What was ella fitzgeralds most popular song

One of the band musicians heard her and suggested that he rearrange the theme for the stage. Ella Fitzgerald made a huge impact on jazz history with her talent as an improviser.

She played with her voice as a musician plays with his instrument, agilely launching into long scat sequences. It's not for nothing that the press named her the First Lady of Swing. Ella Fitzgerald had a natural sense of rhythm and swing, which still makes people want to dance.

As Ella Fitzgerald's favourite composer Duke Ellington wrote "It don't mean a thing, if it's not got that swing". A few years after the death of her first mentor, Chick Webb, the young singer met Norman Granz, the impresario who launched her career on international scale.

The two were married and eventually adopted a son, whom they named Ray, Jr. At the time, Ray was working for producer and manager Norman Granz on the "Jazz at the Philharmonic" tour.

Norman saw that Ella had what it took to be an international star, and he convinced Ella to sign with him. It was the beginning of a lifelong business relationship and friendship. Under Norman's management, Ella joined the Philharmonic tour, worked with Louis Armstrong on several albums and began producing her infamous songbook series. The series was wildly popular, both with Ella's fans and the artists she covered. Ella also began appearing on television variety shows.

Due to a busy touring schedule, Ella and Ray were often away from home, straining the bond with their son. Ultimately, Ray Jr. Unfortunately, busy work schedules also hurt Ray and Ella's marriage. The two divorced in , but remained good friends for the rest of their lives. On the touring circuit it was well-known that Ella's manager felt very strongly about civil rights and required equal treatment for his musicians, regardless of their color.

Norman refused to accept any type of discrimination at hotels, restaurants or concert halls, even when they traveled to the Deep South. Once, while in Dallas touring for the Philharmonic, a police squad irritated by Norman's principles barged backstage to hassle the performers.

They came into Ella's dressing room, where band members Dizzy Gillespie and Illinois Jacquet were shooting dice, and arrested everyone. Norman wasn't the only one willing to stand up for Ella. She received support from numerous celebrity fans, including a zealous Marilyn Monroe. She personally called the owner of the Mocambo, and told him she wanted me booked immediately, and if he would do it, she would take a front table every night. She told him - and it was true, due to Marilyn's superstar status - that the press would go wild.

The owner said yes, and Marilyn was there, front table, every night. The press went overboard. After that, I never had to play a small jazz club again. She was an unusual woman - a little ahead of her times. And she didn't know it. Ella continued to work as hard as she had early on in her career, despite the ill effects on her health. As adored and accessible as these immediately recognizable songs are, Fitzgerald was as much a pioneer as she was a powerhouse. The Scat Superlatives A list of the best Ella Fitzgerald songs simply must include a section on one specific part of her singing ability: With her exceptional enunciation, quick tongue, and mighty lungs, Ella Fitzgerald could deliver rapid-fire scat outbursts that took a straightforward performance into immortal territory.

Even when she flubbed the lines, she won over audiences. She also tackled the Duke Ellington song book as well. In , her manager, producer Norman Granz , brought her from Decca Records to his new label, Verve Records, where she focused on the American Songbook. The pared down arrangement featuring just Ella and a piano feels appropriately mournful and is quiet enough to hear her breath and lilting vibrato.

Few other recordings feel this intimate. By the end of the song, the outro swells with a sublime finale. Legend has it that Fitzgerald and beloved crooner Frank Sinatra loved to work together, but for several reasons they never recorded a studio album together. Recorded around when she was about 45, this track is a snapshot of Fitzgerald at her peak, when she was most well known as The First Lady of Song.