Try to get yourself a copy of the Carmen McRae - "The Great American Songbook" - Atlantic Record and I guarantee you you will fall in love immediately. It was a live recording with Carmen interacting with the audiences. Excellent songs selection, excellent singing technique, first rated performance and very good recording. I owned this CD/LP since 1991 and I still listen to it very often.
Also you should try any Nat King Cole - Capitol Record. |
Females; Dinah Washington, Carmen McCrae, Maureen McGovern, June Christie, Jo Stafford, Diana Krall,
Tierney Sutton.
Males; Joe Williams, Billy Eckstine, A.J.Croce. |
Patricia Barber, Diana Krall, Mel Torme, Bobby Short. |
Try Sarah Vaughan, Dee Dee Bridgewater (Live at Yoshi's is great), and Mary Stallings (Live at the Village Vanguard). |
The prior posts have covered a fair bit of territory. Ella Fitzgerald, in my opinion, is the quintessential female jazz vocalist. Sarah Vauhgan had a better instrument in some ways, but her delivery was a bit more quirky. The late Susannah McCorkle sang very well, although, for love or money, I can't understand why my wife always insists she was nasal. A singer whose instrument was not the mightiest but who made the most of it with a beautiful sense of delivery, great tone and a believable, I was there, I've done that, quality is Anita O'Day. Try "All the sad young men" on Verve. |
shirly horn, great stylist and pianist. low key, romantic, intimate stuff for the most part, mostly recorded on verve. karrin allyson on concord jazz. |
Most of the best known female jazz vocalists are listed above, but you might branch out a bit and try Sheila Jordan (one of the greatest of the bop vocalists), Irene Kral, Abby Lincoln, and one to really stretch your ears and mind: Betty Carter.
Among the male vocalists that belong on any list of "greats", I'd include Mark Murphy - for my money, the finest bop-style male jazz vocalist ever. Mark is not only a great singer, but one of the finest interpreters of the written verse -- and almost every album he has recorded features some outstanding jazz musicians. If I had to pick just one jazz singer -- male or female -- to take to a "desert island" with me, it would be Mark Murphy (although it would be a very close vote between him and Sarah Vaughn). There is a very good 2-CD compilation of Murphy's work from the early 1960's to mid-1990's that was released on the reissue label called 32Jazz -- the title, as I recall, is "Stolen and Other Moments". |
i second the Betty Carter recommendation |
Jeannie Bryson, (Dizzie Gillespie's illegitimate daughter) has a CD of Peggy Lee tandards called: Some Cats Know, it is worth a listen. Very nice, while not a classic IMO (it is slightly pop sounding) it is very well done with sincerity and conviction. |
Thanks for your responses. I will definitely look into Mark Murphy, Carmen McRae, Betty Carter, Shirley Horn. I'm not a Sarah Vaughan fan, though. |
Try Natalie Cole - Stardust. Great standard songs, well recorded. |
I recommend you to hear Nora Jones. She's pop/jazz with stunning recording over her new album and outstanding vocal IMO. This will probably be a good intro for you to get into mainstream jazz. Diana Krall' Love Scenes and When I look into your eyes wouldn't hurt either. |
