April 28 - Blossom Dearie; John Jacob Niles (The Musical Birthday Series, 7th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for April 28th may be found here: John Jacob Niles (2019), Michael Daugherty (2020), Blossom Dearie (2021), Ludvig Schytte (2022), John Jacob Niles (2023), and Ann-Margaret; Blossom Dearie (2024)

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Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer, pianist, and cabaret artist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chanteuserie

Her skill as both a pianist and vocalist meant she knew "how to complement the singing"; in her opinion, many accompanists played "entirely too much piano for the vocalist". — Wikipedia

Here's the answer to those who would query

The secret of Miss Blossom Dearie:

"The voice and each word

Should be easily heard." –

In short, a most practical theory.

 

 

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John Jacob Niles (28 April 1892 –1 March 1980) collected, arranged, or composed (the boundaries are fluid) some of the most beloved American folk melodies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sing Out!

In the days of the Folksong Revival

They avoided the merely archival;

But no one would quarrel

If sources were oral, 

And here, J. J. Niles had no rival.

 

 

 

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April 10 - Marilyn Maye (The Musical Birthday Series, 5th Annual Cycle)

Previous postings for April 10th may be found here: Claude Bolling (2019), Eugen d'Albert (2020), Charles Swinnerton Heap (2021), and Jorge Mester (2022)

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Marilyn Maye (b. 10 April 1928) is an American jazz singer, cabaret singer, and musical theater actress.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maye Song

Still enterprising and still twinkling at nearly 95, Marilyn Maye is on the brink of her birthday and her solo debut at Carnegie Hall, where she will perform with on March 24, 2023. – adapted from Melissa Errico, “The Unsinkable Marilyn Maye“,  New York Times (March 15, 2023)

We sing today

Of Marilyn Maye,

Who, still alive

At ninety-five,

Just made a call

At Carnegie Hall,

Which as a gig

Is pretty big.

 

 

 

If you enjoy these posts, please help me, and consider sharing.  [Also, please visit my other blog: Alternate Takes: Great Art Repurposed.] 

 

 

November 11 - Marlene VerPlanck (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for November 11th are here: Ernestine Anderson (2019) , Ernest Ansermet (2020), Jon Batiste (2021)

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Marlene VerPlanck (11 November 1933 –14 January 2018) was an American jazz and pop vocalist whose body of work centered on big band jazz, the American songbook, and cabaret. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Know the Voice

She recorded thousands of jingles, often for low pay, although her fortunes changed when she sang an arrangement of the Campbell’s Soup "M'm M'm Good" song, which became widely known.Other notable jingles she recorded included "Nationwide is on your side" and "Weekends were made for Michelob". – adapted from Wikipedia

Jingle work demanded that Marlene always sing with clean and precise diction, and these were hallmarks of Marlene’s style as she developed into one of the leading interpreters of the American songbook.   –  Karen Fishman,  “The Billy and Marlene VerPlanck Collection,” at blogs.loc.gov/now-see-hear/2019/09/the-billy-and-marlene-verplanck-collection/

Marlene VerPlanck avoided singles

And made her living single jingles.

Her jingles found a special niche

And products she was paid to pitch

Made a profit from the choice

Of using her distinctive voice.

Because of her we understood

That Campbell’s soups are “M'm! M'm! Good!,”

And with a song she certified

That “Nationwide is on your side.”

But this is not the Ms. VerPlanck

That I am here today to thank ---

Instead I’m here to praise the things

She brings to standards that she sings,

Where elegance and sharp acuity,

Avoiding flash and superfluity,

Illuminate the song's intention

Without her ego’s intervention.

February 3 - Mabel Mercer (The Musical Birthday Series, 2nd Annual Cycle)

Mabel Mercer (3 February 1900 – 20 April 1984) was an English-born cabaret singer who performed in the United States, Britain, and Europe with the greats in jazz and cabaret.
[This post is in celebration of Black History Month.]

[For last year's thoughts on Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina and Felix Mendelssohn click here.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Litany for Mabel Mercer: Couplets (and a Triplet)

Mabel Mercer never pandered

When she sang a vocal standard.

Though her vocal gifts were limited,

Her career was not inhibited —

Rather than rely on voice,

She pursued another choice,

Earning tributes with beguiling,

Cultivated lyric styling.

Praised for all the telling ways

She could shape a pointed phrase —

Understated, never yelling,

Concentrated and compelling,

Focused on the storytelling.

She’s considered to this day

The archetype of cabaret.

 

 

 

If you enjoy these posts, please help me, and consider sharing.  [Also, please visit my other blog: Alternate Takes: Great Art Repurposed.]