Jazz Vocalists 1945-1965

Is white male gatekeeping a problem in online jazz culture?

Is white male gatekeeping a problematic issue in online jazz culture? In the contemporary era, there are multiple YouTube channels which have taught the fundamentals of jazz to those who seek out the music, as well as the historical information. Among the top channels run by ... more

Why does straight ahead jazz become stale?

Straight ahead jazz, or jazz that uses primarily swing rhythms, walking bass and often, but not always a 32 bar song structure is beloved for transmission of a medium that’s existed over 60 years. Why does it become stale? For musicians the limitations reveal themselves ... more

What styles of jazz are most enduring?

The jazz landscape has been rapidly changing over the past thirty years. What styles of jazz are most enduring? Every style of the music is played around the world, but certain styles seem to endure. What are some reasons for that? As stated before on this blog, there is a ... more

Where was jazz in the 1990’s? Part 1

Where was jazz in the 1990’s? The music was riding a continuum since the 1980’s, where the music was jump started in the public eye thanks to the Young Lions movement. For some it was thought of a marketing gimmick, but for a lot of young black ... more

Tiny Little Pieces: A Profile of Cuong Vu by CJ Shearn

Trumpeter Cuong Vu has for many years, been a musician on the cutting edge of exploration. He made his debut on the New York downtown scene after relocation from his homebase of Seattle, Washington where he had been living since the age of five years old after his mother fled ... more

Fats Waller

Fats Waller was one of the consummate entertainers during the early years of Jazz into the swing era. Born in Harlem on May 21st 1904, he grew up surrounded in music. His family was involved in music in the church and his mother secured a piano teacher for him: he learned how ... more

Billy Eckstine

Billy Eckstine was one of the most important male vocalists in Jazz during the 1940’s being as popular as Frank Sinatra, the most significant vocalist of the era. Eckstine also pioneered big band bebop. Eckstine was born July 8th, 1914 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Moving ... more

Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald is rightly one of the iconic female American Jazz vocalists. She combined lightness, creativity with interpretation, and hornlike improvisational acumen that thrilled audiences for decades. Her ability to appeal to mainstream audiences and Jazz audience was a ... more

Billie Holiday

Billie Holiday was an American icon and one of Jazz’s most important vocalists. Her life was filled with struggle and hardship, and not surprisingly, a Hollywood movie Lady Sings The Blues (1972) was made on her life. Born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915 she grew up in a ... more