November 11 - Samara Joy (The Musical Birthday Series, 7th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for November 11th are here: Ernestine Anderson (2019) , Ernest Ansermet (2020), Jon Batiste (2021), Marlene VerPlanck (2022), Karl Joseph Toeschi (2023), and Marlene VerPlanck (2024)

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Samara Joy   (b. 11 November 1999) is an American jazz singer. She released her self-titled debut album in 2021 and was subsequently named Best New Artist by JazzTimes. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Praise of Joy

 

In an interview, film director Regina King called her "a young woman who seems like Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald are both living in her body." -- Wikipedia 

Holy cow! The real McCoy!

I'm speaking of Samara Joy!

At twenty-six, this singer has

A place within the world of jazz

That has the critics pulling stops

To find new ways to praise her chops.

But when comparison is drawn

To Ella and to Sarah Vaughan,

You'd think it was hyperbole,

When praising one as young as she,

And then you listen, and it's true,

There's not a thing that she can't do.

 

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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.

 

 

♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪  

 

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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November 11 - Marlene VerPlanck (The Musical Birthday Series, 6th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for November 11th are here: Ernestine Anderson (2019) , Ernest Ansermet (2020), Jon Batiste (2021), Marlene VerPlanck (2022), and Karl Joseph Toeschi (2023)

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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. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Career Advice

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/

Few there are who get the tingles

At the thought of singing jingles,

But though it lacks artistic thrills,

     It pays the bills.

Forget, for now, aesthetic heights,

Your Muse will wait for those delights,

And for the nonce employ your skills

     On lower hills.

 

 

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

 

October 9 - Lee Wiley (The Musical Birthday Series, 6th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for October 9th are here: Camille Saint-Saëns (2019), John Lennon; Sean Ono Lennon; Camille Saint-Saëns (2020), Einojuhani Rautavaara (2021), Alfons Kontarsky (2022), and Camille Saint-Saëns (2023)

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Lee Wiley (9 October 1908 – 11 December 1975) was an American jazz singer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music for a Wiley

[S]he regularly inspired critics to ecstatic, and near poetic, musings on her interpretations of the popular songs of the day. -- jazzmatters.wordpress.com/tag/something-about-lee-wiley/

“ just sing.... I don't believe in vocal gimmickry and I had never had the commercial instincts to concentrate on visual mannerisms.” -- Lee Wiley, as qtd. in NYT obit

Join with me in praising highly

Vocal stylings by Lee Wiley!

For her, to sing was just to sing,

And never a commercial thing,

And since her show biz flair was modest

Her fan base, even at its broadest

Was limited to cognoscenti.

I guess for Wiley that was plenty.

 

 

 

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

 

 

May 26 - Peggy Lee (The Musical Birthday Series, 6th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for May 26th are available here: William Bolcom (2019), Teresa Stratas (2020), Isadora Duncan (2021),  Miles Davis (2022), and William Bolcom (2023)

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Peggy Lee (26 May 1920 – 21 January 2002) was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress whose career spanned seven decades. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh Say Can You Lee

Lee was born Norma Deloris Egstrom in  Jamestown, North Dakota. -- Wikipedia

Join with us today as we

Sing the praise of Peggy Lee.

Composer, lyricist, and singer

She has earned the cheers we bring her!

At the start when she’d perform a

Gig her name was Egstrom (Norma).

The Egstrom name was old and proud,

But sounded funny said out loud,

And thus it is today that we

Toast the name of Peggy Lee.

 

 

 

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