Barbara Lea
Barbara Lea (actually: Barbara Ann LeCocq; born April 10, 1929 in Detroit , † December 26, 2011 in Raleigh , North Carolina ) was an American jazz singer and actress .
Live and act
Lea is a descendant of the French composer Charles Lecocq . She studied music theory from 1951 at Wellesley College . In the early 1950s, influenced by her role model Lee Wiley , she began to perform as a singer. In 1954 the first recordings were made in New York with musicians around Eddie Barefield , Pee Wee Erwin , Cutty Cutshall and George Wettling ; In 1955, Riverside Records released her debut album A Woman in Love with the Billy Taylor Trio, as well as Jimmy Shirley and Johnny Windhurst . From 1961 to 1980 she also worked as an actress ( Rebellion in Cuba ); from 1970 she taught acting and speaking at various institutes. From the late 1980s she appeared with various big bands , such as Bob January, Loren Schoenberg , Ed Polcer and Benny Goodman .
Leonard Feather quoted critic Mike Butcher in his appreciation:
- “That rarity in this day and age, a singer whose voice is a musical instrument, whose reading of a lyric makes complete sense, who knows how to phrase and shade, has style, charm, and the ability to evoke the opulent glamor of night on the town with caviar and champagne. "
Discographic notes
- A Woman in Love (Riverside, 1955)
- Barbara Lea (Prestige, 1956) with Dick Cary, Johnny Windhurst, Al Hall , Dick Hyman , Osie Johnson
- Lea in Love (Prestige, 1957) with Johnny Windhurst, Ernie Caceres , Garvin Bushell , Dick Cary , Jimmy Raney
- Do It Again (Audiophile, 1983) with Billy Butterfield , Vic Dickenson , Johnny Mince
- The Devil Is Afraid of Music (Audiophile, 1992) with Loonis McGlohon , Bob Mitchell , Dick Cary, Dave Koonse , Putter Smith
- Remembering Lee Wiley (Audiophile, 1995) with
- The Melody Lingers On (1997)
- Celebrate Vincent Youmans (Challenge, 2004) with Keith Ingham
Lexical entry
- Leonard Feather , Ira Gitler : The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press, New York 1999, ISBN 0-19-532000-X .
Web links
- Barbara Lea in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Barbara Lea at Allmusic (English)
- Barbara Lea at Discogs (English)
- Discography
- Web presence
Individual evidence
- ↑ Obituary
- ^ Leonard Feather , Ira Gitler : The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press, Oxford, etc. 1999; P. 405
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Lea, Barbara |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | LeCocq, Barbara Ann (maiden name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American jazz singer and actress |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 10, 1929 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Detroit |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 26, 2011 |
| Place of death | Raleigh , North Carolina |