Billie Holiday.

She is in my list. This woman is one of my favourite singers. What a lovely wrecked voice and song!

Two years before her death, in late 1957, she had one final burst of glory, when she sang "Fine and Mellow" (composed in 1939) on The Sound of Jazz telecast while joined by tenor saxophonist Lester Young (who stole the show with an emotional chorus) and other members of all-star band seen here: Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Gerry Mulligan, Roy Eldridge, Don Cheatham, Vic Dickenson, Danny Barker, Mit Hinton, Mal Waldrom.... Reunited after many years, introduced by Robert Herridge (producer/host of CBS' "The Sound of Jazz"), this is perhaps the single most famous "live jazz" performance in TV history. We shall not see them again.

Billie's visual reaction to L. Young's moving solo remains as eloquent as anything she ever sang; a touching finale to their historic musical partnership.

Billie's voice wasn't the biggest or even the best, hers was small which became the biggest one when she put all her emotional intensinty into the words she sang. As someone said, she delivers the hell out of a tune.
Her voice can make my heart ache. It is an experience not easily duplicated by strength of voice, tone, or precision; it is deeper than technique!

Here Lester is speaking to Billie with his horn and it is heart breaking. Her face
goes from ecstasy to bitterness to pain, as does her wrecked voice. The emotions come from their sounds. There you have jazz or blues.

She is in my list. This woman is one of my favourite singers. What a lovely wrecked voice and song!

Two years before her death, in late 1957, she had one final burst of glory, when she sang "Fine and Mellow" (composed in 1939) on The Sound of Jazz telecast while joined by tenor saxophonist Lester Young (who stole the show with an emotional chorus) and other members of all-star band seen here: Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Gerry Mulligan, Roy Eldridge, Don Cheatham, Vic Dickenson, Danny Barker, Mit Hinton, Mal Waldrom.... Reunited after many years, introduced by Robert Herridge (producer/host of CBS' "The Sound of Jazz"), this is perhaps the single most famous "live jazz" performance in TV history. We shall not see them again.

Billie's visual reaction to L. Young's moving solo remains as eloquent as anything she ever sang; a touching finale to their historic musical partnership.

Billie's voice wasn't the biggest or even the best, hers was small which became the biggest one when she put all her emotional intensinty into the words she sang. As someone said, she delivers the hell out of a tune.
Her voice can make my heart ache. It is an experience not easily duplicated by strength of voice, tone, or precision; it is deeper than technique!

Here Lester is speaking to Billie with his horn and it is heart breaking. Her face
goes from ecstasy to bitterness to pain, as does her wrecked voice. The emotions come from their sounds. There you have jazz or blues.