Freda Payne opens Follies' 18th season (1) Aug 30, 2009
Born in 1942, she grew up listening to the incomparable Ella Fitzgerald and the immortal Billie Holiday and, while influenced by them, developed her own unique style, nurtured as a teenager by attending the Institute of Musical Arts in Detroit. Appearances on local television and radio, augmented by radio commercial jingles, caught the attention of Berry Gordy, head of Motown, who offered her a recording contract, and Duke Ellington, who invited her to sing with his famous orchestra on a... (Desert Entertainer, CA)
South Coast Has Talent Aug 29, 2009
Vicki Affatati, I Cover the Waterfront, Billie Holiday, a cappella. Bill Binnewies, original song. (Coos Bay-North Bend The World, OR)
The First Black Prez Aug 27, 2009
He didnt win 365 electoral votes, but he won the vote of Billie Holiday, who nicknamed him The President aka Prez. Young introduced a dynamic new approach to the saxophone; his playing had a leaner tone and a cooler approach, and it influenced countless other greats who have played the instrument including Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, Wardell Gray and Stan Getz. (Slate)
Review: Kim Nalley a joyful Billie Holiday Aug 23, 2009
You don't need those gardenias in her hair to realize that her tuneful, buoyant, sexy and joyfully jazzy Rrazz Room debut is one helluva tribute to Billie Holiday ... This is the Billie Holiday of my youth, the one who sang in the club downstairs when I was an infant in Greenwich Village and whose 78s were the soundtrack of my childhood. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Lawrence Lucie; guitarist kept rhythm for jazz greats Aug 21, 2009
He also performed or recorded with Billie Holiday, Benny Carter, Fletcher Henderson, and many others. And he was the last living musician known to have recorded with the New Orleans jazz pioneer Jelly Roll Morton. (Boston Globe)
The healing power of song Aug 21, 2009
Written in Blues': Healing power of song. Article:'Written in Blues': Healing power of song:/c/a/2009/08/19/NSOC196501. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Mexican Genius Miguel Covarrubias Brought Together the Cultures of Harlem, Bali and Oaxaca Aug 11, 2009
Three soloists from Mexico's leading dance troupe, the TALLER COREOGRAFICO DE LA UNAM - Julius Brewster-Cotton, Claudia Hernandez and Alfredo Garcia - will perform Mexico's modern dance masterpiece Zapata; the jazz ballet Running Wild; Strange Fruit, set to the Billie Holiday song of the same title; and the danzon, Nereidas. Marshall Keys will perform jazz and blues classics. (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Kickin’ sass Aug 7, 2009
For me, it was Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin, Nina Simone, Tina Turner, Patti Smith, and Chrissie Hynde. I think I like women with a definite strength. (Boston Globe)
Nat Hentoff's Unorthodox Libertarianism Aug 6, 2009
He wrote liner notes for albums by Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, and Bob Dylan, and in 2004 was named a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts the first non-musician to win that honor. But Hentoff will primarily be remembered for his unceasing defense of civil liberties. (The American Conservative)
The joys of attending an outdoor music fest Aug 5, 2009
The tradition of modern day festivals stretches back to 1954, when the first Newport Jazz Festival brought together music legends Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie and Ella Fitzgerald. The Newport Folk Festival began a few years later and helped launch the careers of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, among others. (MSNBC -- News)
Second Cup Cafe: Madeleine Peyroux Aug 2, 2009
She's known for her amazing covers of songs associated with Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, and Bob Dylan ... Madeleine Peyroux, best known to put her spin on songs by legendary artists like Billie Holiday and Bob Dylan, is stepping out of the shadows to prove her own material deserves to shine in the spotlight. (CBS News)
Christina Aguilera Becomes a DJ Aug 1, 2009
"It stands across so many different feels and genres from A Tribe Called Quest to the B 00004000 eatles to Billie Holiday to Bjork to Black Sabbath, Jay-Z," she said in a phone interview from Los Angeles on Wednesday. The new radio venture, A.P.E. Radio (Artist Personal Experience), will also launch The Eagles' own channel Friday, to be hosted by guitarist Joe Walsh. (CBS News -- Entertainment)
Aguilera becomes DJ, talks music, film Jul 31, 2009
"It stands across so many different feels and genres from A Tribe Called Quest to the Beatles to Billie Holiday to Bjork to Black Sabbath, Jay-Z," she said in a phone interview from Los Angeles on Wednesday. advertisement. (MSNBC -- Music)
Music: the week ahead Jul 30, 2009
Along the way he crossed paths with such jazz titans as Lester Young, Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Stan Getz, among many others. 8 p.m. Aug. 5. (Boston Globe)
New on DVD: 'Coraline,' 'Watchmen' Jul 24, 2009
Instantly mentionable in the same breath with , Billie Holiday and , the band singer for Gene Krupa, Woody Herman and Stan Kenton (and later, outstanding solo artist) was the one white jazz vocalist unequivocally included in that pantheon. Up to her death in 2006 at the age of 87, she was still involved in this no-apologies portrait. (USA Today -- Life)
BDC seeks new bids for Sphinx Club Jul 24, 2009
The Druid Heights jazz club, which played host to legendary musicians including John Coltrane and Billie Holiday, shut down in 1992 after 50 years in business. It was founded by Charles Tilghman, who died in 1988. (Baltimore Business Journal, MD)
* FILM REVIEW: Johnny be bad Jul 24, 2009
Tracks by Billie Holiday, Otis Taylor and Blind Willie Johnson feed into the vein of sorrow and hardship that was Depression-era America, and provide the period atmosphere even more effectively than the visuals. Given that Public Enemies is supposed to tell the story of Dillinger, it would be nice to have left the theater with a little more knowledge about the progress of his life or the world in which he lived. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Today in History Jul 17, 2009
On July 17, 1959, influential jazz vocalist Billie Holiday, known to her fans as "Lady Day," died in a New York City hospital at age 44 ... Thought for Today: "Sometimes it's worse to win a fight than to lose." Billie Holiday, American jazz singer (1915-1959). (Yahoo News)
A Song for Lady Day Jul 17, 2009
Half a century after her death, Billie Holiday's music remains a cornerstone of the American songbook ... Billie Holiday was, and still remains, the greatest single musical influence on me ... Billie Holiday was obviously given much more than most, and her talent revealed itself through her intensity, her phrasing and her control of nuance more so than the conventional strengths of big sound, great range and stunning projection. (Slate)
How soul music saved Sarah Blasko Jul 4, 2009
It was then that she found herself listening, really listening, to the likes of Nina Simone and Billie Holiday, and a lot of soul music. "These great singers who responded to heartbreak seemed really relevant to me when I was feeling kind of rock bottom, I guess, to use a cliche," she says now, adding with a half laugh of embarrassment at what she fears is another cliche. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
U2 360 Tour Presented by BlackBerry: U2 Kick Off Their 360 Tour at Barcelona's Nou Camp Stadium Jul 2, 2009
The band opened the show with "Breathe," a track from their latest No 1 album No Line On The Horizon and went on to dedicate "Angel Of Harlem" - originally inspired by Billie Holiday - to the late Michael Jackson. Related Quotes. (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Peyroux doesn’t quite live up to the hype Jun 30, 2009
Thanks in part to the timbre of her voice, Peyroux has received plenty of Billie Holiday comparisons over the past 13 years. But Sunday s performance showcased little more than a few borrowed affectations, like the way she d slide in her upper register from one note to something approximating the next or start words with a quick dip up or down. (Boston Globe)
P.S. 22 Chorus enjoys YouTube spotlight Jun 30, 2009
With aching openness or joy, the chorus sings about love, loss, belief, and betrayal in music by Amos, Stevie Nicks, and even Billie Holiday. The children dote on the man they all call Mr. B : a 36-year-old guitar-strumming teacher with a winning smile who cracks jokes and makes faces for them. (Boston Globe)
Herman Leonard's portraits of giants of jazz Jun 29, 2009
The woman was Billie Holiday, one of the greatest voices of modern times. Click. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
13 of Johnny Mercer’s most memorable songs Jun 28, 2009
DAY IN, DAY OUT, Billie Holiday ( Songs for Distingu. Lovers, 1957). (Boston Globe)
Pop music picks Jun 28, 2009
MADELEINE PEYROUX The jazzy vocalist (right) - a ringer for Billie Holiday - says goodbye to standards on her new album, Bare Bones, a stripped-down, all-originals collection co-written with pedigreed collaborators like producer Larry Klein, Steely Dan s Walter Becker, and Julian Coryell. Jazz-blues singer-songwriter Kelly Joe Phelps opens. (Boston Globe)
Newsweek: 7 things about Evan Rachel Wood Jun 20, 2009
"I might just make a MySpace or a Web site or just make my music available if people want to hear it. Because I kind of like it being more low-key, and if somebody finds it, that's great. It's a very 'old lounge singer' Billie Holiday, Peggy Lee, Patti Page kind of vibe. They're my favorites.". 1. (MSNBC -- News)
Simple tunes for troubled towns Jun 19, 2009
Detroit's Metro Times described said in a review of the band that "the quintet is a tribute to the smoky, sophisticated sound of 1930s and '40s jazz, with plenty of influence from Cole Porter, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole Trio and Sarah Vaughan, and it's a trip to hear Davis channel those old greats. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have a bunch of guys playing the hell out of vintage instruments as backup.". Shout Sister Shout was formed in 2006. (Niles Star, MI)
YouTube leads to fame for singer Jun 3, 2009
Her spot-on Billie Holiday phrasing and honey-sweet voice would have had her entertaining in a caf; in the 1930s ... CNN: You can hear influences on your album from a wide range of artists and eras, from Billie Holiday to Cat Power. (CNN -- Showbiz)
Singer Teena Marie pays tribute to New Orleans jazz May 30, 2009
On "Congo Square," Marie pays tribute to artists who inspired her, ranging from Sarah Vaughan and Curtis Mayfield to Marvin Gaye and Billie Holiday. The album borrows its title from a section in New Orleans' French Quarter where slaves were allowed to wear their fancy clothes to dance and sing on Sundays. (Yahoo News -- Technology)
Second Cup Cafe: Chrisette Michele May 23, 2009
Often compared to music legends Billie Holiday and Jill Scott, the Long Island native's true favorite is Ella Fitzgerald. "Be OK" first appeared on her soul-tinged 2007 debut album, "I Am," for which she penned all her own lyrics. (CBS News -- Early Show)
Singer shocked at No. 1 standing May 21, 2009
Michele has earned comparisons to Billie Holiday; she admires Ella Fitzgerald ... This time around, Michele, whose voice has earned her comparisons to Billie Holiday and Jill Scott, relinquished some songwriting duties to R&B singer Ne-Yo. (CNN -- Showbiz)
'Much Ado About Nothing' is much more than a love story May 20, 2009
Bobbie Steinbach, meanwhile, plays a couple of comic parts with finesse and also brings a pleasing warmth to the role of Margaret, Hero's companion; her chanteuse-style delivery of one of the production's songs - Shakespeare by way of Billie Holiday - is among the show's highlights. (Snee adds to the nightclub ambience, and hilariously so, by delivering Benedick's best-known speech as a bit of Vegas stand-up. (Boston Globe)
Sweet Revenge May 8, 2009
The woman, like Paley, finds strength in two other women scorned - one in Indian legend, a lovely and strong woman named Sita, the other in Jazz Age song, courtesy the real-life singer Annette Hanshaw, whose soulful ballads remind one of Billie Holiday. "It's funny to talk about now, but I think I was in an altered state when I made that film," Paley said by phone from where she's staying in New York City - she's looking for a new place after a bedbug infestation forced her from her last... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
An interview with Etta James May 8, 2009
"I'll Be Seeing You" (from "Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday," 1994) Having mastered Rl, pop, and rock, James turns her attention back to jazz. Her spare take on Holiday is a master class in sophistication. (Boston Globe)
As a jazz vocalist, Kendra Shank is a free spirit May 2, 2009
The San Diego-raised singer was a guitar-strumming folkie and French chanson chanteuse living in Paris when she got turned on to Billie Holiday. Determined to immerse herself in jazz, she moved to Seattle to study with Clayton, an intrepid vocal improviser who has influenced dozens of jazz singers. (Boston Globe)
Music Review: Michele trades love for heartbreak May 2, 2009
There's the upbeat "What You Do," featuring Ne-Yo, and the high-stepping track "Mr. Right." And while both songs are of the radio-friendly variety, the Chrisette Michele whose voice and singing style drew comparisons to Billie Holiday and Sarah Vaughan is still very much present. Michele sounds best when she digs deep, and sings slow. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Picks: Why we chose 'em May 1, 2009
Ingrid Lucia1:50 p.m., Lagniappe StageGambit: The sultry New Orleans singer channels Billie Holiday in her handling of jazz standards. She's been a local favorite since she sang with her family band in the French Quarter. (WWLTV.com, LA)
Allison Iraheta's 'Someone To Watch Over Me': The Story Behind The Cover Apr 30, 2009
Holland's Opus," the 1995 film about a struggling composer played by Richard Dreyfuss, prominently featured the song. And the sci-fi TV series "Battlestar Galactica" named a recent episode after the track. In the best tradition of blues singers like Billie Holiday (who also covered the song), Iraheta's "Watch Over Me" was dripping with emotion, tender yet fierce, giving the impression that the cranberry-red-haired teenager truly believed every word she sang. This report is provided by Services:... (VHI.com -- Music News)
Frankie Manning, 94; was dancer, Lindy Hop pioneer Apr 30, 2009
As part of the Lindy Hoppers team, he was the opening act for singers such as Billie Holiday and performed before the king of England in 1937. When he returned from Army service during World War II, he started his own troupe, but the music scene had changed radically. (Boston Globe)
Bennett, 82, enjoys the good life Apr 28, 2009
Like Sinatra with "One for My Baby" or Nat Cole with "Lush Life." Billie Holiday had songs like that -- songs that were strictly hers just by the way she did them ... There was one night in the '50s with Billie Holiday at the Basin Street East nightclub ... What a great regret it is to say that we didn't have a jam session with Billie Holiday. (Erie Times-News, PA)
Musical 'Mosaic' Apr 16, 2009
Shank might still be on the folk- and pop-singing trail if she hadn't heard a Billie Holiday record. The experience of listening to one of jazz's greatest vocalists turned her around completely. (North County Times)
The Reaction Apr 10, 2009
Now: Alex Borstein, De Kift, Wade Driver Sr., Amy Sedaris, Declan O'Rourke, Raoul Vaneigem, Billie Holiday. 3. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Grammy winner Erykah Badu to perform at Aloha Tower Apr 9, 2009
Breaking News/Updates. Updated at 3:01 p.m., Wednesday, April 8, 2009. (Honolulu Advertiser)
LaBelle, Jones to be honored at Apollo concert Apr 8, 2009
Through its legendary Amateur Night, the Apollo is famous for propelling the careers of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Stevie Wonder, James Brown and others. A host of special performances and programs are planned for the 1,500-seat theater in celebration of its opening in 1934. (MSNBC -- News)
U.S. Census Bureau Daily Feature for April 7 Apr 7, 2009
Today marks the birthday of Billie Holiday, considered by many critics as the greatest jazz singer ever recorded. Influential early blues singers Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith also have April birthdays. (PR Newswire)
Jazz Guitarist Clinco Creates a Multicolor Impression with Neon Apr 5, 2009
I lost 30 lbs by following the 1 diet rule Billie Holiday uses. Browse a huge selection now. (Yahoo News -- Press Releases)
Newport Jazz needs sponsor Apr 4, 2009
The festival has attracted musicians including Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Billie Holiday and Frank Sinatra. Inside AJC.COM. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Travel)
Plano: Concerts in the Park season kick-off Apr 3, 2009
Her repertoire ranges from Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday to Koko Taylor and B.B. King. Jessica Munn is a local girl who, like Stevie Ray Vaughn, started a musical career at a young age. (McKinney Courier-Gazette, TX)
Bill Tapia: String master brings ukulele back Apr 3, 2009
While he's only gained fame late in life, he spent much of his career in the company of musical royalty as an ace accompanist to stars like Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Fats Waller and Louis Armstrong. Tapia returns to the Bay Area for performances tonight at Santa Cruz's Kuumbwa Jazz Center and Saturday at Berkeley's Freight ge with bassist Ruth Davies, drummer Akira Tana and Hawaiian jazz singer Mihana, the same cast captured on his forthcoming album "Livin' It Live" (recorded partly at the... (San Francisco Chronicle)
Drawing upon a different perspective Mar 24, 2009
Once a thriving artistic center that had been home to Thurgood Marshall, Billie Holiday and James Brown, the neighborhood is now filled with public housing, boarded-up buildings and vacant lots. Friends from New York, the painter Gail Bruce and her husband, Murray, came to visit. (International Herald Tribune)
Jack Lawrence, 96; penned lyrics for 'Tenderly,' other hits Mar 24, 2009
In a songwriting career that began in the early 1930s, Jack Lawrence had his songs recorded by artists such as Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, the Andrews Sisters, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Tony Bennett. Among his songs, written in collaboration, are "Sunrise Serenade," which was recorded by Glenn Miller, and "Yes, My Darling Daughter," a hit for Dinah Shore. (Boston Globe)
Being Faithfull Mar 19, 2009
On the new album, Easy Come, Easy Go, Faithfull covers 18 songs by artists ranging from Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith and Ella Fitzgerald to Morrissey, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and The Decemberists. Although they are other people's songs, Faithfull makes them sound so personal that it is hard not to apply some of the lines to her story. (BBC News -- Entertainment)
'1959 - Jazz's Greatest Year,' Classic Albums by Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and Charles Mingus All Celebrate 50th Anniversaries in 2009 Mar 14, 2009
The same year that saw the deaths of jazz icons Lester Young in March, Sidney Bechet in May, and Billie Holiday in July, also included the releases of Kind Of Blue by Miles (which was reissued in January 2009 as a deluxe double-CD Legacy Edition), Blues and Roots by Mingus, John Coltrane's Giant Steps, Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz To Come, The Genius Of Ray Charles, The Cannonball Adderley Quintet in San Francisco, the Oscar Peterson Songbook series, and Duke Ellington's soundtrack for... (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
National Gig for Rutland Singer Mar 13, 2009
Etta James, Billie Holiday, and the Beatles are some of this 17 year old's favorites, but next week, she starts rehearsing an even older song: the national anthem. Perry says, "It's such a nice melody, but I'm going to put a little of myself in there.". (WCAX.com, VT)
Reasons to be enthralled by Rihanna and Chris Brown Mar 3, 2009
It is women singers, including Billie Holiday and Courtney Love, who best articulate what it is to understand, viscerally and horribly, the notion put forward by the Crystals, in the song they recorded in 1962 He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss). One tabloid reported that Rihanna wanted to go back to Brown; that she was miserable without him and seduced by the lavish presents, diamonds and still more diamonds, he has sent to apologize. (Globe and Mail -- Entertainment)
The new Shanghai Blue 1920 CLUB brings a glamorous nostalgia Feb 28, 2009
So modern jazz lovers, don't expect to hear today's tunes as your ears will be seduced by tracks from Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday or Ella Fitzgerald. With the new concept, Shanghai Blue 1920 Club naturally are focusing on a wider target audience. (Jakarta Post, Indonesia -- Features)
Small-town boy Feb 21, 2009
"I love the sound of Elmore James, the sound early guitarists like him got just by using minimal means. But I'd want to pair that with strings that remind me of a Billie Holiday record. Those are the kinds of juxtapositions I'm striving for. It's never going to happen where Chet Atkins played guitar with your favorite singer from some different decade. But I can pretend and that's where the sounds often come from.". Ward's music has been called "mysterious" and "timeless" - vague terms that fail... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Brett Dennen serves up pop-soul with spirit Feb 17, 2009
It lent even slight songs like "Closer to You" an element of elegant longing, and a hint of Billie Holiday around the edges. Not surprisingly then, the best moments were the quieter, subtler ones. (Boston Globe)
Census Bureau Black History Month Feature for Monday, February 16 Feb 16, 2009
The names include Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald in jazz, Mahalia Jackson and Odetta in gospel and folk, and Marian Anderson and Leontyne Price in classical music. Today, stars such as Mary J. Blige and Beyonce continue the tradition. (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
An old guitar, a new muse for Rokia Traore Feb 13, 2009
Entranced by her older brother's copy of Stevie Wonder's "Innervisions," and her father's Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Serge Gainsbourg records, she started playing guitar at 16. By 18 she was singing on a Malian TV show, accompanying herself on guitar, much to the distaste of Mali's male-dominated instrumental fraternity. (Boston Globe)
Bitter-sweet love in Torch Song Massacre Feb 12, 2009
From Billie Holiday to Axl Rose to P. Ramlee, self-piteous tragic love songs are proof that not even the wisest among us have figured out that love comes with no warranty. Still, we love the pain. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
* Jazz: women are becoming key players Feb 9, 2009
Many of the best jazz singers have been, and still are, women X from Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, to the British singing star Claire Martin, and American stand-up comic and scat maestro Lea DeLaria. Female jazz instrumentalists are a much rarer breed. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Billie Sang Here Feb 8, 2009
Fillmore Street, San Francisco While you walk through the Fillmore Jazz Preservation District, your thoughts may turn to the poignant vocals of Billie Holiday and the magnificent trumpet playing of Louis Armstrong ... Fillmore Street NS Fillmore Street, San Francisco While you walk through the Fillmore Jazz Preservation District, your thoughts may turn to the poignant vocals of Billie Holiday and the magnificent trumpet playing of Louis Armstrong. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Travel)
Ahee's paintings offer vibrant 'Point of View' Feb 8, 2009
Not surprisingly, given the subjects of many of his paintings, including Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday, music is an inspiration for Ahee. In fact, he never paints without listening to it, he says. (Athens Banner-Herald)
