Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald
Carl Van Vechten · Public domain · source
Name	Ella Fitzgerald
Caption	Fitzgerald in 1962
Birth name	Ella Jane Fitzgerald
Birth date	25 April 1917
Birth place	Newport News, Virginia, U.S.
Death date	15 June 1996
Death place	Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Genre	Jazz, swing, traditional pop, Bebop
Occupation	Singer
Years active	1934–1993
Label	Decca, Verve, Reprise, Pablo
Associated acts	Chick Webb, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie

Ella Fitzgerald. Often hailed as the "First Lady of Song," she was a preeminent and influential figure in jazz and American popular music for over half a century. Renowned for her pure tone, impeccable diction, and extraordinary improvisational skill, particularly in scat singing, she won 14 Grammy Awards and received the National Medal of Arts. Her career, which spanned from the swing era to bebop and beyond, was defined by a vast and beloved recorded legacy.

Early life and career beginnings

Born in Newport News, Virginia, she moved as a child to Yonkers, New York, following her mother's death. A difficult adolescence led to time in the New York State Training School for Girls, though she harbored aspirations of becoming a dancer. Her fate changed in 1934 when, at age 17, she won an amateur night competition at the famed Apollo Theater in Harlem, opting to sing after her nerves prevented her from dancing. This victory led to an introduction to bandleader and drummer Chick Webb, who was initially reluctant to hire her but was eventually persuaded by his audience's positive reaction. She soon became the featured vocalist for Chick Webb and His Orchestra, recording early hits like "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" in 1938, which became a national phenomenon and her first major success.

Rise to fame and the swing era

Following the death of Chick Webb in 1939, she led the band for several years, renamed Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Orchestra. In the 1940s, she began a solo career, signing with Decca Records and achieving significant commercial success. During this period, she collaborated with numerous stars of the swing era, including the Ink Spots on the 1944 hit "Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall." Her artistic trajectory shifted profoundly after joining impresario Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic concert tours, which placed her squarely within the modern jazz movement. Granz became her manager and, in 1955, secured her contract for his new label, Verve Records, a move that catalyzed her most celebrated work.

The Song Book series and later career

Her tenure at Verve Records is best defined by her monumental Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book in 1956, the first of eight Song Book albums dedicated to the great American composers. This ambitious series, which also honored the works of Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Harold Arlen, and Duke Ellington, among others, became a cornerstone of the Great American Songbook canon. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, she recorded a series of celebrated duet albums with Louis Armstrong, including "Ella and Louis." After Verve was sold, she recorded for various labels including Reprise Records and Pablo Records, continuing to perform globally at venues like Carnegie Hall and the Montreux Jazz Festival into the early 1990s.

Vocal style and artistic legacy

Her vocal artistry was characterized by a horn-like timbre, flawless intonation, and a virtuosic command of rhythm. She was a master of scat singing, able to improvise complex, bebop-influenced lines with the dexterity of an instrumentalist like Dizzy Gillespie. This ability is brilliantly displayed on recordings such as "How High the Moon" and "Flying Home." Critics and musicians widely praised her lyricism and swing, with Mel Tormé calling her "the greatest singer on Earth." Her influence is vast, permeating the work of countless vocalists across jazz and pop music, and her recordings remain essential texts for students of singing and American music.

Personal life and death

She was married twice, first to bassist Ray Brown, with whom she adopted a son, and later to jazz musician Benny Kornegay, though both unions ended in divorce. She faced significant health challenges in her later years, suffering from diabetes which led to severe complications, including retinopathy that blinded her. She continued to perform as long as her health permitted. In 1993, both of her legs were amputated below the knee due to circulatory issues. She died in her home in Beverly Hills in 1996 from the effects of diabetes. Her passing was met with global mourning, and she was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.

Category:American jazz singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:1917 births Category:1996 deaths