Ella Fitzgerald was one of the great artists of the 20th century; surely she needs no introduction here. Best known for her jazz renditions, Fitzgerald could belt the blues too. included are pics from the National Zoo, for your morning cuteness quotient. Enjoy!
Blues in the Night
"Blues in the Night" is a popular song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook. The music was written by Harold Arlen, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for a 1941 film begun with the working title Hot Nocturne, but finally released as Blues in the Night.
From the YouTube description
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St. Louis Blues
Radio Broadcast of Ella Fitzgerald and Chick Webb from the Savoy Ballroom, Harlem, NY. I believe this recording to be from early 1939 before the decline in Chick Webb’s health. Arguably one of Ella and Chick's finest works.
From the YouTube description
Basin Street Blues (w/Louis Armstrong)
[“Basin Street Blues”] was composed by Spencer Williams and originally recorded by Louis Armstrong – two New Orleanians who grew up on and around Basin Street. However, when the song was recorded in 1928, the street no longer existed. City leaders, anxious to erase the area’s reputation for legal prostitution, had changed the street’s name to the innocuous “North Saratoga.”
sweeneygumbo.com/...
A New Shade of Blues
I'm very shy, and I shy away from people. But the moment I hit the stage, it's a different feeling I get nerve from somewhere; maybe it's because it's something I love to do.
Ella Fitzgerald
Mack the Knife
Just for fun
[The song’s] roots go back to the 1720s, when a play called The Beggar’s Opera by John Gay debuted in London…. The plot concerns a highwayman hero named Macheath who elopes with a young woman, only to be turned in to the authorities by her father. Macheath escapes jail and indulges in all sorts of sensual pleasures and farcical romps along the way.
www.smithsonianmag.com/...
Have a delightful day!
