Yesterday was a birthday of my beloved Ella Fitzgerald.
Had she lived, she would have been 96 now.
This wonderful, wonderful singer was only an orphan who spent her youth shifted between the relatives and "reform" school (read: prison for under age children) and life had no other options for her until one memorable evening she went on a "talent search" night at celebrated "Apollo" theatre in Harlem,New York - just like Louis Armstrong who was a poor kid destined to escape ghetto poverty and reach for the stars, Ella couldn't possibly know how much her life would change. Initially she wanted to dance but seeing other contestants dressed up (and she was a poor kid in her street clothes) she changed her mind in the last moment and decided to sing. Audience that night was loud and merciless towards this big-boned, raggedy dressed girl but once she opened her mouth and start to sing, they all listened - she won the first prize of 25 dollars and a chance to professionally perform for a week. Bandleader Chick Webb noticed her, took care of her, included her in his shows and from than on Fitzgerald was unstoppable.
Fitzgerald was shy, big-boned woman, gifted with one of the most beautiful voices in the world and her sweet disposition made people around her protective and caring. A total opposite to party-loving, hard-living Billie "Lady Day" Holiday, Fitgerald was insecure and always had somebody else taking decisions - from Chick Webb (who wouldn't allow her to sing ballads and used her for happy, swinging, novelty ditties) to musicians, composers and eventually famous record producer and manager Norman Granz (who masterminded her serial of "american songbook" albums that made her international star) there was always somebody else arranging things for her. There were also two failed marriages where men obviously used her - the only time she was eloquent was when she poured her heart in slow, melancholic ballads but was also sensational in hard-swinging numbers where she improvised around the original melody like crazy. Her influence on thousands of singers around the world was HUGE - almost anybody in the 1950s and 1960s wanted to scat and improvise like her - scat singing was possible but nobody could touch her in ballads, the way she caressed words was her own special thing that even Fitzgerald herself could never explain.
As for myself, I worshipped Billie Holiday too long to actually appreciate Fitzgerald - for a long time I suspected her as sentimental and even now I am not completely convinced that her "american songbook" albums really represent composers ideas (Cole Porter famously said "She got good diction" when they asked him what he thinks of her recording his songs) but give her something happy and snappy and she would shine. It was later in life (like with so many other artists) that I finally gave her a chance and started truly enjoying her singing. The very first "songbook" I bought was the one with music by Irving Berlin, I still love that one very much. Of course Fitzgerald left a huge discography behind her and we can now enjoy all that recordings made at different points in her life - young, swinging Ella of 1930s and 1940s, mature golden-voiced Ella of 1950s and 1960s or much older and reflective Ella of her 1970s autumn years. There is so much beauty to be enjoyed and loved. Diabetes eventually took her away from us but she would always be remember as one of the music giants of 20th century - today when I see all these kids competing on talent shows and dazzling with choreography, costumes and whatnot I always wonder would anybody give her half a chance, because people like Fitzgerald or Edith Piaf were not blessed with looks, they had a genuine music talent and a good luck to have been loved for that.
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