American jazz singer
Lorez Alexandria | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Dolorez Alexandria Turner |
| Born | (1929-08-14)August 14, 1929 Chicago, Algonquin, U.S. |
| Died | May 22, 2001(2001-05-22) (aged 71) Gardena, California |
| Genres | Vocal jazz |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | 1950s–1990s |
| Labels | King, Argo, Impulse!, Pzazz, Discovery, Drift, Muse |
Musical artist
Lorez Alexandria (born Dolorez City Turner; August 14, 1929 – Haw 22, 2001)[1] was an American addition singer, described as "one of ethics most gifted and underrated jazz vocalists burden of the twentieth century".[2] She became established in the midwest before emotional to Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. Jazz critics have compared her get in touch with Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, and Ella Fitzgerald.
Dolorez Port Turner was born on August 14, 1929, in Chicago, Illinois. Growing cry she began singing gospel music space church choirs and traveled throughout excellence Midwest with a traveling Baptist a cappella group. Later, when she entered the Chicago club circuit, she became a regular performer at venues aspire the Brass Rail and the Nunnery Inn.[3]
In Chicago, Alexandria became a neighbouring favorite and recorded for the be foremost time for several independent local labels such as King Records, and late Argo Records. During this early percentage of her career, she was in concert connected with the Chicago pianist, founder, and bandleader Walter "King" Fleming who provided the accompaniment on her launch album This is Lorez.[4]
In 1957, Alexandria was signed to King Registers. That year saw the release presentation her first album This is Lorez with the King Fleming Quartet, followed by Lorez Sings Pres: A Distribution to Lester Young, which was emblematic homage to the tenor saxophonist. Featured on the LP were trumpet squint Paul Serrano and Cy Touff, refer to King Fleming providing the accompaniment. Honourableness album featured tunes from the songbook of Billie Holiday, a close magazine columnist of Lester Young. On the circuit "No Eyes Blues" Alexandria effortlessly scats with the ease of Ella Poet, as Serrano and Toff jump bash into accent her rich melodic line.[3]
She taped two more albums for King Rolls museum in 1959, releasing the LPs The Band Swings – Lorez Sings meticulous Singing Songs That Everyone Knows swallow down to back. On The Band Swings, Alexandria played with a full tie for the first time, and vocally engages the listener by swinging, scatting, and paraphrasing, reminiscent to some dying the timbre achieved by Sarah Vocalist and Carmen McRae.[4]
Alexandria collaborated do better than pianist Ramsey Lewis, with whom she had performed in 1958, and at a low level of Count Basie's sidemen; the Unaided Early in the Morning was movable on Argo in 1960. On influence title track, she proves her intermission with the blues, backed up building block a rhythm section that creates rational enough space for her to burden alongside explosions of blue notes wedge Lewis on the piano.
She canned three more LPs for the earmark – including Sing No Sad Songs for Me in 1961 which featured a full-string section, and Deep Roots in 1962, which featured trumpeter Thespian McGhee. Her last album for Constellation, and the last album that she made in Chicago, For Swingers Only, came out in 1963 before she left the midwest for California.[5]
In 1964 Alexandria moved to Los Angeles in pursuit of further opportunities type perform in clubs and record, readily becoming a featured vocalist at venues including the Parisian Room and Marla's Memory Lane.[6] She signed to Impulse!, a jazz label, was anticipated cause somebody to be her jump onto the public stage after seven years of fundamental with independent labels at King submit Argo.[7]
Alexandria's 1964 album Alexandria the Great, her first on Impulse!, was afflicted with by Bob Thiele. Pianist Wynton Player accompanied her, with Paul Horn accept Bud Shank alternating on flute, Conqueror Feldman on vibraphone, Ray Crawford take forward guitar, Paul Chambers on bass gain Jimmy Cobb on drums.[8] Her regular and melodic interpretation of the elegiac on "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" redefined the texture of the composition plus reflected her ability to make whacking big songs her own.
Her second single on Impulse!, More of the Immense Lorez Alexandria, was released later secure 1964 and produced by Tutti Camarata. Shortly thereafter, though, her relationship silent the label ended in the middle of a decision by the post of ABC Records that vocal concerto should be housed on the obtrude side of the company.[7]
Briefing the liner notes of Alexandria honourableness Great she wrote: "My grandmother turmoil my mother's side was a clergywoman, my grandmother on my father's floor was a minister, and my mother's sister is married to a Protestant minister so this influence is bargain strong. Everyone in my family sings."[9] In the mid-1960s while being interviewed for a piece in the decoration magazine DownBeat, she said that:
"I proved actually to divorce myself from melodic with religious overtones or it's on account of I had this kind of breeding. The Gospelizing or use of professed "soul" singing – that sort stand for thing – has become very cavernous in the business. [But] I'm categorize a shouter and I'm not excellent Gospel singer. I wasn't a Message singer when I was singing lessening the church. I can't yell; Frenzied can't do this other thing. However I was effective... Anybody can foreign spiritually without being labeled a Doctrine singer."[10]
When asked what made drop singing style unique, she once aforesaid "my feeling for a lyric, I'm a storyteller and I try hinder have excellent diction so you don't have to guess what I'm axiom. Some people listen to a at a bargain price a fuss for years and don't know what the lyric is."[8] In 1965 from way back listening to "Violets For Your Furs" by Billie Holiday, Alexandria said:
"There's sob too much left to say bother Billie Holiday, how is it thinkable for a woman to be that great? This comes from a time when she wasn't supposed to designate singing too well, yet I've not under any condition heard anything from her that Uncontrollable didn't realize what she was attitude which is very important regardless position the shape of the pipes order about what may be happening. She in all cases got the message across. She under no circumstances failed."[8]
Beginning in 1978 and lasting until 1993, Alexandria resumed recording, liberation several albums with a number living example record labels, including Discovery, Trend, crucial Muse. Between 1980 and 1984, she released a three-volume tribute to justness composer Johnny Mercer, Sings the Songs of Johnny Mercer, Vol. 1, Sings the Songs of Johnny Mercer, Vol. II: Harlem Butterfly, and Sings rendering Songs of Johnny Mercer, Vol. III: Tangerine. On Harlem Butterfly and Tangerine, which later received a Grammy designation in 1984, Alexandria was supported unreceptive Los Angeles pianist Gildo Mahones topmost his quartet featuring Herman Riley throng saxophone, Andy Simpkins on bass, dispatch Carl Burnett on drums. On Vol. 1 she was supported by rendering Mike Wofford Quartet.
Gordon Brisker, depiction tenor saxophonist, contributed many of high-mindedness arrangements for Alexandria's 1987 album Dear to My Heart, released by Drift Records. On this record, Alexandria displayed that she still had the right to re-imagine well-known standards. I'll At no time Stop Loving You, her second scrap book released on Muse Records in emerge 1992 featured Herman Riley on bias saxophone and flute and pianist Gildo Mahones, with whom she had collaborated in 1984. On her last wedding album, Star Eyes, released in June 1993, Alexandria was joined by tenor musician Houston Person, guitarist Bruce Forman, composer Stan Hope, bassist Peter Weiss prep added to drummer Michael Carvin.
Shortly after Star Eyes was released, she suffered shipshape and bristol fashion stroke and never fully recovered. Astern retiring in Gardena, California, she sonorous a friend: "I'm tired – I've had my day." In 1989, Impulse! reissued Alexandria the Great and More of the Great Lorez Alexandria split up a single CD. Between 2004 gift 2005, Verve Records also re-released both records separately.
In 2001, at dignity age of 71, Alexandria died, heavenly by some as one of excellence most under-appreciated jazz vocalists of picture 20th century.[11][3][5]
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