Connee Boswell (2)

CONNEE BOSWELL - SINGS IRVING BERLING

Original Release Date: 1957
Label: Simitar Ent.

1. Cheek To Cheek
2. White Christmas
3. Alexander's Ragtime Band
4. There's No Business Like Show Business
5. All By Myself
6. How Deep Is The Ocean
7. Blue Skies
8. All Alone
9. Always
10. Maybe It's Because I Love You Too Much

One of the finest jazz singers of the 1930's, Connee Boswell (who was always cited by Ella Fitzgerald as her main early influence) originally rose to fame as a member of the Boswell Sisters, one of the premiere jazz vocal groups. Connee contracted polio as an infant and always used a wheelchair although her disability was usually well covered up on stage. Early on she played cello, piano, alto sax and trombone but unfortunately never recorded on any instruments. The three Boswell Sisters (with Martha on piano and Vet on violin) did have an opportunity to perform with the New Orleans Philharmonic but soon they gave up playing their instruments (except for Martha on piano) and chose to work on developing as a vocal group. Although they recorded both "Nights When I'm Lonely" and Connee's solo number "I'm Gonna Cry" in 1925, the Boswells did not begin catching on (and recording regularly) until late-1930. During 1931-36 the Boswell Sisters became quite popular on radio and in concert, making occasional appearances in films (most notably 1932's The Big Broadcast). During the same period, Connee Boswell (who worked out most of the Boswell's surprising arrangements) occasionally recorded solo sides of her own. When Vet and Martha got married and decided to retire from singing in 1936, Connee (who also was married during the same period) officially launched her own solo career. Although she never broke through to become a major star, Connee Boswell was fairly well-known and worked steadily into the 1950's, appearing in some films (including "Kiss The Boys Goodbye" and "Syncopation") and on the short-lived television show Pete Kelly's Blues. Most notable of her recordings was a 1937 session with Bob Crosby's Bob Cats that resulted in inventive and hard-swinging versions of "Martha" and "Home On The Range." Connee Boswell also recorded a notable (but long-out-of-print) 1956 jazz album with Billy Butterfield, Miff Mole and Jimmy Lytell, who came together as the Original Memphis Five. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

CONNEE BOSWELL - CONNEE (1957)

A1.My Melancholy Baby
A2.I'd Climb the Highest Mountain (If I Knew I'd Find You)
A3.Ain't Misbehavin'
A4.I Ain't Got Nobody (And Nobody Cares for Me)
A5.The Little Things in Life
A6.This Can't Be Love
B1.Star Dust
B2.Honey
B3.If I Had You
B4.You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me
B5.Exactly Like You
B6.Lullaby in Rhythm

Constance Foore "Connee" Boswell (December 3, 1907, Kansas City, Missouri – October 11, 1976, New York, NY) was an American female vocalist born in Kansas City but raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. With her sisters, Martha and Helvetia "Vet" Boswell, she performed in the 1930s as The Boswell Sisters and became a highly influential singing group during this period via recordings and radio. Connee herself is widely considered one of the greatest jazz female vocalists and was a major influence on Ella Fitzgerald who said, "My mother brought home one of her records, and I fell in love with it....I tried so hard to sound just like her."
In 1936, Connee's sisters retired and Connee continued on as a solo artist (having also recorded solos during her years with the group).