"Billie Holiday Eleanora Fagan (April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959), better known as Billie Holiday, was an American jazz singer with a career spanning nearly thirty years. Nicknamed ""Lady Day"" by her friend and music partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills, which made up for her limited range and lack of formal music education. After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in"
"Helen Forrest Helen Forrest (born Helen Fogel, April 12, 1917 – July 11, 1999) was an American singer of traditional pop and swing music. She served as the ""girl singer"" for three of the most popular big bands of the Swing Era (Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, and Harry James), thereby earning a reputation as ""the voice of the name bands."" Forrest was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey on April 12, 1917. Her parents, Louis and Rebecca Fogel, were Jewish. Her father died from influenza when Helen was an infant so she was raised by her mother, who often blamed"
"Anita O'Day Anita O'Day (born Anita Belle Colton; October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006) was an American jazz singer widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appearances that shattered the traditional image of the ""girl singer"". Refusing to pander to any female stereotype, O'Day presented herself as a ""hip"" jazz musician, wearing a band jacket and skirt as opposed to an evening gown. She changed her surname from Colton to O'Day, pig Latin for ""dough"", slang for money. O'Day, along with Mel Tormé, is often grouped with the West Coast cool school"
"Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer sometimes referred to as the First Lady of Song, Queen of Jazz, and Lady Ella. She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, intonation, and a ""horn-like"" improvisational ability, particularly in her scat singing. After a tumultuous adolescence, Fitzgerald found stability in musical success with the Chick Webb Orchestra, performing across the country but most often associated with the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem. Fitzgerald's rendition of the nursery rhyme ""A-Tisket, A-Tasket"" helped boost both her and Webb to national fame."
"releases. Lucille Bogan Lucille Bogan (April 1, 1897 – August 10, 1948) was an American singer-songwriter, among the first to be recorded. She also recorded under the pseudonym Bessie Jackson. The music critic Ernest Borneman stated that Bogan was one of ""the big three of the blues"", along with Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Many of Bogan's songs have been covered by later blues and jazz musicians, including Buddy Guy, B. B. King, and Sonny Boy Williamson. Many of her songs were sexually explicit, and she was generally considered to have been a dirty blues musician. She was born Lucille"
"Lucille Bogan Lucille Bogan (April 1, 1897 – August 10, 1948) was an American singer-songwriter, among the first to be recorded. She also recorded under the pseudonym Bessie Jackson. The music critic Ernest Borneman stated that Bogan was one of ""the big three of the blues"", along with Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Many of Bogan's songs have been covered by later blues and jazz musicians, including Buddy Guy, B. B. King, and Sonny Boy Williamson. Many of her songs were sexually explicit, and she was generally considered to have been a dirty blues musician. She was born Lucille Anderson"
"Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and performer. During her career, she wrote music for films, acted, and recorded conceptual record albums that combined poetry and music. Lee was born Norma Deloris Egstrom in Jamestown, North Dakota, the seventh of eight children to parents Marvin"
"She suffered a stroke in 1999, after which her health deteriorated. Staton died in New York City aged 76 in 2007. Dakota Staton Dakota Staton (June 3, 1930 – April 10, 2007) was an American jazz vocalist who found international acclaim with the 1957 No. 4 hit, ""The Late, Late Show"". She was also known by the Muslim name Aliyah Rabia for a period due to her conversion to Islam as interpreted by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Born in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she attended George Westinghouse High School and studied music at the Filion School of Music"
"Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed ""Sassy"" and ""The Divine One"", she won four Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. She was given an NEA Jazz Masters Award in 1989. Critic Scott Yanow wrote that she had ""one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century"". Vaughan's father, Asbury ""Jake"" Vaughan, was a carpenter by trade and played guitar and piano. Her mother, Ada Vaughan, was a laundress who sang in the church choir. Jake and Ada Vaughan migrated to Newark, New Jersey from Virginia during"
"Dakota Staton Dakota Staton (June 3, 1930 – April 10, 2007) was an American jazz vocalist who found international acclaim with the 1957 No. 4 hit, ""The Late, Late Show"". She was also known by the Muslim name Aliyah Rabia for a period due to her conversion to Islam as interpreted by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Born in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she attended George Westinghouse High School and studied music at the Filion School of Music in Pittsburgh. Later she performed regularly in the Hill District, a jazz hotspot, as a vocalist with the Joe Westray Orchestra,"
"Salena Jones Salena Jones (born Joan Elizabeth Shaw, January 29, 1930, 1938 or 1944) is an American jazz and cabaret singer. After performing and recording in the US as Joan Shaw from the late 1940s until the early 1960s, in various styles including jazz and R&B, she moved to England and from then on performed as Salena Jones. She has toured internationally and recorded over forty albums. According to most sources, she was born Joan Elizabeth Shaw in Newport News, Virginia, though some sources give the name Joan DeCarlo. Her uncle was a vaudeville comedian, dancer and singer, Bootsie Swan."
"have her lyrics written by Schopenhauer. Salena Jones Salena Jones (born Joan Elizabeth Shaw, January 29, 1930, 1938 or 1944) is an American jazz and cabaret singer. After performing and recording in the US as Joan Shaw from the late 1940s until the early 1960s, in various styles including jazz and R&B, she moved to England and from then on performed as Salena Jones. She has toured internationally and recorded over forty albums. According to most sources, she was born Joan Elizabeth Shaw in Newport News, Virginia, though some sources give the name Joan DeCarlo. Her uncle was a vaudeville"
"a nursing home, where she still played piano. On October 25, 2015, Shaw died in a hospice in Troy, New York. She was 89. Lee Shaw Lee Shaw (June 25, 1926 – October 25, 2015), nicknamed the ""First Lady of Jazz"", was an American jazz pianist and composer. Born Londa Lee Moore in Cushing, Oklahoma, but raised in Ada, Shaw would listen to the radio then play on the piano the songs she heard, as well as learn songs from the Great American Songbook. Shaw studied piano classically at Oklahoma College for Women and obtained a master's degree at the"
"Sweet Emma Barrett Alcide Pavageau Alcide Louis ""Slow Drag"" Pavageau (March 7, 1888 – January 19, 1969) was an American jazz guitarist and double-bassist. Pavageau was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He started off his career as a dancer, mastering a dance called the ""Slow Drag"" which resulted in his nickname. He learned the guitar as a young man from his cousin Ulysses Picou, a singer in New Orleans. Pavageau came from a musical family and was related to other famous musical families like the Tios, Picous and Pirons who were responsible for forming some of the earliest known jazz"
"On April 25, 2017, the centenary of her birth, UK's BBC Radio 2 broadcast three programmes as part of an ""Ella at 100"" celebration: ""Ella Fitzgerald Night"" introduced by Jamie Cullum, ""Remembering Ella"" introduced by Leo Green and ""Ella Fitzgerald - the First Lady of Song"" introduced by Petula Clark. Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer sometimes referred to as the First Lady of Song, Queen of Jazz, and Lady Ella. She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, intonation, and a ""horn-like"" improvisational ability, particularly"
"Irving Fazola Irving Fazola (December 10, 1912 – March 20, 1949) was an American jazz clarinetist. Fazola or Faz was born in New Orleans, Louisiana as Irving Henry Prestopnik. He got the nickname Fazola. He decided to use the nickname as his family name, and many fellow musicians were unaware that Fazola was not his birth name. Many people feel that he adopted the name ""Fazola"" from Louis Prima, when Faz toured with him. Prima would tell Faz that he was ""Fazola"" Italian for ""Beans."" That being Jazz talk for being cool. Influenced early on by Leon Roppolo, who Fazola"
"In terms of touring performances, Fitzgerald once again teamed up with Armstrong, after the success of their first album, to hold a series of concerts at the Hollywood Bowl. The duo's music proved popular with the live audiences. Two live tracks from those 1956 concerts would end up being released as album bonus material in the 1990s. Ella Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996) was an African-American jazz vocalist often referred to by honorific nicknames such as the ""First Lady of Song"" and the ""Queen of Jazz"". ""Lady Ella"" attracted notoriety for her purity of tone, impeccable diction,"
"of Fame in 2018. Nina Simone Nina Simone (; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and activist in the Civil Rights Movement. Her music spanned a broad range of musical styles including classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop. Born in North Carolina, the sixth child of a preacher, Waymon initially aspired to be a concert pianist. With the help of a few supporters in her hometown of Tryon, she enrolled in the Juilliard School of Music in New York. Waymon then applied for a scholarship to"
"Lee Shaw Lee Shaw (June 25, 1926 – October 25, 2015), nicknamed the ""First Lady of Jazz"", was an American jazz pianist and composer. Born Londa Lee Moore in Cushing, Oklahoma, but raised in Ada, Shaw would listen to the radio then play on the piano the songs she heard, as well as learn songs from the Great American Songbook. Shaw studied piano classically at Oklahoma College for Women and obtained a master's degree at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. It was there that she met drummer Stan Shaw in 1961. They married within six months and formed"
"Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement, UCLA Spring Sing. San Francisco and Berkeley, California, made March 27 Sarah Lois Vaughan Day. Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed ""Sassy"" and ""The Divine One"", she won four Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. She was given an NEA Jazz Masters Award in 1989. Critic Scott Yanow wrote that she had ""one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century"". Vaughan's father, Asbury ""Jake"" Vaughan, was a carpenter by trade and played guitar and piano. Her mother, Ada"
"Etta James Etta James (born Jamesetta Hawkins; January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012) was an American singer who performed in various genres, including blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, jazz and gospel. Starting her career in 1954, she gained fame with hits such as ""The Wallflower"", ""At Last"", ""Tell Mama"", ""Something's Got a Hold on Me"", and ""I'd Rather Go Blind"". She faced a number of personal problems, including heroin addiction, severe physical abuse, and incarceration, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album ""Seven Year Itch"". James's powerful, deep, earthy voice bridged the gap"
"in 2001 she was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Etta James Etta James (born Jamesetta Hawkins; January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012) was an American singer who performed in various genres, including blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, jazz and gospel. Starting her career in 1954, she gained fame with hits such as ""The Wallflower"", ""At Last"", ""Tell Mama"", ""Something's Got a Hold on Me"", and ""I'd Rather Go Blind"". She faced a number of personal problems, including heroin addiction, severe physical abuse, and incarceration, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album"
"of 73. Bonnie Baker (singer) Bonnie Baker ""(née"" Evelyn Underhill or Nelson, April 1, 1917 – August 11, 1990) was an American singer of jazz and popular music and was known from 1936 to the end of her performing career as Wee Bonnie Baker. Her biggest hit was ""Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!,"" recorded with the Orrin Tucker Orchestra in 1939. She was born in Orange, Texas; at the time of her death, her family gave her birth name as Evelyn Underhill, although other sources give it as Evelyn Nelson. She attended school in Galveston and Houston. At age 16,"
"Paloma Efron Paloma Efron, also known as Blackie, (born 6 December 1912, died 3 September 1977) was an Argentine radio and television journalist and the country's first professional jazz singer. Efron was born in Entre Ríos Province, Argentina, the child of an Ashkenazi Jewish father, the educator Jedidio Efron. The family moved to Buenos Aires, and there, at age 5, Efron began to study music. When Efron was fourteen, her mother fell ill, and for two years Efron looked after her. After her mother got better, Efron got a job as a librarian at the ""Instituto Cultural Argentino Norteamericano"". There,"
"Nina Simone Nina Simone (; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and activist in the Civil Rights Movement. Her music spanned a broad range of musical styles including classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop. Born in North Carolina, the sixth child of a preacher, Waymon initially aspired to be a concert pianist. With the help of a few supporters in her hometown of Tryon, she enrolled in the Juilliard School of Music in New York. Waymon then applied for a scholarship to study at the prestigious"
"all over the Los Angeles area. Harvey died of cancer, at the age of 88, in her home. She is survived by her son, husband, and grandson. Jane Harvey Jane Harvey (January 6, 1925, Jersey City, New Jersey as ""Phyllis Taff"" – August 15, 2013) was an American jazz singer, known for recording many tracks with famous musicians such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman during the 1940s. Harvey began her musical career at Barney Josephson's nightclub, occasionally performing there. In 1946, she joined Desi Arnaz's Orchestra, until she left in 1958 to raise her son, Bob Thiele Jr. She"
"Fred Ho Fred Ho (; born Fred Wei-han Houn; August 10, 1957 – April 12, 2014) was an American jazz baritone saxophonist, composer, bandleader, playwright, writer and Marxist social activist. In 1988, he changed his surname to ""Ho"". He was born in Palo Alto, California, and moved at the age of six with his family to Massachusetts. While he is sometimes associated with the Asian-American jazz or avant-garde jazz movements, Ho himself was opposed to the use of term ""jazz"" to describe traditional African-American music because the word ""jazz"" was used pejoratively by white Americans to denigrate the music of"
"Dorothy Donegan Dorothy Donegan (April 26, 1922 – May 19, 1998) was an American jazz pianist and vocalist, primarily known for performing in the stride piano and boogie-woogie style. She also played bebop, swing jazz, and classical music. Donegan was born and grew up in Chicago, Illinois, and began studying piano in 1928. She took her first lessons from Alfred N. Simms, a West Indian pianist who also taught Cleo Brown. She graduated from Chicago's DuSable High School, where she studied with Walter Dyett, a teacher who also worked with Dinah Washington, Johnny Griffin, Gene Ammons, and Von Freeman. She"
"Georgia Gibbs Georgia Gibbs (born Frieda Lipschitz, August 17, 1919 – December 9, 2006) was an American popular singer and vocal entertainer rooted in jazz. Already singing publicly in her early teens, Gibbs first achieved acclaim (and notoriety) in the mid-1950s interpreting songs originating with the black rhythm and blues community and later as a featured vocalist on a long list of radio and television variety and comedy programs. Her key attribute was tremendous versatility and an uncommon stylistic range from melancholy ballad to uptempo swinging jazz and rock and roll. Gibbs was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, the youngest of"
"BFI.org. Also at ITVStudios.com. DVD copies available from the University of California-Berkeley's Jean Gray Hargrove Music Library (which holds The Earl Hines Collection/Archive). Also at University of Chicago's Hogan Jazz Archive, Tulane University and at the Louis Armstrong House Museum Libraries. See also jazzonfilm.com/documentaries Earl Hines Earl Kenneth Hines, universally known as Earl ""Fatha"" Hines (December 28, 1903 – April 22, 1983), was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. He was one of the most influential figures in the development of jazz piano and, according to one major source, is ""one of a small number of pianists whose playing shaped"
"Etta Jones Etta Jones (November 25, 1928 – October 16, 2001) was an American jazz singer. Her best-known recordings were ""Don't Go to Strangers"" and ""Save Your Love for Me"". She worked with Buddy Johnson, Oliver Nelson, Earl Hines, Barney Bigard, Kenny Burrell, Milt Jackson, Cedar Walton, and Houston Person. Jones was born in Aiken, South Carolina, United States, and raised in Harlem, New York. Still in her teens, she joined Buddy Johnson's band for a nationwide tour although she was not featured on record. Her first recordings—""Salty Papa Blues"", ""Evil Gal Blues"", ""Blow Top Blues"", and ""Long, Long Journey""—were"
"Libby Holman Elizabeth Lloyd Holzman, best known as Libby Holman (May 23, 1904 – June 18, 1971), was an American singer and actress who also achieved notoriety for her complex and unconventional personal life. Elizabeth Lloyd Holzman was born May 23, 1904, in Cincinnati, Ohio, the daughter of a lawyer and stockbroker, Alfred Holzman (August 20, 1867 – June 14, 1947) and his wife, Rachel Florence Workum Holzman (October 17, 1873 – April 22, 1966). Her family was Jewish. Their other children were daughter Marion H. Holzman (January 25, 1901 – December 13, 1963) and son Alfred Paul Holzman (March"
"Geraldine Farrar Alice Geraldine Farrar (February 28, 1882 – March 11, 1967) was an American soprano opera singer and film actress, noted for her beauty, acting ability, and ""the intimate timbre of her voice."" She had a large following among young women, who were nicknamed ""Gerry-flappers"". Farrar was born in Melrose, Massachusetts, the daughter of baseball player Sidney Farrar, and his wife, Henrietta Barnes. At 5 she began studying music in Boston and by 14 was giving recitals. Later she studied voice with the American soprano Emma Thursby in New York City, in Paris, and finally with the Italian baritone"