Ella Fitzgerald

by StuartNicholson (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2001

  $3.25

  Ella Fitzgerald lived to sing - and not only because she sang so superlatively well. Only in the ecstatic excitement of performance could she leave behind a life that was often unhappy: the voice that transported generations of listeners took Ella herself to a place where she was in control. This remarkable biography cuts through the legend of Ella to the reality, but it reaches the woman by setting the singer where she always wanted to be: on centre stage. The first biographer to place Ella's music firmly in the foreground, Stuart Nicholson ends up creating by far the fullest picture yet of one of the most enigmatic, but unforgettable personalities in jazz.

• Used

  Paperback
  1995

  $3.25

  This biography of Ella Fitzgerald provides an account of a poor black girl's determination to realize the American Dream, in the face of constant racial and sexual prejudice. It also examines the influences of bandleader Chick Webb and her manager Norman Granz, and the happiness she found with a Norwegian called Thor Larsen, after two failed marriages. Through interviews with Ella Fitzgerald herself, and the musicians with whom she worked, the book reflects the remarkable paradoxes in her life. It also celebrates her music, analyzing and discussing her finest work, and the author's analysis is illuminated with the co-operation of the singer Mel Torme, who provides insights into her technique, style and musicianship. Stuart Nicholson is a journalist and former jazz musician, and the author of Jazz: The Modern Resurgence .