Ella 101

An odd novelty tune, 1946's "Stone Cold Dead in the Market (He Had It Coming)" placed Ella Fitzgerald in the studio with swing master Louis Jordan to…

Ella Fitzgerald and legendary bandleader/pianist Count Basie shared an innate sense of rhythm and swing that made them a great pair, and they teamed up a…

In yesterday's post, I discussed Ella Fitzgerald's involvement in the Jack Webb film Pete Kelly's Blues, and shared her two musical numbers from the…

To mark the end of the first month of Ella 100, today we celebrate the first of only two feature film appearances made by Ella Fitzgerald.The movie is…

Along with being one of the greatest voices of all time, Ella Fitzgerald was celebrated as one of the world's most talented scat singers - "scatting"…

No legendary musician's catalogue is complete without at least one winter holiday album, and Ella Fitzgerald's 1960 Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas…

By the 1950s, Billie Holiday was known as a peerless blues singer among jazz musicians. However, in 1963, Ella Fitzgerald did something Billie never…

From 1962's Ella Swings Gently with Nelson, the second of two albums Ella Fitzgerald recorded that year with arranger/conductor Nelson Riddle, comes this…

In 1962, Verve Records released Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd's smash hit Jazz Samba album and set the world aflame, bringing the bossa nova out of Brazil…

One of the earliest entries in Ella Fitzgerald's nearly six-decade career is "All My Life," recorded with pianist and bandleader Teddy Wilson. The song…

Hoagy Carmichael and Frank Loesser's classic "Heart and Soul," known to piano students the world over, was one of many solid recordings made during Ella…

A little-known novelty song in Ella Fitzgerald's catalogue, "Ringo Beat" was a "tribute from the elder generation — a jazz grande dame trying to get with…