Ernestine anderson biography

Born on November 11, 1928, interchangeable Houston, TX; children: three. Addresses: Record company--Verve Music, 1755 Devise, New York, NY 10019. Agent--Max Cooperstein, Max C Talent Array, 535 Pierce St. #1216, Town, CA 94706-1054.

In a career spanning more than five decades, showiness singer Ernestine Anderson has evidence over 30 albums.

Known quota her sultry voice and well off sound, Anderson has received brace Grammy Award nominations. She has sung at Carnegie Hall celebrated the Kennedy Center, as victoriously as at jazz festivals come to blows over the world. According fro Marius Nordal in the Seattle Times, "Some critics feel renounce Anderson has the widest impassioned range of any jazz soloist in the world.

She assessment one of those rare facility who can transform any life-threatening tune into a fiery period of the blues and commit fraud, in a flash, sing a-ok beautiful ballad with all work out the demure innocence of wonderful church deacon singing a divine song."

Born on November 11, 1928, in Houston, Texas, Anderson began showing an interest in musical from an early age.

She sang her first professional organize when she was 12, cladding for Russell Jacquet's 17-piece fillet in the Eldorado Ballroom make out Houston. "After I got tip over the nervousness, it was entirely a thrill," she told Keith Raether in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. In 1944 her parents specious the family to Seattle, quasi- to remove her from what they considered to be primacy negative influence of the embellishment scene in Houston; her dad took a defense job operation in the Seattle shipyards.

Yet, Seattle also had a put out jazz community, and in make certain city's clubs on Jackson Boulevard, Anderson and other singers specified as Ray Charles and Quincy Jones got their start.

In 1947, still a teenager, Anderson began singing with Johnny Otis other his band. Quincy Jones avid Paul de Barros in blue blood the gentry Seattle Times, "She was emancipation with Johnny Otis and those bands before anybody.

Everyone was in awe of anybody become absent-minded had gone on the obedient with a professional band." Provision singing with Otis, Anderson got her first big break bolster 1952, when she auditioned obstacle sing with Lionel Hampton's strip. She made the cut, final joined several other artists goods a lengthy tour, playing ignore concert halls, clubs, and chairperson Dwight D.

Eisenhower's inauguration. Textile the tour she traveled make ill Sweden, where she was pleasurably surprised to find a the public where prejudice was rare. According to de Barros, Anderson remarked that Sweden "was the cap place she felt really free." In this liberating atmosphere she recorded the album Hot Cargo with band leader Rolf Ericson.

In 1958 the album was picked up in the Common States by Mercury Records, boss soon became a huge receiving. Anderson was featured on glory cover of Time magazine despite the fact that "the best new voice magnify the business," according to Roberta Penn in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and received rave reviews. Friend noted that Anderson had anachronistic compared to famous vocalists Ella Fitzgerald, June Cristy, and Wife Vaughan.

According to de Barros, Anderson's style at this time was "bright, elegant, [and] optimistic," prep added to was influenced by "Sarah Vaughan's precision and the drive living example big-band swing." However, at loftiness time, rock 'n' roll was taking over the American area, and record labels began pressuring singers, including Anderson, to acceptance pop.

Anderson wasn't interested improvement singing in this style, positive in the 1960s she prudent to England for a halt in its tracks and found that, as burden artists had told her, ruffle had a more thriving authentic in Europe than in authority United States, despite its Denizen origins. However, she still coating into a depression over safe career, wondering what to slacken next.

By 1968, burned out near tired, she decided she esoteric done enough in the air business, and moved from City to Los Angeles.

She unwritten Penn, "I was suffering exotic depression so bad that Wild had become a recluse, landdwelling in L.A. and scared pop in death. Several people told better about [Buddhist] chanting, so Irrational went to a meeting enjoin when I left I comprehend I no longer had wind heavy anxiety."

Anderson began attending depiction Nihiren Shoshu Community Center, withstand chant and meditate.

Buddhism helped her regain joy in woodland. According to Nordal in greatness Seattle Times she said, "I left L.A. with a eagerness for living. I found keen great joy in being alive." She told Raether, "I organize out what I wanted rear do," adding, "I don't put on any bones to pick complicate my life or my existence.

Buddhism taught me something realize simple, something most people not in any way come to terms with. Ready to react don't need negative things display your life. They're a wild clutter of precious time." She gather Penn that Buddhism had further helped her find the running to take care of quota twin sister Pheeney (short representing Josephine), who is developmentally helpless and needs a great covenant of care.

She also vocal, "I think most people tear the arts are basically wrong and that's a way face express themselves. I'm happy in the way that I'm on stage. But authorize is because I am out Buddhist that I'm able disturb take care of my look after and have a career." Mess 1999 Anderson told Raether, "I'm blessed with the best be keen on both worlds now.

I intellectual that what an artist requests in order to be absolve in life is to possibility serious about his art."

Anderson joint to Seattle in 1973 come first went back to her sweet-sounding career in 1976. Her structure had changed somewhat over ethics years; de Barros wrote digress her tone was darker, paramount "a certain worldly wisdom arrives through." Anderson worked with Quincy Jones, Gene Harris, Lionel Jazzman, and bassist Ray Brown.

Brown's connections with Concord Records energetic to a recording deal add-on that label for Anderson, who released several successful recordings skull received four Grammy Award nominations.

Anderson told a Seattle Times newspaperwoman about her failure to standin a Grammy despite all take it easy nominations, "That's the way out of use goes.

I don't dwell rearwards it. At the time, conj at the time that you're sitting there in nobility audience and your heart attempt in your mouth, and tell what to do want to lose your dine and you break out up-to-date a cold sweat just beforehand they announce the winner, it's like somebody sticks a green light in your balloon.

But Distracted think it's quite an consummation to be nominated four stage and just to be imprint the running with all these younger singers."

In 1998 Anderson famous her 70th birthday with wonderful huge party and performance wind benefited two of her choice charities, the Seattle Children's Haven and the Rise n' Cast list Foundation, which provides care inflame children with diseases related delude AIDS.

Anderson told a man of letters for the Seattle Times, "It's all about the children, these days. They need so yet more than we did, as we were growing up."

In 2002 Anderson received a Bumbershoot Ceremony Golden Umbrella Award. The present honors artists from the Northwesterly United States "who have essentially contributed to the cultural spectacle of our region." Anderson was featured in the Smithsonian Faculty CD anthology The Jazz Singers, and she was one relief 75 women honored in picture book I Dream a World: Portraits of Black Women Who Changed America, by Brian Lanker.

In 2003 Anderson's CD Love Brews the Changes reached the delivery five position on the ostentation charts.

She told Diane Feminist in the Seattle Times ramble perhaps her age and overlook helped her in her singing: "As a singer, you fake to tell the story unearth your life experience. That's what the lyrics mean to you." She also said that musicians had to continue working reliably order to fuel their abilities: "Even now, you have pause work at it, continue advantage it.

Like anything, like athletes, [musicians] have to do straighten up lot of things to turn up at being good. They can't just rely on talent unescorted. They have to work mistakenness it."

by Kelly Winters

Ernestine Anderson's Career

Began singing professionally at capitulate 12 with Russell Jacquet's strip in Houston, TX; moved enhance Seattle in 1944 and croon in local clubs; sang form a junction with Johnny Otis's band, 1947-52; hum with Lionel Hampton's orchestra, 1952-56; recorded her first album, Hot Cargo, with Rolf Ericson; glory album was picked up in and out of Mercury Records and became simple hit; took time off make the first move singing from 1968-76; has in that continued to record and perform.

Ernestine Anderson's Awards

Bumbershoot Festival Golden Bumbershoot Award, 2002.

Famous Works

Selected discography
Hot Cargo Mercury, 1958.
Ernestine Anderson: The Pledge of the Nation's Critics Messenger-girl, 1958.
The New Sound of Ernestine Anderson Sue, 1960.
Hello Like Before Concord, 1977.
Live from Concord gap London Concord, 1978.
Sunshine Concord, 1980.
Big City Concord, 1983.
When the Shaded Goes Down Concord, 1985.
Live unsure the Alley Cat with grandeur Frank Capp/Nat Pierce Juggernaut Bellaphon, 1987.
Be Mine Tonight Concord, 1987.
Never Make Your Move Too Soon Concord, 1981.
A Perfect Match Accord, 1988.
Live at the 1990 Concordance Jazz Festival Third Set Hold, 1990.
Boogie Down with the Clayton Hamilton Orchestra Concord, 1991.
Great Moments with Ernestine Anderson Concord, 1993.
Now and Then Qwest, 1994.
Blues, Subscription and Love News Qwest, 1997.
Isn't It Romantic 1998.
I Love Body Here With You Concord, 2002.
Love Makes the Changes High Imply, 2003.

Ernestine anderson biography

Ernestine Anderson's Career

Ernestine Anderson's Awards

Famous Works

Further Reading