Anita O'Day?

I have some of her recordings on LP. I would recommend "Anita Sins the Most," "Cool Heat," "anita O'Day and the Three Sounds." Also look for the DVD "Jazz on a Summer's Day"; she is one of the featured performers. You can see clips from that DVD here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agp2on83hrA

"Anita O' Day Sings the Winners", is my favorite. She is one of the greatest Jazz singers.

The Mosaic collection is amazing but out of print. Occasionally comes up on ebay.

My favs are: "Sings the Most" (with Oscar Peterson Quartet); "Cool Heat"; and "Verve Jazz Masters 49". And "Jazz on a Summer's Day" is a fabulous DVD (except WAY too much Dixieland).

Hey thanks guys! What a wonderful bit of footage, Larryi! She's got style and soul and technique. I've heard of all these records, but have yet to see them at my local record store or any of the online sources. The hunt continues! I've been listening to mostly Anita lately, and she just surprises and delights me!

In my opinion, Anita was the most outstanding performer on that DVD "Jazz on a Summer's Day". I will always recall an interesting contradiction; I have always hated that song she sang, but her style and the way she sang it, knocked my socks off. Sometimes it's the singer and not the song.

A number jazz musicians of that era consider Anita to be in the same league with three of the greats: Ella, Sarah, and Billie. I thoroughly agree with that sentiment.