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JONI JAMES

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Joni James (born Giovanna 'Joan' Carmella Babbo, September 22 1930, Chicago, Illinois) is an United States|American singer of traditional pop music.

Biography
James was born into an Italian family in Chicago. As an adolescence|adolescent, she studied drama and ballet, and on graduating from high school, went with a local dance group on a tour of Canada. She then took a job as a chorus girl in the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago. After doing a fill-in in Indiana, she decided to pursue a singing career. Some executives at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) spotted her in a television commercial, and she was signed by MGM in 1952. Her first hit record|hit, "Why Don't You Believe Me?" sold over a million copies. She had a number of hits following that one, including "Your Cheatin' Heart" (a cover version|cover of Hank Williams' hit) and "Have You Heard?"

She was reportedly the first American to sound recording and reproduction|record at London's Abbey Road Studios, and recorded five albums there. She was also very popular across parts of the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in the Philippines where she performed at Manila's now defunct EM Club in 1957. She also scored a big hit in Manila with Filipino composer Salvador Asuncion's work entitled "In Despair."

James had seven Top 40|Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 record chart|chart.... read all