This page contains Shirley Horn songs, albums and video links. Music profile for Shirley Horn with events, tracks, videos, pictures, lyrics and band information.
Shirley Valerie Horn (May 1, 1934 in Washington, D.C. – October 20, 2005) was an American jazz singer and pianist.
Introduction
Shirley Horn collaborated with many jazz greats including Miles Davis (they influenced each other), Dizzy Gillespie, Toots Thielemans, Ron Carter, Carmen McRae, Wynton Marsalis and others. She was most noted for her ability to accompany herself with nearly incomparable independence and ability on the piano while singing, something described by arranger Johnny Mandel as "like having two heads", and for her rich, lush voice, a smoky contralto (that occasionally rose to a glorious, ringing belt), which was described by noted producer and arranger Quincy Jones as "like clothing, as she seduces you with her voice". Although she could swing as strongly as any straight-ahead jazz artist, Horn's reputation rode on her exquisite ballad work. She tended to take love songs at a glacial tempo, expertly weaving her soft singing (typically in whispery, short phrases like wisps of cigarette smoke) with her gorgeous Impressionist music|Impressionist piano chordings and unique dynamic control (a clear example of her artistry can be found in her cover of Jule Styne's ''The Music that Makes Me Dance'', found on her album''You Won't Forget Me'').
Horn has also been cited by noted Canadian jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall as a major... read all
