Yvonne EllimanYvonne Elliman album cover photo c. 1978Yvonne Marianne Elliman (born Honolulu, Hawaii, December 29, 1951) is an American singer. Elliman's singing career began in the early 70's in London where she performed as a vocalist at various bars and clubs. This led to a recording contract and a close association as a backing vocalist for Eric Clapton. She performed on many of his 70's hits including "I Shot the Sheriff". She appeared in the Broadway and film versions of "Jesus Christ Superstar" as Mary Magdalene and achieved her first hit single with the ballad "I Don't Know How to Love Him". This performance led to a 1974 Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy. Her recording career began to take off from this point and she scored several hit singles throughout the world, including cover versions of the Barbara Lewis hit "Hello Stranger" and the Bee Gees "Love Me". Her biggest success came in 1978 with her #1 hit from the "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack, "If I Can't Have You" which was also written by the Bee Gees. The huge success of the latter song has resulted in Elliman being remembered as a disco artist, though this style of music was an exception to the medium-tempo ballads that she specialized in, and which comprised the bulk of her recordings. A few minor hits followed in 1979, including the theme song from the film "Moment by Moment", and another disco track "Love Pains", but her career had reached its peak, and with marriage and motherhood Elliman was willing to retire from performing. Her official website has announced that a new album, titled Simple Needs, will be released in early 2005. This page about Yvonne Elliman includes information from a Wikipedia article. Additional articles about Yvonne Elliman News stories about Yvonne Elliman External links for Yvonne Elliman Videos for Yvonne Elliman Wikis about Yvonne Elliman Discussion Groups about Yvonne Elliman Blogs about Yvonne Elliman Images of Yvonne Elliman |
|
Her official website has announced that a new album, titled Simple Needs, will be released in early 2005. Her recording career began to take off from this point and she scored several hit singles throughout the world, including cover versions of the Barbara Lewis hit "Hello Stranger" and the Bee Gees "Love Me". Her second husband was the famous bass player Ray Brown. Together they adopted a child, Ray Brown, Jr. This performance led to a 1974 Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy. In 1941 she married Benny Kornegay, but the marriage was later annulled. She appeared in the Broadway and film versions of "Jesus Christ Superstar" as Mary Magdalene and achieved her first hit single with the ballad "I Don't Know How to Love Him". She married twice. She performed on many of his 70's hits including "I Shot the Sheriff". Louis Blues, and Let No Man Write My Epitaph. This led to a recording contract and a close association as a backing vocalist for Eric Clapton. She also appeared in the films Ride 'Em Cowboy, St. Elliman's singing career began in the early 70's in London where she performed as a vocalist at various bars and clubs. Ella Fitzgerald also appeared alongside Peggy Lee as an actress and singer in Jack Webb's jazz film Pete Kelly's Blues. Yvonne Marianne Elliman (born Honolulu, Hawaii, December 29, 1951) is an American singer. Porgy and Bess is the most notable of her many recordings with jazz legend Louis Armstrong, but the couple also recorded the very popular "Ella and Louis" which was so successful that Granz's Verve records asked them for the equally successful "Ella and Louis again". Among the many partners and/or band leaders, like Oscar Peterson, Count Basie ("On the Sunny Side of the Street"), Joe Pass ("Speak love"), Dizzy Gillespie, the Tommy Flanagan Trio, she also sang together with the "other voice" of jazz, Billie Holiday (1957). She performed concerts with the most important groups and soloists. Her role effectively was the "instrumentalist of voice". With Ellington's band, Lady Ella (as she was now called by other singers) toured Europe and North America, classically opening their shows with the famous Ellington's hit "Take the 'A' train", of which she was one of the few to sing - in her unique way - the little known lyrics. Among her best known recordings was a series produced by Norman Granz of the songbooks of the great American popular composers, Harold Arlen, George Gershwin (with Nelson Riddle's orchestra), Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Johnny Mercer, and Duke Ellington. Ella's later concerts were often enriched by some hilarious imitations of other singers: in particular, she was able to render quite perfectly Marilyn Monroe's voice and typical gestures, as well as Louis Armstrong's. Started as a swing singer, she encompassed bebop, scat, and performed blues, bossa nova, samba, gospel, calypso, and Christmas songs. She began her solo career in 1941. When Chick Webb died in 1939, the band continued touring under the new name, "Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Orchestra.". She recorded several hit songs with them, including "(If You Can't Sing It), You'll Have to Swing It", but it was her version of the nursery rhyme, "A Tisket A Tasket" that launched her to stardom. She was noticed by Bardu Ali of Chick Webb's band, who persuaded Webb to hire her. She started singing with Webb's Orchestra in 1935, in Harlem's Savoy Ballroom. Her singing debut was at age 16 in 1934 at the Harlem Apollo Theater, New York, in one of the earliest of its famous "Amateur Nights", which she won, adding fame to both the Apollo and herself. She was left on her own as an orphan at age 14. She was born in Newport News, Virginia, USA and raised in Yonkers, New York. Gifted with a three-octave vocal range, she is noted for her purity of tone and "horn-like" improvisational ability, particularly in her scat singing. Ella Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 - June 15, 1996), also known as Lady Ella, was one of the most important jazz singers, and the winner of thirteen Grammy Awards. "Play an Ella ballad with a cat in the room, and the animal will invariably go up to the speaker, lie down and purr." - Geoffrey Fidelman (author of the Ella Fitzgerald biography, First Lady of Song). she'll sound as modern 200 years from now." - Tony Bennett. "Her recordings will live forever.. "She made the mark for all female singers, especially black female singers, in our industry." - Dionne Warwick. Toscanini, who said concerning singers, 'Either you're a good musician or you're not.' In terms of musicianship, Ella Fitzgerald was beyond category." - Duke Ellington. "Her artistry brings to mind the words of the maestro, Mr. There's nobody to take her place." - David Brinkley. "She had a vocal range so wide you needed an elevator to go from the top to the bottom. "I didn't realise our songs were so good until Ella sang them." - Ira Gershwin. "I call her the High Priestess of Song." - Mel Torme. Download sample of "April in Paris" by Fitzgerald with Louis Armstrong. Download sample of "How High the Moon". 1989 All That Jazz. 1986 Easy Living. 1983 Nice Work If You Can Get It. 1983 Speak Love. 1982 The Best Is Yet to Come. 1981 Ella Abraca Jobim. 1979 A Perfect Match. 1979 A Classy Pair. 1979 Digital III at Montreux. 1978 Dream Dancing. 1978 Lady Time. 1977 Montreux '77. Again. 1976 Fitzgerald and Pass.. 1975 Montreux '75. 1975 Ella and Oscar (1975). 1974 Ella in London. 1974 Ella Fitzgerald Jams. 1973 Take Love Easy. 1973 Newport Jazz Festival: Live at Carnegie Hall. 1972 Ella Loves Cole. 1971 Ella A Nice. 1970 Ella in Budapest, Hungary. 1970 Things Ain't What They Used to Be. 1969 Ella. 1969 Watch What Happens. 1968 30 by Ella. 1967 Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas. 1967 Brighten the Corner. 1966 [[Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur]. 1966 Whisper Not. 1965 Ella in Hamburg. 1965 Ella at Duke's Place. 1964 Sings the Johnny Mercer Songbook. 1964 Hello, Dolly!. 1963 These Are the Blues. 1963 Ella and Basie!. 1963 Sings the Jerome Kern Songbook. 1963 Ella Sings Broadway. 1962 Ella Swings Gently with Nelson. 1962 Ella Swings Brightly with Nelson. 1962 Rhythm Is My Business. 1961 Ella Returns to Berlin. 1961 Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie!. 1961 Ella in Hollywood. 1960 Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook. 1960 Sings Songs from Let No Man Write My Epitaph. 1960 Hello, Love. 1960 Wishes You a Merry Christmas. 1960 Ella in Berlin: Mack the Knife. 1959 Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook. 1959 Sings Sweet Songs for Swingers. 1959 Get Happy!. 1958 Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert. 1958 Sings the Irving Berlin Songbook. 1958 Ella Swings Lightly. 1958 Ella and Billie at Newport. 1957 Porgy and Bess. 1957 Like Someone in Love. 1957 Ella at the Opera House. 1957 Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook. 1957 Ella and Louis Again. 1956 Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook. 1956 Ella and Louis. 1956 Sings the Cole Porter Songbook. 1955 Songs from Pete Kelly's Blues. 1954 Songs in a Mellow Mood. 1950 Ella Sings Gershwin. |