Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald is a legendary American jazz singer famed for her unsurpassed vocals and life full of hardships. She was born in Newport News, Virginia, April 25, 1917. After the separation of her parents, the girl moved to New York with her mother. Since her early childhood years, Ella was interested in dancing and singing she practiced with her friends. There were evenings when they got on the train to Harlem to enjoy the performances of amateur artists. On her mother’s death in a car accident, Ella was raised by her aunt, Virginia. Youth period became the most difficult time in Ella’s life. She committed a number of offences and was once sent to the reform school she managed to escape. Aged fifteen, the future jazz superstar found herself homeless and starving close to death. In 1934, the girl was given a chance to compete in the young talents tournament at a New York theatre. She was going to do dancing first, but changed her mind and demonstrated the vocal skills. The jury found them excellent and permitted her to participate in the competition. Ella grabbed the victory.

January 1935 was the time of Fitzgerald’s first performances on the Tiny Bradshaw band led by Chic Webb. These were the first concerts she was paid for. In a year, Ella released her first record, Love And Issues, produced by Decca. She became widely popular after the delivery of the nursery rhyme A-Tisket,A-Tasket (1938), sold in one million copies. Tiny Bradshaw got renamed to Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Band. After Chic Webb died, she headed the band. Soon, Ella disbanded the ensemble to launch her solo career. She fell in love with Ray Brown, bassist, in 1946. It resulted in their marriage shortly after the meeting. It lasted only till 1952. Ray introduced her to ambitious manager Norman Granz who persuaded Ella to move to his label. 1954 through 1964, Fitzgerald released a number of albums composed of the songs of celebrities including Cole Porter, Duke Ellington and George Gershwin. She became a regular guest of popular TV shows and concerts. Ella’s performances always stood out for their boundless cheerfulness. She put her love for life in her manner of singing. That was why her optimistic songs sounded better than downbeat compositions. Besides, the singer was an absolute master of scat vocals replacing lyrics with music imitating sounds. In 1974, she spent two weeks in New York performing on one stage with Frank Sinatra and William Basie. During this event, Ella was rewarded with Kennedy Center Honors for her contribution to arts.

Fitzgerald was celebrated for her charity primarily aimed at aids for disadvantaged youth. After her sister’s death, Ella decided to take care of her family. In 1986, the singer experienced a coronary bypass surgery. She ignored the recommendations of her doctors and continued active touring and recording. For her great achievements in the field of music, Fitzgerald received awards from President Ronald Reagan and the French government, and doctorates from a number of universities. Her long time career produced over two hundred albums. In 1990, Ella’s health was weakened by diabetes to the extent of losing sight. In year, the singer gave her last concert which took place in New York. In 1993, she had both legs amputated and kept fighting for her life desperately. Ella spent the remnant of her life with her dearly loved son and granddaughter. Ella Fitzgerald died in her house in Beverly Hills June 15, 1996. She remained known in the history of jazz and music in general as the First Lady of Song.