Results for "Vocalist"

Carol Stevens

Born: May 21, 1930

Bob "Saloon" Stewart

Born: March 3, 1945

BOB STEWART’S baritone embodies the warmth and understanding to turn the great standards of American music into poetic statements. But when his career was beginning to flower, the bloom was fading from his line of work. “I had been making the Down Beat polls of the leading 10 best male singers,” Stewart said the other day, ”Then Elvis came along and changed everything.” Not quite everything. Stewart has retained his vocal ability, which is apparent in his recordings and personal appearances. Until now, he didn’t fight what had become the steamrolling affect of rock-and-roll. Some others did, especially those who had achieved high profiles, such as Vic Damone, Tony Bennett and Jack Jones

Kay Starr

Born: July 21, 1922

Katherine Laverne Starks, known as Kay Starr, was an American pop and jazz singer who enjoyed considerable success in the 1940s and 1950s. She is best remembered for introducing two songs that became #1 hits in the 1950s, "Wheel of Fortune" and "The Rock And Roll Waltz". Starr was successful in every field of music she tried: jazz, pop and country. But her roots were in jazz; and Billie Holiday, considered by many the greatest jazz singer of all time, called Starr "the only white woman who could sing the blues." Kay Starr was born Katherine Laverne Starks on a reservation in Dougherty, Oklahoma

Dakota Staton

Born: June 3, 1932

Dakota Staton was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and studied music at Pittsburgh's Filion School of Music. She was soon chosen to be a vocalist with the Joe Wespray Orchestra, then the top band in the Pittsburgh area. After spending two years with Wespray she traveled to Detroit, working in various clubs there. Staton then followed the nightclub circuit which led her to Canada, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Cleveland, and eventually New York. It was while singing in a Harlem nightclub called the Baby Grand that Capitol Records producer Dave Cavanaugh discovered Staton and signed her to the label. After several singles Staton attracted the attention of Down Beat magazine, winning the magazine's high profile "Most Promising New Comer Award" in 1955

Jo Stafford

Born: November 12, 1917

Jo Elizabeth Stafford, the third of four sisters, was born November 12, 1917 on a tract of land known as "Lease 35" in Coalinga,California. Her mother, Anna York Stafford,a distant cousin of World War I hero Alvin York was known as one of the finest five-string banjoists in Gainsboro, Tennessee. Her father, Grover Cleveland Stafford, had come West to work in the California oil fields.

Jo's professional debut was with the Stafford Sisters, a trio in which Jo, upon graduation from Long Beach Poly High, joined her sisters Christine and Pauline. They had their own weekly radio show on KHJ radio, were regular performers on David Broekman's California Melodies, the Crockett Family of Kentucky shows, and performed both solo and group vocal work for all the major motion picture studios.

Mary Stallings

Born: August 16, 1939

"I had a huge voice when I was just eight years old," says Mary Stallings about her beginnings as a singer. It was a voice too big to ignore - spanning almost four octaves. Few could. By the time she was 11, she had made her first solo recording and while still in high school she joined Louis Jordan's Tympani Five. She came of age in the big band era, and was invited to tour as vocalist with most of the major names of the time. "It was the best musical education I could have had," explains Mary, "I was fired from lessons for playing everything from memory." Instead, her education came a bit more unconventionally, including stints with the Grover Mitchell - Earl "Father" Hines band, three years touring the U.S

Victoria Spivey

Born: October 15, 1906

Victoria Spivey was one of the few female blues vocalists of the 1920s to continue her career well beyond the classic blues era. In addition to being a stage performer and recording artist, Spivey was also a witty songwriter and shrewd businesswoman. Her keen grasp of the business end of he blues enabled her to keep touring and making records long after nearly all the other classic blues singers of the 1920s had faded from the scene. As a blues singer, Spivey did not compare with the towering talent of Bessie Smith or Ida Cox; Spivey's voice might have lacked refinement and range, but her moaning wais and country blues phrasing not only reflected her Texas roots but also made her blues believable

Jeri Southern

Born: August 5, 1926

Jeri Southern, was a classically trained pianist who became a jazz-oriented vocalist in the 1950s, whose hit "You Better Go Now" proved the most successful of her several recordings. Born Genevieve Hering, on 5 August 1926, in Royal, Nebraska, Southern studied at the Notre Dame Academy, Omaha, and later played piano at the local Blackstone Hotel. After touring with a US Navy recruiting show, where she began singing, she worked at several venues in Chicago in the late 40s. These included the Hi Note Club, where she supported stars such as Anita O’Day. After obtaining a nightly spot on television, Southern was signed to Decca Records and had US Top 30 hits with ‘You Better Go Now’ (1951) and ‘Joey’ (1954)

Luciana Souza

2002 and 2003 Grammy nominee Luciana Souza is one of Brazil's leading singers and interpreters, while at the same time establishing herself as one of the most exciting songwriters of the time. Hailing from Sao Paulo, Brazil, she grew up in a family of Bossa Nova innovators who performed and wrote numerous hit tunes for stars like Joao Gilberto and Elis Regina. Her early childhood was influenced by the frequent jam sessions and weekend visits of stars of the day such as Milton Nascimento and Hermeto Pascoal. Her work as a performer transcends traditional boundaries around musical styles, offering solid roots in jazz, sophisticated lineage in world music and an enlightened approach to classical repertoire and new music

Lisa Sokolov

Born: September 24, 1954

Lisa Sokolov is a frontline New York jazz vocalist, improviser and composer. Her work embraces the best of new music, free and straight ahead jazz. Her recordings angel Rodeo, Lazy Afternoon and Presence have all received Best CD of the Year citations and press kudos. DownBeat magazine cites “Presence” as 5 stars, Best new Release of 2004 and their 2005 critics poll adds Sokolov onto their rising star vocalist list. Her new long awaited “A Quiet Thing” has once again made the CMJ Music charts and is being met with wide critical acclaim. Her own studies began as a classical pianist and singer with conservatory prep education and traditional musical training