Teddi King

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Teddi King (* 18th September 1929 as Theodora King in Revere , Massachusetts ; † 18th November 1977 ) was an American jazz - and pop - singer .

Live and act

King began her musical career in the late 1940s at the end of the big band era with local bands such as Ray Dorey and Nat Pierce . George Shearing recognized her potential and took her on tours for a few years, remained connected to her for years and made recordings with her. George Wein became her manager, and King recorded a number of albums for the Storyville record label before signing a deal with the major RCA Victor label . Her first album on the label was Bidin 'my Time . She had a chart hit in 1956 with the title Mr. Wonderful . Her contract with RCA ended in 1958; afterwards an album was created on the "Coral" label. a. was accompanied by Jimmy Cleveland and Charlie Shavers . It was the critically acclaimed album All the Kings' Songs , in which she interpreted the songs of contemporary singers such as Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole (the "Kings", on which the title of the album alludes). In 1960 she was accompanied by Al Cohn's band on the album Bidin 'my Time . However, attempts were made to market her as a pop singer, whereupon she decided to stop working for large record companies.

From 1962 she sang exclusively for the Playboy Club in New York ; until 1970 no records were made, and there were no further live, TV or radio appearances. After her contract with Playboy expired, she fell ill; from then on she suffered from lupus , an impairment of her autoimmune system. Nevertheless, she had a short comeback with an album with Dave McKenna in 1977, two more albums were released posthumously. When an enthusiastic fan, but suffering from meningitis , kissed her after a concert in North Carolina ended , she passed away two days later.

She sang in a swinging style, much like singers Lee Wiley , Helen Ward , Maxine Sullivan , Mildred Bailey and Mabel Mercer . Teddi King was not in the limelight in her career like her contemporaries Carmen McRae or Anita O'Day , but she enjoyed a great reputation with her music colleagues and was considered a "singer's singer" .

Selection discography

  • Storyville Presents Teddi King (1954, Storyville)
  • Now in Vogue (1955, Storyville)
  • Bidin 'My Time (1956, RCA)
  • A Girl and Her Songs (1957, RCA)
  • To You From Teddi King (1957, RCA)
  • All the King's Songs (1959, Coral / M & M)
  • Teddi King with Al Cohn and his Orchestra: Bidin 'My Time (RCA / Fresh Sound Records, 1960) with Hal McKusick , Gene Quill , Hank Jones , Freddie Green , Osie Johnson
  • This is New (1977, Inner City)
  • Lovers and Losers (1978, Audiophile)
  • Someone to Light Up Your Life (1979, Audiophile)
  • In the Beginning, 1949-1954 (compilation, 2000, Baldwin Street Music)

literature

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ cf. Bloom, p. 227
personal data
SURNAME King, Teddi
ALTERNATIVE NAMES King, Theodora (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American jazz and pop singer
DATE OF BIRTH September 18, 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Revere (Massachusetts) , USA
DATE OF DEATH November 18, 1977