essay dont read it its a waste of your time
Emily Hilly
10/31/05
Block- B
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday, born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1918, is considered one of the greatest jazz singers of all time. Her difficult childhood mildly influenced her singing career and life. She was born in Philadelphia but grew up in the Fells Point section of Baltimore. She told her earlier life in her autobiography written in 1956. She says her house was the first house on her block to get electricity. Her mother was Sadie Fagan, who had Billie at the young age of 13 and her father, Clarence Holiday, was only 15. He was a jazz guitarist who would play for Fletcher Henderson. When Billie was three her parents got married, but later got divorced leaving Billie to be raised by only her mother and other relatives. This soon led her to dropping out of school, and becoming a prostitute with her mother. Sometime in the late 1930s, Billie and her mother would move to New York. Billie rarely ever saw her father. When she did see him it would just be to manipulate him into giving her money by threatening to tell his girlfriend that she was his daughter.
While living in Harlem, Billie started to sing at clubs. Record producer John Hammond at a club called Monette’s discovered her around 1932. He arranged a number of sessions for her with Benny Goodman, making her first recording “your mothers son in law”. Soon after she had her first performance it was at the Apollo Theater on November 23, 1964. She performed with her boyfriend at the time Bobby Henderson on the piano. The performance defined how she stood on being a jazz and blues singer. After the performance, Billie started performing in places such as clubs on 52nd Street in Manhattan. Though she had short range in her voice, she made up with impeccable timing, nuanced phrasing, and emotional immediacy. She went on to work with legends such as Lester Young, Count Basie, and Artie Shaw, breaking the black white barrier in music by being a black jazz singer performing with white musicians. Though she still had to use the back door when coming in to play a show, and had to wait in a dark room away from the audience before performing. After one performance she was nicknamed Lady Day with the white gardenia in her hair. She explained that the emotion and drama in her songs by saying, "I've lived songs like that". Even when she was younger and only sang pop tunes, she sang it with a distinct emotion that defined her.
Holiday was always one into recreational drugs such as marijuana at as young of an age of twelve or thirteen. But it was heroin that caused her to fall apart. She started around the 1940s, though it is not sure who it was that introduced it to her. Her ongoing problems with drugs alcohol and abusive relationships seemed to be a big contribution to her success. Her later music was no longer filled with a voice of youthful spirit, but a voice of regret. This did not change her influence on other later artists though. Even after her death on July 17, 1959 she influenced such singers as Janis Joplin and Nina Simone. In 1972 a movie was made based on the autobiography of Billie. Dana Ross, who played Billie in the movie, got nominated for best actress award. Billie also influenced U2 who wrote a tribute song to her called “Angel of Harlem”. Her life was filled with as much turbulence as her songs. She married trombonist Jimmy Monroe on August 25, 1941. While still married to Jimmy, she took up a common law marriage with a man named Joe guy, a trumpet player. She later divorced Monroe and split up with Guy.
She then got married to a man named Louis McKay, a Mafia enforcer. As in Billies other relationships, McKay was abusive to her, and did not try to get her off of drugs. They stayed together until Billie’s death.
Some jazz classics of hers are her most well known song "God Bless the Child", George Gershwin's "I Love You Porgy" and the powerful blues "Fine and mellow". One well know performance of her song “ Fine and mellow” on CBS's The Sound of Jazz program for her interplay with dear friend Lester Young, both being less than a year away from death.
She was arrested for possession of heroin and served 8 months in jail. Her New York City Cabaret Card was revoked, causing her to not be able to sing at clubs for the last 12 years of her life. In May 1959 she was taken to the hospital because of heart and liver problems. She was placed under house arrest in July of 1959 for addiction to narcotics. Policemen guarded her until her death at the age of 44 by cirrhosis.
10/31/05
Block- B
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday, born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1918, is considered one of the greatest jazz singers of all time. Her difficult childhood mildly influenced her singing career and life. She was born in Philadelphia but grew up in the Fells Point section of Baltimore. She told her earlier life in her autobiography written in 1956. She says her house was the first house on her block to get electricity. Her mother was Sadie Fagan, who had Billie at the young age of 13 and her father, Clarence Holiday, was only 15. He was a jazz guitarist who would play for Fletcher Henderson. When Billie was three her parents got married, but later got divorced leaving Billie to be raised by only her mother and other relatives. This soon led her to dropping out of school, and becoming a prostitute with her mother. Sometime in the late 1930s, Billie and her mother would move to New York. Billie rarely ever saw her father. When she did see him it would just be to manipulate him into giving her money by threatening to tell his girlfriend that she was his daughter.
While living in Harlem, Billie started to sing at clubs. Record producer John Hammond at a club called Monette’s discovered her around 1932. He arranged a number of sessions for her with Benny Goodman, making her first recording “your mothers son in law”. Soon after she had her first performance it was at the Apollo Theater on November 23, 1964. She performed with her boyfriend at the time Bobby Henderson on the piano. The performance defined how she stood on being a jazz and blues singer. After the performance, Billie started performing in places such as clubs on 52nd Street in Manhattan. Though she had short range in her voice, she made up with impeccable timing, nuanced phrasing, and emotional immediacy. She went on to work with legends such as Lester Young, Count Basie, and Artie Shaw, breaking the black white barrier in music by being a black jazz singer performing with white musicians. Though she still had to use the back door when coming in to play a show, and had to wait in a dark room away from the audience before performing. After one performance she was nicknamed Lady Day with the white gardenia in her hair. She explained that the emotion and drama in her songs by saying, "I've lived songs like that". Even when she was younger and only sang pop tunes, she sang it with a distinct emotion that defined her.
Holiday was always one into recreational drugs such as marijuana at as young of an age of twelve or thirteen. But it was heroin that caused her to fall apart. She started around the 1940s, though it is not sure who it was that introduced it to her. Her ongoing problems with drugs alcohol and abusive relationships seemed to be a big contribution to her success. Her later music was no longer filled with a voice of youthful spirit, but a voice of regret. This did not change her influence on other later artists though. Even after her death on July 17, 1959 she influenced such singers as Janis Joplin and Nina Simone. In 1972 a movie was made based on the autobiography of Billie. Dana Ross, who played Billie in the movie, got nominated for best actress award. Billie also influenced U2 who wrote a tribute song to her called “Angel of Harlem”. Her life was filled with as much turbulence as her songs. She married trombonist Jimmy Monroe on August 25, 1941. While still married to Jimmy, she took up a common law marriage with a man named Joe guy, a trumpet player. She later divorced Monroe and split up with Guy.
She then got married to a man named Louis McKay, a Mafia enforcer. As in Billies other relationships, McKay was abusive to her, and did not try to get her off of drugs. They stayed together until Billie’s death.
Some jazz classics of hers are her most well known song "God Bless the Child", George Gershwin's "I Love You Porgy" and the powerful blues "Fine and mellow". One well know performance of her song “ Fine and mellow” on CBS's The Sound of Jazz program for her interplay with dear friend Lester Young, both being less than a year away from death.
She was arrested for possession of heroin and served 8 months in jail. Her New York City Cabaret Card was revoked, causing her to not be able to sing at clubs for the last 12 years of her life. In May 1959 she was taken to the hospital because of heart and liver problems. She was placed under house arrest in July of 1959 for addiction to narcotics. Policemen guarded her until her death at the age of 44 by cirrhosis.