Jazz Vocalists - CD/SD

Also, Josh, you're definitely right about the singer having a separate, elevated place in the group. Maybe it's partly due to the fact that the unamplified voice is quieter than horns and drums at comparable dynamic levels, but I've had it drilled into me to respect and support the singer when there is one. There isn't the same sense of equality in interaction...there are exceptions of course (like when I saw Kurt Elling do 'Resolution' live last year, he was very much an equal part of the group).

However my selction would be Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Anita O'Day, Nina Simone, and early aretha franklin , pre queen of soul era, (imho the difinitive version of 'love for sale' is sung by her).

I can't think of anyone post 60s. There was no longer a need to use vocalists to make jazz pop by then so number of good vocal talents went elsewhere, see aretha switching to soul on moving labels and belting out soul classics. i can't think of any current jazz singers, except one i saw sing with herbie hancock who was just plain dull. then again with a few notable exceptions i can't think of many people currently pushing back the boundaries of jazz, or eving playing well in an old style, with a few notable exceptions of course.

That's awfully "Ken Burns' Jazz", don't you think? Not to mention that I don't agree. Trying to create some sort of hierarchy of musical greatness or importance isn't particularly productive -- there are too many apples and oranges, for starters.

And even if the hierarchy were valuable, I probably wouldn't put Armstrong at the top, great as he was. If it had to be a jazz musician, I'd probably pick Miles Davis. But that's more a matter of opinion.

I stand by my statement. Awfully "Ken Burns"? You think Ken Burns was the first person to rank Louis Armstrong so highly? Saying Louis Armstrong is the most -- or at least one of the most -- musicians of the 20th century is so obvious it's almost redundant. Miles Davis? I love him, but by his own admission he wouldn't have had a career without Pops. Miles's influence was primarily on jazz only. while Armstrong's was on pop music in general. See the difference? And besides, we're talking about jazz SINGERS. Again, I challenge anyone who can find me a singer -- jazz or otherwise -- who has had such a dramatic impact on his art than Armstrong. No one knew HOW to sing pop music before his arrival.

this is a wild statement! care to expand upon this Phil?

does the description of pop here = jazzism?

My favorite jazz vocalist: Eddie Jefferson.

leon thomas is one of my favorites. all of his Flying Dutchman albums are great, as are everything he recorded with pharoah sanders. there are some dud songs (the bad calypso track) and the Full Circle album is kinda weak.

pharoh has a few albums w/vocals but w/o leon that are great "Village of the Pharoahs" with Seditarius Brown and "Wisdom Through Music". both beautiful Impulse albums

Max Roach has done wonderful things with vocals. his wife Abbey Lincoln sang on a few beautiful albums, "Freedom Now Suite" is wonderful. and he's done a bunch of stuff with jazz choruses. they're arranged so strangely. check out "It's Time" and "Lift Every Voice and Sing" (the second one is more gospel mixed with jazz).

Very similar to the Roach album "It's time" with weirdly arranged chorus is Bobby Hutcherson's "Now". one of my all time favorite albums. Eugene McDaniels is featured singer. the album almost sounds like a musical or something, but it's firmly rooted in a dark jazz sound.

another great jazz singer is Andy Bey. he's appeared on Roach's "Members, Don't Git Weary" and on solo albums.

Don Cherry sings occasionally, and his Codona (COllin walcott, DOn cherry, and NAna vasconcelos) albums are a wonderful mix of vocals, jazz and world music.

two more husband wife jazz player/singers are Michal Urbaniak and his wife Urszula Dudziak (fusion-y) and Doug Carn and his wife Jean (soulful, funky jazz)

and last but not least is Patty Waters who recorded an album for ESP on recomendation of Albert Ayler. the first half is smokey bar room ballads, and the second half is freaked out fucked up free jazz where her vocals compare to Yoko Ono and Linda Sharrock

What a voice.

Having recently gotten the reissue of Falling in Love is Wonderful from Rhino, all I can say is that the man is a national treasure.

And Billie Holiday is magnificent too, and Bessie Smith and Nina Simone and Louis Armstrong and if we count him (and I don't) very much Frank Sinatra. I'm less keen on Ella Fitzgerald or Sarah Vaughan - I like them both, and they are technically magnificent, but I can't quite fall in love. I have quite a few of their records, and keep expecting to fall for them any day.

My problem with vocal jazz has always been that it has this smooth tone to it that I never could get into; but then, I only really heard the superpopular stuff.

Howeever, there's a song on that Abbey Lincoln album that's co-written by Billie Holiday, that has one of the loveliest melodies I*ve ever heard, which leads me to believe that I need to give ol' Holiday a proper chance one of these days.

Meanwhile, Roach's Freedom Now Suite was, as I'm sure for many others, my introduction to Lincoln. Her phrasing, and the power and grit she has really hit the spot for me.

Then, of course, there's Leon Thomas' singing with Pharoah Sanders, which is quite the wonder in its own right.

1. there were significant periods when jazz singing was a central style of pop singing. Mr McGraw from 2001 may be OTM when he suggested that Armstrong is the most influential singer of the 20th century, because along with Bing Crosby and one other (forget who and the book I left at work...), according to Giddens, he invented pop singing as we know it (or knew it before rock and roll - but rock owes more to Crosby that anyone lets on anyway - Elvis knew this).

2. Armstrong's improv genius was both vocal and on trumpet. Scat was vocal improv, and Armstrong took it form a regional fad to the mainstream.

3. Armstrong could turn really hokey stuff into art. I've heard this myself on the set I bought - really corny lyrics are made expressive (and funny - his singing has tons of comedy in it).

Also, it is clear to me that Ella and Billie were actually popular pop singers. Just because (non-hip hop) pop now boils down to either post James Brown funk backing soulful teen groups or earnest young singer-songwriters does not mean that Jazz wasn't once pop.

A-and, listen to Songs for Swinging Lovers and tell me that Sinatra isn't a jazz singer!

i really like sarah vaughan as well. she has the same sensitivity as the best instrumentalists. there is a version somewhere of "they cant take that away from me" where she sings the word "key" in the line "the way you sing off key" off key and its fucking brilliant.

I think I need to start checking out jazz magazines. I don't like most of the genre, but what else is there currently? Obviously that will seem like an outrageous question, but fundamentally that's how I feel. Outside of some foreign things, there's not too much new music for my to get excited about beyond some avant-garde jazz and accessible experimental music.

(I've been forgetting to use my new e-mail address.)

Lambert, Hendricks and Ross might deserve mention, too.

Anyway, anyone interested ought to pick up Teagarden's "Mis'ry and the Blues," from the early '60s...mellow, good-natured stuff.

Annette Peacock - My Mama Never Taught Me How To Cook
Archie Shepp - Attica Blues
Archie Shepp - The Cry of My People
Carla Bley - Escalator Over The Hill
Donald Byrd - A New Perspective
Eddie Gale - Black Rhythm Happening
Eddie Gale - Ghetto Music

Ernie Andrews is another great one who doesn't get talked about much.

Betty Carter's Feed the Fire, from '93 with DeJohnette, Holland and Geri Allen, was a fine disc, doesn't sound over "mannered" at all.

AP sings in a gruff bluesy tone over sorta out, blues rock jams. at times she reminds me of Linda Sharrock (especially on the fusiony Paradise album). she also does a bunch of sing/talk stuff and has often been compared to Patti Smith (even though it's the other way around as she like to point out in her hillarious liner notes - she's an egomaniac, but almost has a right to believe the stuff she belives). she was the first person to sing through a Moog keyboard, and some of that stuff is just WILD. the other closest comparison i have is that Escalator Over the Hill album. both very, very of their 70s times

I bought an EP of hers from the early 50s at an antique shop a few years back, found out it was worth a nice chunk of change and sold it, but I recall a really pretty version of "Fools Rush In" that I'd like to hear again.

Will check her out, thx

Enjoyed a randomly purchased compilation of Sarah Vaughan over the last week . Great voice melismatic and all like that so I think I need to know more about her. This was a set of material from mid 50s to early 60s called Her Finest Hour. Pretty divine

Steveolende, check out Live at Mister Kelly's.

Dan, check out her Ellington & Strayhorn album, Lovesome Thing.

Or the new album, which is here:
https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kDZ_ZYYbOm_iEJGrOinviQN3qCOQUyh28

First song here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL20ZIlqJ54

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaH3wuAUGs0

live at mister Kelley’s is so damn good, there was something in the air that night

^maybe too inside baseball and not great sound but still, some sort of slice of history. (xp)

And yes, that album is special

Enji is a Mongolian jazz vocalist singer who sounds as if she has listened to some classic Brazilian music

She’s gotten some luv from Bandcamp daily and Chr&s R@chards at Washington Post

Thanks!

A little more hype for a recent fave, as posted on the swinging moldy figs thread:

Best jazz vocal I've heard in a while---lots of folks have the chops and spirit, but there's a world in here, for now:
Kate Kortum - Dreamsville

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btQNuSQZxWM

Anita O'Day, "Early Autumn"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zf5DThAr-_A

Grammys nominees for Feb 2024 awards

30. Best Jazz Vocal Album

For albums containing greater than 75% playing time of new vocal jazz recordings.

For Ella 2
Patti Austin Featuring Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band

Alive At The Village Vanguard
Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spalding

Lean In
Gretchen Parlato & Lionel Loueke

Mélusine
Cécile McLorin Salvant

How Love Begins
Nicole Zuraitis

Last night I was livestreaming the St. Peter’s tribute to drummer Jackie Williams who passed away recently and saw a vocalist performing I think I should be paying more attention to.

Also wow that Nicole Zuraitis got a Grammy nomination. She always seems really nice when I’ve crossed her path but I haven’t listened to any of her recordings.

Sonica, that is the project I have seen her in, with Thana Alexa and Julia Adamy.

From 2011, but just recently heard for first time: a really distinctive presentation of "Weightless," title track of album by the Becca Stevens Band (she's recently done something w Jacob Collier):
https://beccastevensband.bandcamp.com/album/weightless

a video, even:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk_qfA9YIxg

Singer I was talking about was Marty Elkins.

X post - Have not heard Nicole Zuraitis , Grammy nominee, yet either

https://hullworks.net/jazzpoll/23/totals-vocal.php

2023 Totals: Vocal Jazz
Critics were asked to name one album apiece, with no point system.

Cécile McLorin Salvant, Mélusine (Nonesuch) 27
Jo Lawry, Acrobats (Whirlwind) 11
Gretchen Parlato & Lionel Loueke, Lean In (Edition) 10
Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spalding, Alive at the Village Vanguard (Palmetto) 9
Arooj Aftab-Vijay Iyer-Shahzad Ismaily, Love in Exile (Verve) 5
Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the Garden (Constellation) 4
Fay Victor, Blackity Black Black Is Beautiful (Northern Spy) 4
Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter, SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree (Edition) 3
Irreversible Entanglements, Protect Your Light (Impulse!) 3
John Pizzarelli, Stage & Screen (Palmetto) 3
Michael Bisio & Timothy Hill, Inside Voice/Outside Voice (Origin) 2
Samara Joy, Linger Awhile (Verve '22) 2
Karina Kozhevnikova & Krugly Band, Polyphonic Circle (Leo) 2
Astghik Martirosyan, Distance (Astghik Music) 2
Joshua Redman, Where Are We (Blue Note) 2
Säje, Säje (Säjevoices) 2
Sara Serpa & André Matos, Night Birds (Robalo Music) 2
Luciana Souza & Trio Corrente, Cometa (Sunnyside) 2
Susanna, Baudelaire & Orchestra (SusannaSonata) 2
Libby York, Dreamland (OA2) 2