Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Singer

Ella Fitzgerald is among the finest female singers in the history of jazz music. She was the first female singer to make use of scat singing, a wordless form of vocalization that Louis Armstrong had introduced with his Hot Five recordings in the twenties. 

Possessing a flawless three-octave vocal range, immaculate intonation, and a horn-like improvisational agility, Fitzgerald fundamentally elevated the art of jazz singing. Her crystalline diction and warm, joyful delivery allowed her to effortlessly transition from heartbreaking ballads to complex, high-speed bebop improvisations. As the definitive interpreter of the Great American Songbook, she collaborated with the most prestigious instrumentalists of the twentieth century, establishing a towering recorded legacy that remains the gold standard for vocal excellence worldwide.

 

Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Virginia, in 1918. She got her first big break when a friend recommended her to New York bandleader Chick Webb. Webb was reluctant to hire Fitzgerald due to her appearance, which he considered homely. However, he relented and hired her, and Fitzgerald became a big hit in the role of vocalist. She recorded her first single, “Love and Kisses,” with Webb in 1935. Several more singles followed until she scored a massive hit with the song “A Tisket, A Tasket” in 1938 with the Webb Orchestra. That song would turn her into a star.

 

After Webb died in 1939, his band was renamed “Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Orchestra,” with Ella taking the role of bandleader until the band finally broke up in 1942.

 

In the Fifties, Fitzgerald started to record her own full-length solo albums, among them several classics that are highly recommended, such as “Ella Sings Gershwin” (1950), “Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook" (1956), “Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rogers and Hart Songbook” (1956), “Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Songbook” (1958), and "Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook” (1959).

 

Essential Album Review: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook (1956) 

This landmark double album represents the spectacular inaugural entry in Fitzgerald’s legendary Songbook series for Verve Records. Orchestrated by Buddy Bregman, the tracking captures Ella breathing sparkling new life into Cole Porter’s witty, sophisticated lyrics and complex melodic lines. Her delivery strikes a flawless balance between playful swing and reverent phrasing, providing an audio blueprint that permanently established her as a premier solo album artist in the high-fidelity era. 

• Released: May 1956 
• Label: Verve Records 
• Producer: Norman Granz 
• Core Personnel: Ella Fitzgerald (Vocals), Buddy Bregman (Arranger, Conductor), Paul Smith (Piano), Barney Kessel (Guitar) 
• Key Tracks: "Miss Otis Regrets", "I Get a Kick Out of You", "Night and Day" 

Essential Album Review: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook (1956) 

Released hot on the heels of her initial triumph, this brilliant multi-LP set dives deep into the intricate, bittersweet catalog of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. Fitzgerald’s bright vocal tone perfectly matches the clever, melancholy character of the compositions. Supported by a lush yet nimble studio orchestra, her tracking displays an unparalleled emotional maturity, showing mainstream music audiences exactly how jazz phrasing can illuminate American popular theater. 

• Released: October 1956 
• Label: Verve Records 
• Producer: Norman Granz 
• Core Personnel: Ella Fitzgerald (Vocals), Buddy Bregman (Arranger, Conductor), Ted Nash (Woodwinds), Maynard Ferguson (Trumpet) 
• Key Tracks: "The Lady Is a Tramp", "Spring Is Here", "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" 

Essential Album Review: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook (1959) 

Widely considered the absolute pinnacle of her archival recordings, this monumental five-LP box set remains a towering masterpiece of twentieth-century American vocal media. Working alongside master arranger Nelson Riddle, Fitzgerald delivers definitive interpretations of the Gershwin brothers' most complex melodies and brilliant rhythmic variations. It stands as an essential, staggeringly ambitious historical document that bridges classic jazz improvisation and symphonic pop architecture. 

• Released: November 1959 
• Label: Verve Records 
• Producer: Norman Granz 
• Core Personnel: Ella Fitzgerald (Vocals), Nelson Riddle (Arranger, Conductor), Lou Levy (Piano), Herb Ellis (Guitar) 
• Key Tracks: "I Got Rhythm", "Someone to Watch Over Me", "But Not for Me" 

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