicians including Dr. John, The Neville Brothers, and Professor Longhair.

King, Elvis Costello, Sun Ra, Jerry Jeff Walker, The Guess Who, Bonerama, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Odetta, They Might Be Giants, The Gospel Soul Children, CC Adcock, Harry Connick, Jr., Buckwheat Zydeco, The Subdudes, The Neville Brothers, Astral Project, Larry Sieberth, Pete Seeger, Asleep at the Wheel, Michael Wolff's Impure Thoughts, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Roomful of Blues, Taj Mahal, Li'l Band o'Gold, NRBQ, The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Bryan Ferry, Anders Osborne, Doug Duffey, Doug Belote, Clark Vreeland and Delbert McClinton.

[citation needed] Director John Sayles cast Harris in two of his movies; she can be seen and heard singing "After You've Gone" in Eight Men Out[14] and she plays the part of Kit in Passion Fish.

[16] Harris is also seen performing her original song "10 Carat Blues" with Josh Paxton in "Don't You Leave Me Here" (season 3, episode 8) of Treme.

[1] In early 2016, Harris was diagnosed with Stage IV breast cancer that had invaded her brain, liver, lymph system and bones.

[3] She fought a long battle against the disease and died peacefully at her North Carolina home she called "Harmony Hill"[23] on September 21, 2019.