Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Jacqueline Caryl Dankworth was born on February 5, 1963 in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England to jazz singer Cleo Laine and saxophonist John Dankworth. She attended St. Christopher School in Hertfordshire and is an alumna and fellow of Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
She worked as an actress with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and in West End theatre. She played Cinderella in the musical Into the Woods and appeared in the film Shoreditch, singing the song My Man by Billie Holiday.
2003 saw Dankworth releasing her debut album As the Sun Shines Down On Me on Candid Records. This album brought her to the attention of Michael Parkinson and BBC Radio 2, and she appeared regularly on air throughout that year.
She was featured on Courtney Pine’s album Devotion, and performed with him at the Royal Festival Hall as part of the London Jazz Festival. Her sophomore album with the 2004 release, Detour Ahead. Since then she has recorded a total of seven albums.
She was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2019 Birthday Honours for services to music. Vocalist Jacqui Dankworth continues to perform, tour and record.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Cindy Scott was born in Tupelo, Mississippi on February 3, 1966 into an extended family of musicians and educators. Her mother was a concert pianist, and her father played fifteen instruments and they were both band directors. She has two sisters who are musicians and educators, and her cousin, guitarist and teacher Charlie Hall founded the Black Rose Acoustic Society in Colorado Springs and Colorado Roots Music Camp.
She received a music scholarship by Louisiana State University and played flute and piccolo in the wind ensemble while earning a degree in German. She later earned a Masters in International Business from the University of South Carolina. Scott embarked on a corporate career while continuing to perform and study music. 2005 saw Cindy dedicating herself fully to her musical pursuits and enrolled in the Jazz Studies program at the University of New Orleans.
Although Scott spent many years working in the corporate world, she always had one foot in the music world as a performer, bandleader, and student of the music. She recorded her first album Major to Minor in Houston, Texas in 2001 and released it the following year. She would go on to record a total of albums as a leader, eight as a sideperson and has produced two albums to date.
Cindy has held the position of Associate Professor of Music at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts since 2016 and is also the Director of Berklee’s Vocal Summit.
Vocalist Cindy Scott, who also plays the guitar and flute, continues to teach at camps and workshops around the world in addition to her performing and touring.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Naomi Taylor was born January 2, 1967 in Nassau, Bahamas and was the last of four girls born to missionary parents. Absorbed in gospel and classical music before she was able to talk at the tender age of six, her musical talents surfaced when she and her sisters performed as an “a cappella” quartet. Her rich alto/tenor blend and her ability to harmonize at such a young age came as a pleasant surprise to many. She discovered that she was able to pick up just about any musical instrument for the first time and play away, even though she was never taught.
With her musical talents growing, Naomi spent countless hours listening to singing quartets, captivated by the close harmony and often adding her own creative synchronization to compliment a tune. Her early singing career encompassed performances with various local choirs and musical groups, including The Bahamas National Youth Choir, the Renaissance Singers and Bel Canto.
She developed her musical talent under the mentorship of Mr. Cleophas Adderley. Though very talented, she shied away from solo performances, opting for singing within the security of a line-up or choir. Taylor sought out private lessons from pianist and vocal coach Lee Callender. This serendipitous meeting, then catapulted her into the world of jazz by reconnecting with bassist and bandleader Adrian D’Aguilar.
In 2008 she released her first recording The Other Side of Love, a compilation of warm and beautiful jazz standards. The recording features pianist Lou Rainone, saxophonist Ralph Munnings, percussionist Neil Symonette, bassist Adrian D’Aguilar and composer/guitarist Fred Ferguson.
Today, vocalist Naomi Taylor’s committed to jazz has her performing with Lee Calendar or Jazz Etcetera at the Oyster Bar in Nassau.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Holly Cole was born November 25, 1963 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada to a noted radio broadcasting father on the CBC Stereo network. Seeking a musical career, in 1983 she travelled to Toronto, Canada and three years later she founded a trio with bassist David Piltch and pianist Aaron Davis. It took two more years to get offered a record deal and in 1989 the Holly Cole Trio released an EP, Christmas Blues. The following year she released her debut album Girl Talk.
A succession of releases followed through the early 1990s covering r&b, blues, rock, country and show tunes with a jazz arrangement. In 1993 Holly’s hit single cover version of the Johnny Nash song I Can See Clearly Now earned a Juno Award nomination for Best Video and won a Juno Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album, in 1994.
During the Nineties decade she appeared in film and television, releasing a track on the soundtrack of the Due South series. From 1993 to 1998 she recorded and released an album a year, took a break from recording, coming back in 2000 and recorded four more albums until 2007. In 2010, Cole contributed a track for the World Jazz For Haiti charity album.
In 2012 she got her original band back together again, added John Johnson on horns, guitarist Rob Piltch, Davide DiRenzo on drums and recorded a live album and dvd. She has been featured in several music specials which have rendered her multiple awards.
Vocalist Holly Cole, who has released 17 albums and received an honorary degree from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, continues to perform and record.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
George Connell Elrick was born on December 29, 1903 in Aberdeen, Scotland. His first ambition was to be a doctor but financial constraints prevented this. Still in his teens, he began playing drums for local dance bands and by 1928 had formed his own band, the Embassy Band. The group swept the prizes in the All-Scottish Dance Band Championship that year.
Turning professional, George moved to London, England where he became friends with the crooner Al Bowlly, and began singing himself. He joined the Henry Hall Orchestra as a vocalist and drummer and their 1936 recording of The Music Goes Round and Round made him a star. Leaving Hall in 1937 he formed his own band, and two years later began his solo career, which was moderately successful through the years of World War II.
In 1948, he took a touring revue around Britain, and was asked by the BBC to stand in for two weeks as disc-jockey on the morning record request show Housewives’ Choice. The temporary job lasted almost twenty years, as his Scottish accent and liberal use of catchphrases became highly popular.
In later years, he became something of an impresario and acted as an agent for numerous musicians such as Mantovani. He was a member of the Grand Order of Water Rats, and was also a life member of the Variety Club of Great Britain.
Drummer George Elrick, who published his autobiography titled Housewives’ Choice: The George Elrick Story, died on December 15, 1999.
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