Neighbor Stan Auster asked that I write about his favorite vocalist, Billie Holiday. Billie, born Eleanora Harris (1915-1959), was an American jazz singer and songwriter who was nicknamed “Lady Day” by her friend Lester Young. She had a shaping influence on jazz and pop singing, including other female vocalists who followed her, notably Ella Fitzgerald. Blessed with a great voice and vocal style, she pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo, as she was greatly inspired by jazz instrumentalists.
She also co-wrote a few songs, several of which became jazz standards, notably “God Bless the Child” and “Lady Sings the Blues.” She distinguished herself by singing “Strange Fruit,” a protest song that became one of her standards in 1939.
Rather than taking up space in this column to give you her life story, you can read this in detail on Wikipedia by just typing in her name. However, I want to mention that Holiday had a very tough and traumatic youth, including being raped at age 11. She recovered from this horrendous experience and in her teen years began developing her singing talent with the aid of very good mentors.
In the mid-1930s, she worked with the Artie Shaw, Teddy Wilson, and Count Basie bands. During those years, she became famous for her renditions of the big band tunes. This would be a good time to link up with YouTube, where you can sign in on “Top Tracks for Billie Holiday.” There are so many selections there, but be sure to listen to the following songs by Billie:
“Summertime”
“They Can’t Take That Away From Me”
“I’ll Get By”
“I’ll Be Seeing You”
“One For My Baby (and one more for the road)”
“As Time Goes By”
“Ain’t Misbehavin’”
And my personal favorite, “Body and Soul” (tremendous phrasing, I call her the female Frank Sinatra)
I hope this gives you incentive to read about her life and watch videos of some of her best works.
Live Music Calendar Notes:
Elgin Symphony Orchestra – March 8, 9, and 10 – Time for Spring.
Location: Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin, IL. See website for details.
www.elginsymphony.org/1213season.php)
Elgin Community College – Friday, March 15 and Saturday, March 16 at 8 p.m.
Second Space Theatre – Guitarist Fran Vignola. See website for details.
www.elginedu.org
One more thing: Gary Krewer plays great tunes on Huntley radio each Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and
