Bman's Blues Report

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. Critic John Bush wrote that Holiday "changed the art of American pop vocals forever." She co-wrote only a few songs, but several of them have become jazz standards, notably "God Bless the Child", "Don't Explain", "Fine and Mellow", and "Lady Sings the Blues". She also became famous for singing "Easy Living", "Good Morning Heartache", and "Strange Fruit", a protest song which became one of her standards and was made famous with her 1939 recording. Music critic Robert Christgau called her "uncoverable, possibly the greatest singer of the cent...

Blue Duchess Records Signs Jazz Tenor Sax Great Scott Hamilton Label Debut, Remembering Billie , Produced by Duke Robillard, Salutes Billie Holiday on February 26 MIAMI, FL – Blue Duchess Records announces the signing of jazz tenor saxophone great Scott Hamilton, and will release his label debut CD, Remembering Billie , on February 26. Produced by Duke Robillard, the 10 all-instrumental tracks on Remembering Billie salute Billie Holiday in a worthy tribute of songs associated with the iconic singer, including several of her most-cherished tunes, such as “Good Morning Heartache,” “Them There Eyes” and “God Bless the Child.” Hamilton’s sax is backed by a trio of Tim Ray on piano, Dave Zinno on acoustic bass and Jim Gwin on drums, with Duke Robillard guesting on two tracks on acoustic archtop guitar.  The sessions were recorded at Lakewest Recording in West Greenwich, RI. “I started to make a Billie tribute many years ago with Ruby Braff but it...

Louis Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana. Coming to prominence in the 1920s as an "inventive" cornet and trumpet player, Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, shifting the music's focus from collective improvisation to solo performance. With his instantly recognizable deep and distinctive gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser, bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes. He was also greatly skilled at scat singing (vocalizing using sounds and syllables instead of actual lyrics). Renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet-playing, Armstrong's influence extends well beyond jazz music, and by the end of his career in the 1960s, he was widely regarded as a profound influence on popular music in general. Armstrong was one of the f...